Had the algorithms been determined entirely on their own, there would have been great danger to both life and health.
Every minute, 3.8 million searches are done on Google, but it is far from always that the search engine algorithms do a good enough job.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Google has on several occasions recently been forced to seek help from people to ensure that inappropriate information is not listed at the top of certain searches. For example, those searching for “suicide” now receive information on where to turn for help rather than instructions on how to kill themselves.
Furthermore, searches for “vaccines” no longer lead to sites claiming that vaccines cause autism, a conspiracy theory that has helped many parents not protect their children from life-threatening illnesses.
Google has also changed the rules for what keywords are suggested in connection with searches on celebrities like Britney Spears, this as the algorithms focus more on scandals than music.
In this context, it can be pointed out that there is criticism that Google lets people decide which search results are displayed, as there is a risk that it will ultimately be the company’s employees who decide what we think and think about various issues.
