Google Seeks To Defuse Row With Russia Over Website Rankings (reuters.com)

An anonymous reader shares a report: Google does not change its search algorithm to re-rank individual websites, it said in a letter to Russia's communications watchdog, after Moscow expressed concerns the search engine might discriminate against Russian media. The Roskomnadzor watchdog said earlier this month it would seek clarification from Google over whether it intentionally placed articles from Russian news websites Sputnik and Russia Today lower in search results. Responding to a question about Sputnik articles at a conference earlier in November, Alphabet Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt said Google was working to give less prominence to "those kinds of websites" as opposed to delisting them.

Comments

The law of unintended consequences.

[Gravis Zero]

Moscow expressed concerns the search engine might discriminate against Russian media.

This should be filed under the "things to consider before you inject yourself into US politics" department.

Re:The law of unintended consequences.

[Anonymous Coward]

This should be filed under the "things to consider before you inject yourself into US politics" department.

Good advice for Google as well. If these Silicon Valley companies weren't so completely myopic in their Valley Values group-think they might have some influence in Washington today. It's not really surprising that Comcast wins at every turn; the telecoms — unlike Google, Facebook, etc. — don't go out of their way to alienate the majority party.

Re:The law of unintended consequences.

[ShanghaiBill]

Google should downlist American media too, because they also "inject themselves into US politics". In fact, even some private citizens have been caught expressing opinions on politics, and attempting to sway the votes of their friends and neighbors. Google needs to put a stop to that. We can't just have people going around saying whatever they want. Thank God that we have the corporate elite to protect us and tell us what to think.

Re:The law of unintended consequences.

[allcoolnameswheretak]

Google should downlist American media too, because they also "inject themselves into US politics"

Bugger off with your straw man arguments. Russia is a hostile country waging an aggressive information war against the west with an army of internet trolls and fake news intended to spread FUD. It is financing right-wing groups in Europe, an invasion of eastern Ukraine to prevent it from joining the EU and NATO and is just generally causing trouble all over the world. Protecting a dictator who used chemical weapons against his own people, providing separatists with an anti-aircraft missile launcher that was used to down a civilian airplane over Ukraine, all the while always denying all involvement. Meanwhile in the interior the country is cracking down an all independent media.

Russia is a rogue actor these days.

Silicon Valley shooting itself in the feet

[ghoul]

The whole reason Silicon Valley can afford to pay huge salaries and create cutting edge work is because what they create is scalable. The money is spent once but can be sold to consumers all over the world at a very low marginal cost of production. Whether that is Operating Systems or Electric Cars.
People all over the wold buy from the Microsofts and the Googles because they are considered apolitical. If these companies are seen as partisan and Patriotic than consumers and govts all over the world will pull a China and prop up local alternatives. Once the cheap marginal market goes away and its only the US Market you have left to sell too many ideas become non economic to execute . Once you cannot execute new ideas in Silicon Valley due to the cost, people with ideas will go away to cheaper locales to execute and you go into a downward spiral - fewer new ideas->fewer profitable IPOs -> fewer Angel funders ->Even fewer funding for new ideas-> fewer people moving to the Valley to execute->EVEN FEWER NEW IDEAS and so on.

Re:Silicon Valley shooting itself in the feet

[Anonymous Coward]

Silicon Valley companies have no pull in Washington at the moment because they've indulged their progressive politics and invested almost exclusively in the party that's now out of power. Apple, Facebook, Google... these companies are left wing constituents; the (R)s in Washington have no reason to listen to anything they're concerned about. So when it comes time to deal with the purely executive branch aberration of Obama's Net Neutrality the old guard telecoms that know better than to squander their influence by playing party politics get all the wins.

Re:Silicon Valley shooting itself in the feet

[Gravis Zero]

If these companies are seen as partisan and Patriotic than consumers and govts all over the world will pull a China and prop up local alternatives.

Actually, all other nations are also fighting Russia's meddling, so it's more likely that they would approve of these countermeasures. The mistake you are making is believing that the US is a one-off situation.

Re:Silicon Valley shooting itself in the feet

[Anonymous Coward]

"Actually, all other nations are also fighting Russia's meddling, so it's more likely that they would approve of these countermeasures. The mistake you are making is believing that the US is a one-off situation."

Citation please, because i find it hard to believe that they are meddling in ALL other nations. Quite simply it seems incredibly costly and not very efficient. It makes more sense for Russia to interfere in countries that would be a strategic asset to them (say near their boarders or resource rich countries from which to gain a discount on said resource)

On the other hand please prove that the USA doesn't do the exact same thing! for example, the middle east (oil), eastern Europe (on Russia's boarder) or generally all around the world.

Information warfare is the new normal and to believe that it is only Russia that is doing this is foolish. That being said the GP is mostly right, In Europe there are several more localized search engines which are generally promoted by the people with in the area as well as new technology centers for development. The major companies (google, facebook, and the rest) were appealing world wide as long as they seemed non partisan and as citizens of the world. Once they started to take sides then trust in them erodes and individual nations take the ideas and create local versions of them. Personally I think it was just a matter of time before this happened and i am rather happy with the outcome, this will distribute the ideas and create a new diversity of ideas from which to grow with as each locale will have their own unique spin on things.
and while you are at it show that the us isnt trying to do the exact same things to some very specific countries (being the ones that are a sta

Re:Russia: okay to sell Uranium to...

[Gravis Zero]

Funny how net neutrality is in the news while at the same time Google is using it's own corporate influence to block other nation's access to the free flow of information.

Congratulations on winning the "I don't know what net neutrality is" award!