Google allows Holocaust denial results to remain at top of search query
If any internet user attempts to Google “did the Holocaust happen,” they will be shocked to find the top result is from a neo-Nazi and white supremacist forum, which refers to the massacre of over 6 million people as a “lie.”
Google, however, refuses to blacklist the content in its search engine, with the company explaining to Fortune that it is “saddened to see that hate organizations still exist,” but still, it won’t “remove content from its search results, except in very limited cases such as illegal content, malware and violations of our webmaster guidelines.”
Had to see for myself. Yup - Google places a Holocaust denial article from a neo-Nazi site at #1 for a "did the Holocaust" happen query. pic.twitter.com/pN8kHa1Ntn
— Dan Murphy (@bungdan) December 13, 2016
“The fact that hate sites appear in search results does not mean that Google endorses these views,” the spokesperson added in a statement.
The “Stormfront” website, which has been classed as a major hate site, posted content titled, “Top 10 reasons why the holocaust didn’t happen,” with a member asking other supporters of the site to help justify his view of denying that the Holocaust happened.
While debates continue over “fake news,” many people are in disbelief that the content remains accessible through the search engine.
Disgusting. I searched "did the holocaust happen" on Google and a neo-Nazi website detailing Holocaust denial lies really is the top post. pic.twitter.com/IhHgXpcKBt
— Erin Schrode (@ErinSchrode) December 13, 2016
If you type "Did the holocaust happen?" in your search bar, @google's algorithm gives a neo-Nazi holocaust denying website as top result. pic.twitter.com/zHFG5ylfjd
— The Greek Analyst (@GreekAnalyst) December 11, 2016
Google maintains that the ranking of content appearing in search results is categorized by the algorithms of a computer that are decided using factors to determine a page’s relevance to the stated query.
Google "did the holocaust happen" then click the good ones. I got:
— Benjamin Rahn (@brahn) December 12, 2016
😡 Neo-nazi site
✅ Wikipedia: Holocaust Denial
✅ Holocaust Museum https://t.co/kQ9peXcuQi
The latest incident comes a week after Google was forced to alter the site’s autocomplete function following suggestions of anti-Semitic, sexist and racist natures.
READ MORE: Fake news? Nobody does it better than the West
When users typed in the phrase “are Jews,” Google’s autosuggestions came up with “evil” and for “are Muslims,” the word “bad” was suggested.
