Re:Google Rewrites Its Powerful Search Rankings to Bury Fake...
by colordrops on Tuesday April 25, 2017 @12:57PM
(#14195533)
This is most likely answer I've heard on the motivations behind news filtering. It really exposes the ethical dilemma of taking a supposedly neutral carrier type service and using it to promote a political agenda, regardless of how righteous that agenda is.
Re:Google Rewrites Its Powerful Search Rankings to Bury Fake...
by darpa_escapee on Tuesday April 25, 2017 @03:40PM
(#14197246)
I find it more likely that their advertising partners don't want the brands and companies they represent to be associated with fake, possibly libellous and politically inflammatory content.
Re:Google Rewrites Its Powerful Search Rankings to Bury Fake...
by xienze on Tuesday April 25, 2017 @05:48PM
(#14198412)
Yeah they _just_ figured out that this kind of stuff exists on the Internet...
Re:Google Rewrites Its Powerful Search Rankings to Bury Fake...
by darpa_escapee on Thursday April 27, 2017 @11:19AM
(#14212134)
It _just_ started reaching the mainstream and causing serious controversies.
Their employees certainly think it is.
The reason Google/Facebook/Twitter/Reddit/etc. are so obsessed with fake news at the moment is because their employees believe that their product, which was supposed to "change the world for the better!" inadvertently helped Trump be elected. I'm sure more than a few Valley employees have had nervous breakdowns over this.
Now, banning Trump from Facebook or Twitter would be a little bit too obvious, so they're doing the next best thing: making sure, under the guise of "keeping you safe from fake news", that Trump or Trump 2.0 can't leverage their offerings to help his cause.