THE TROUBLE WITH GOOGLE NEWS II
Earlier this year I pointed out how Google News' algorithms create something much less than a satisfactory newsreading experience, in part by putting disreputable news outlets on an even footing with legitimate ones. To my knowledge, Opinion Journal's James Taranto was the first to note an egregious example -- earlier this month, Google News made a satirical piece about Bush getting arrested for war crimes in Canada its top story -- and now Jack Shafer is on the story as well. Unfortunately, it seems he wasn't able to get anything out of them, either. I know Google wants to keep its algorithms a secret, but there's no excuse for treating the Associated Press the same as WorldNetDaily, or in this case, some left-wing conspiracy zone called Axis of Logic. Google News can be useful, but it's at least as frustrating as it is enlightening.
Earlier this year I pointed out how Google News' algorithms create something much less than a satisfactory newsreading experience, in part by putting disreputable news outlets on an even footing with legitimate ones. To my knowledge, Opinion Journal's James Taranto was the first to note an egregious example -- earlier this month, Google News made a satirical piece about Bush getting arrested for war crimes in Canada its top story -- and now Jack Shafer is on the story as well. Unfortunately, it seems he wasn't able to get anything out of them, either. I know Google wants to keep its algorithms a secret, but there's no excuse for treating the Associated Press the same as WorldNetDaily, or in this case, some left-wing conspiracy zone called Axis of Logic. Google News can be useful, but it's at least as frustrating as it is enlightening.
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