Could google be focusing our searches?

[Beam Me Up]

Recently, just recently, I've noticed that when I search for certain key terms --bush, saudi royals close relationship-- (without quotation marks) for example, usually within the first five to ten responses are 'debunking' pages countering leftest claims.

Using the example above on google I get: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=bush%2C+saudi+royals+close+relationship , where the second hit down is this page: http://www.bowlingfortruth.com/dudewheresmycountry/question2.htm 'debunking' the second question of Michael Moore's "Seven Questions to Bush" in Dude, Where's My Country.

If it were only this instance I might not think too much of it, but recently I've noticed that more and more frequently google queries on subjects incriminating to * return 'debunking' pages for the terms I'm searching for. Has anyone else noticed anything like this?

[wtmusic]

1. yes

our rightie friends are engaging in "googlebombing" -- setting up multiple links to their own pages.

[crossroads]

4. maybe we should borrow a tactic from them... n/t

:dem:

[wtmusic]

5. we started it

one of the first, most highly publicized googlebombs was linking "miserable failure" to:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/president/gwbbio.html

(it's still number one, but Jimmy Carter's bio is #2).

[crossroads]

6. Cool... n/t

:kick:

[LTR]

2. They make better use of Google bombs

Not to mention meta tags.

They use these alot to get out their bullshit propoganda.

[Beam Me Up]

3. To both 1 and 2: So, they are now influencing or controlling

what responses we get to our queries on google.

Are we beginning to loose the internet as a tool for gathering diverse information?

[2Design]

7. people/organizations can pay to be in the top five returns

People who want their returns on top, can and do pay to have that happen

[Redhead488]

12. I thought GOOGLE

specifically did NOT do that.

[rinsd]

15. Not for google.

Google has AdWords on the side of all their searches. Also their Froogle (an e-commerce system) will appear above "organic" searches. But you cannot pay to be ranked higher on an organic search.

Overture which has contracts with Yahoo, MSN, AOL will allow you to buy space above the organic searches but you are identified as being a sponsored search.

[Indiana_Dem]

8. I use dogpile.com more often. n/t

[LittleApple81]

9. I decided to try it with "vivisimo" and "google" using your key terms...

http://vivisimo.com/search?query=bush%2C+saudi+royals+close+relationship&v%3Asources=Web&x=55&y=15

http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&q=bush%2C+saudi+royals+close+relationship

They give different results... but the first one for Google is not a "debunker" one.

[Beam Me Up]

14. Hi LittleApple81, yep, not first but SECOND. thanks, n/t

[union_maid]

10. I've noticed it too

When I search for anything controversial I get a lot of RW results.

[dusty64]

11. google seems to

be run by rightwingers. I don't use that search engine anymore.

[bemildred]

13. Yep. Some things you have to be clever to find. nt