Forbes pulls story critical of Google in order to appease techno tyrant
09/07/2017 // Jayson Veley // Views

Google is starting to look more and more like a bully with each passing day. Through a series of algorithms and guidelines, they are actively targeting conservative voices on the Internet that do not conform to the progressive agenda. In a pathetic attempt to hide the fact that this is anything but a politicized witch hunt, Google often claims that it is suppressing these voices in the interest of combating “hate speech,” a strategy that has also been used by social media companies like Facebook and Twitter as of late. What’s worse is that this strategy appears to be working – Google is successfully controlling which content is acceptable and which isn’t, and all the while, the freedom of speech is being tossed out the window.

Late last month, former Forbes writer Kashmir Hill published an article on Gizmodo.com discussing an experience she had with Google a few years back, whereby the search engine giant censored an article that was critical of the way in which the company operates.

Hill describes a meeting she attended with Google salespeople regarding Google’s social media network, Plus. Allegedly, the salespeople were trying to get Forbes to add a “+1” social button to their website, which is similar to the “like” button on Facebook. They told Hill that adding the +1 button was important because its presence would play a significant role in how much traffic would be directed to the site.

“I asked the Google people if I understood correctly: If a publisher didn’t put a +1 button on the page, its search results would suffer? The answer was yes,” Hill wrote. “After the meeting, I approached Google’s public relations team as a reporter, told them I’d been in the meeting, and asked if I understood correctly. The press office confirmed it, though they preferred to say the Plus button ‘influences the ranking.’ They didn’t deny what their sales people told me: If you don’t feature the +1 button, your stories will be harder to find with Google.”

Brighteon.TV

Hill went on to explain that she ultimately made the decision to write about her experience in a Forbes article entitled, “Stick Google Plus buttons on your pages, or your search traffic suffers.” While Google never explicitly stated that the information included in Hill’s article was inaccurate, the tech giant claimed that the meeting was confidential, and therefore Hill didn’t have a right to discuss it in public. After intense pressure from Google and her higher-ups at Forbes, Hill eventually decided to take the article down.

But what’s even more disturbing is what Google decided to do next. In an extremely short amount of time, the cached version of Hill’s article was completely erased from Google’s search results, which normally doesn’t happen that quickly after an article is taken down. Needless to say, if Google really did delete this cached version just because it was critical of how their company operates, it would be an extreme abuse of power. (Related: If Google isn't regulated, their politically-motivated censorship will tear America apart.)

Google did something similar just a few weeks ago when they fired now-former employee James Damore after he published a 10-page manifesto on the company’s progressive work environment. Damore claimed that Google focused most of its time on social justice issues, and criticized the search engine giant for blaming the gender wage gap on bias and sexism. This critique was apparently too much for Google to handle, so in the end, they just decided to let Damore go.

Given how much power and influence Google has over what information is spread across the Internet and what isn’t, it should be concerning to all Americans that the company is now engaged in widespread censorship. If the freedom of speech disappears on the Internet, then it is very unlikely that it will ever return.

Sources include:

Gizmodo.com

Breitbart.com



Take Action:
Support Natural News by linking to this article from your website.
Permalink to this article:
Copy
Embed article link:
Copy
Reprinting this article:
Non-commercial use is permitted with credit to NaturalNews.com (including a clickable link).
Please contact us for more information.
Free Email Alerts
Get independent news alerts on natural cures, food lab tests, cannabis medicine, science, robotics, drones, privacy and more.
App Store
Android App
eTrust Pro Certified

This site is part of the Natural News Network © 2022 All Rights Reserved. Privacy | Terms All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing International, LTD. is not responsible for content written by contributing authors. The information on this site is provided for educational and entertainment purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for professional advice of any kind. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. Your use of this website indicates your agreement to these terms and those published here. All trademarks, registered trademarks and servicemarks mentioned on this site are the property of their respective owners.

This site uses cookies
Natural News uses cookies to improve your experience on our site. By using this site, you agree to our privacy policy.
Learn More
Close
Get 100% real, uncensored news delivered straight to your inbox
You can unsubscribe at any time. Your email privacy is completely protected.