Google announced five new ways to help users find accurate information more easily and to combat the spread of misinformation online.
One improvement is the “About this result” feature soon available in all languages where Search is offered. This feature aims to help users assess information and its origin.
When searching on Google, users will notice three dots located next to most of the results, which will lead to more details about the source of the information and how Google’s systems have determined its relevance to their query. This will provide users with additional context that can aid in making an informed decision on which sites to visit and which results are the most beneficial to their needs.
Secondly, Google is also aiming to bring more voices into Search with an upcoming feature called Perspectives. The feature appears as a carousel that appears below Top Stories and showcases insights on the search topic from a range of people, including journalists, experts, and other relevant voices
Next, Google is expanding the “About this result” feature to include “About this author” so that readers can find more information about the background and experience of the voices writing the content that appears in the results.
Starting today, users will be able to quickly see how websites are described by the creator, what others on the web have said about a site and any recent coverage of it.
Lastly, Google Search recently added content advisories in situations when a topic is rapidly evolving. These advisories provide context about the whole set of results on the page, and searchers can always see the results for their query, even when the advisory is present. Now, the company is planning to expand this offering to German, French, Italian, Spanish, and Japanese in the coming months.
“International Fact-Checking Day on April 2 is a call to action – because in this day and age, nearly everyone has found themselves needing to put on their own fact-checking hat to verify a claim or check a source. Everyone should be empowered with the tools they need to find information they can trust. That’s why we build features to help you evaluate the information you come across online while expanding the range of helpful information you can find. Today we’re sharing how we’re expanding and improving these resources on Google Search,” Itamar Snir,
product manager at Google News, and Nidhi Hebbar, product manager of information literacy at Google, wrote in a blog post that contains additional details.
