Google's search results aren't as unbiased as you think - and a lack of diversity could be the cause...

Google is sometimes regarded as the 'perfect' search engine - it's certainly the most popular one on the web, mostly for the way it easily and accurately indexes the world's knowledge in a straightforward, unbiased way.

However, the algorithms and processes that make up Google's search results are designed and built by humans - who have their own prejudices, experiences and biases.

This issue was discussed in a February TEDx talk by Swedish journalist and lecturer Andreas Ekström, titled 'The myth of the unbiased search result'.

In the talk, Ekström mentions two separate incidents of 'Googlebombing' - the practice of manipulating Google's algorithms to get a piece of content to the top of the search results for a given topic, usually with an agenda in mind.

The first he mentions occurred shortly after the election of Barack Obama in 2009. A group started a racist campaign to try and get a distorted image of First Lady Michelle Obama which made her look like a monkey to the top of the image search result for 'Michelle Obama'. Full story...

Related posts:

1. How Google’s algorithm silences minority opinions...
2. How Google and Facebook manipulate and determine your searches...
3. Kevin Slavin: How algorithms shape our world...
4. How Google is erasing the human brain with every search...
5. De-Google your life: it’s worth the hassle if you value your privacy...