Google is rolling out a new label is search results for pages that are recognized as highly cited sources.
The label will appear next to pages in Top Stories and is designed to help people find credible information.
Google’s new “highly cited sources” label comes just in time for International Fact-Checking Day on April 2.
It’s part of a greater effort to help people spot misinformation, as Google explains in a blog post. The search company affirms its commitment to supporting the fact-checking ecosystem over the long term:
“The widespread availability of information – from all different kinds of sources – is great for learning new facts and perspectives from around the world. But it can also make it difficult to sort out what information is credible and what isn’t.
Earlier this week, Sundar announced Google is investing $10 million to help fight misinformation about the realities and facts of the war in Ukraine. This includes new partnerships with think tanks and civil society organizations to conduct region-specific research into misinformation and disinformation and cash grants to support fact-checking networks and nonprofits.”
Here’s more about the change coming to Google Search results to fight misinformation.
Highly Cited Sources Label In Google Search Results
To help recognize original reporting, and direct searchers to reliable information, Google is launching a “Highly Cited” label in search results.
Google will assign the label to webpages that have been linked to by other news organizations.
See how it looks in the example below:
Also note the added prominence the highly cited page receives in Top Stories, taking up the entire width of the screen instead of just a slot in the carousel.
In addition to helping searchers identify pages that other news publishers consider relevant, Google explains how this feature has the potential to elevate original reporting:
“Let’s say a local news organization breaks an investigative story looking into problems at your local school district. The story is so big that it gets picked up by numerous other media outlets. But what if you didn’t see that original story, which had unique context for local residents? We’re introducing a way to help you identify stories that have been frequently cited by other news organizations, giving you a simple way to find the most helpful or relevant information for a news story.“
The “Highly Cited” label is launching soon on mobile in English for the US. It will roll out globally in the coming weeks.
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