How Google results could rig an election
Mark Wilson/Getty Images


Rick Santorum has a Santorum problem, in that the top Google results when you search his name are not about the man himself, but rather about a dirty sexual neologism. The problem was so worrisome that Santorum even asked Google to nix those gross results so voters seeking information on his 2012 presidential campaign would find it instead of icky sex stuff.
So was his concern legit? Perhaps so, according to a study based on India's election that found search results can indeed sway voters.
The study showed 2,000 undecided voters search results about the election, with the links rigged to spotlight or suppress favorable information about particular candidates. The study's big finding: Participants showed an average 12.5 percent shift toward the candidates who received deliberately-glowing search traffic.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Now, that result should come with a couple of big caveats. Though the algorithms Google and others use aren't public, there is no indication search engines in the real world game their results to influence elections. And further, voters have access to far more sources of information than just search engines, so the role search results play in influencing opinion are likely not as dramatic as the study's controlled scenario would indicate.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.
-
One great cookbook: ‘The Woks of Life’
The Week Recommends A family’s opinionated, reliable take on all kinds of Chinese cooking
-
Digital addiction: the compulsion to stay online
In depth What it is and how to stop it
-
Can Trump bully Netanyahu into Gaza peace?
Today's Big Question The Israeli leader was ‘strong-armed’ into new peace deal
-
Court allows Trump’s Texas troops to head to Chicago
Speed Read Trump is ‘using our service members as pawns in his illegal effort to militarize our nation’s cities,’ said Gov. J.B. Pritzker
-
Judge bars Trump’s National Guard moves in Oregon
Speed Read In an emergency hearing, a federal judge blocked President Donald Trump from sending National Guard troops into Portland
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denial
Speed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels
speed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats
-
Supreme Court rules for Fed’s Cook in Trump feud
Speed Read Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook can remain in her role following Trump’s attempts to oust her
-
Judge rules Trump illegally targeted Gaza protesters
Speed Read The Trump administration’s push to arrest and deport international students for supporting Palestine is deemed illegal
-
Trump: US cities should be military ‘training grounds’
Speed Read In a hastily assembled summit, Trump said he wants the military to fight the ‘enemy within’ the US
-
US government shuts down amid health care standoff
Speed Read Democrats said they won’t vote for a deal that doesn’t renew Affordable Care Act health care subsidies