The company has started showing notifications for searches on emerging topics, which suggest that users return later when more information is available. The notice is Google’s latest efforts to mitigate misinformation in search results for breaking news. In a blog post, Danny Sullivan, public liaison for search at Google, said that sometimes reliable information isn’t online at the time that users search: The feature was first spotted by Stanford Internet Observatory researcher Renee DiResta, who described it as a “positive step.”
— Renee DiResta (@noUpside) June 23, 2021 Google has long been criticized for letting unreliable sources and conspiracy theories reach the top of search results for rapidly evolving stories. [Read: Why entrepreneurship in emerging markets matters] Twitter and Facebook have faced similar accusations. Karen North, an expert in social media at the University of Southern California, told the New York Times in 2018 that users can game ranking algorithms in these situations: The warnings may help stem the tide of misinformation, but they could also exacerbate concerns about Google censoring alternative media outlets. Greetings Humanoids! Did you know we have a newsletter all about AI? You can subscribe to it right here.
