Google News tests out human editors
15th June 2010 by William Hobson
Until now every aspect of how Google News provides links to online news providers has been managed by an algorithm. The top of the News list of links has always been decided automatically, with the most popular and most recent stories getting promoted to the top.
This system has formed a part of many companies news content marketing strategies. However, a new system is currently being pioneered by Google News, where human editors will hand pick content through a new “Editors Pick” section.
According to ITPro News, this section has only been added to Google News pages for a select number of users – typical of Google’s system of beta testing new technology.
It was first spotted by the Niemen Journalist Lab last week, who noted how dramatic the shift was for a company which once had the following emblazoned on every page: “This page was generated entirely by computer algorithms without human editors. No humans were harmed or even used in the creation of this page.”
The ‘Editor’s Pick’ section is run in conjunction with several big names in web content generation and some of the biggest online news providers. According to Nieman’s Megan Garber, less than a dozen organisations (including The Washington Post, Newsday, Reuters and Slate magazine) are included in the trial.
According to Garber, a spokesman from Google confirmed that the new section is not sponsored like the PPC links on SERPs but instead gives news publishers the chance to promote stories from their own sites on their own criteria – be it good or bad web traffic, topicality or any personal preference of the editorial team.
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