Google said Thursday that it has recently adjusted its algorithms and the guidelines used by the people that rate its search results to elevate original reporting.
Why it matters: The moves aim to provide an incentive for news organizations to focus on fresh reporting as opposed to quick aggregation of other news reports.
Details: Google has rolled out 2 updates over the past few months.
- The company has adjusted its algorithms to ensure that original reporting stays near the top of search results longer.
- It has updated the guidelines that people use to evaluate search ratings to help them identify what original reporting looks like.
The big picture: News aggregation has become a big part of the online news business, thanks in part to the way publishers were rewarded by search and social media algorithms to deliver buzzy content, quickly.
Be smart: There's been an increase in pressure on Google and other tech companies to elevate quality news and information ahead of the 2020 election.
- Facebook, for example, says it is investing millions of dollars to pay publishers to provide content for a new "news tab."
Yes, but: These changes by Google have long been sought by news publishers, and the platform has been working on the issue for a long time. But according to Gingras, the company's technology has improved so much over the past decade that the adjustments are easier to make now.
The bottom line: In an era when fabricated news has become a universal and bipartisan concern, lawmakers, interest groups and market forces are pushing to give content companies leverage over the technology companies that distribute the content they create.
Go deeper: Power pendulum swings back to news companies
