Whose relevance? Web search engines as multisided relevance machines

Sundin, Olof; Lewandowski, Dirk; Haider, Jutta

doi:10.1002/asi.24570

Cited by 27 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…On the other hand, however, the role and responsibility of search engine operators must also be discussed. By changing the ranking algorithm to rely more on trusted sources [47], high-quality offerings from public authorities and other non-commercial providers could benefit in terms of visibility to users.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, search engine operators often preselect trusted sources, for example when searching for COVID-19. It is however unclear how, why, and by whom these decisions were made [47]. It is evident that a combination of user selection behavior and substandard search results can have a direct impact on the everyday lives of search engine users [35].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Does Search Engine Optimization come along with high-quality content?

Schultheiß

Häußler

Lewandowski

2022

ACM SIGIR Conference on Human Information Interaction and Retrieval

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Searching for medical information is both a common and important activity since it influences decisions people make about their healthcare. Using search engine optimization (SEO), content producers seek to increase the visibility of their content. SEO is more likely to be practiced by commercially motivated content producers such as pharmaceutical companies than by non-commercial providers such as governmental bodies. In this study, we ask whether content quality correlates with the presence or absence of SEO measures on a web page. We conducted a user study in which N = 61 participants comprising laypeople as well as experts in health information assessment evaluated health-related web pages classified as either optimized or non-optimized. The subjects rated the expertise of non-optimized web pages as higher than the expertise of optimized pages, justifying their appraisal by the more competent and reputable appearance of non-optimized pages. In addition, comments about the website operators of the non-optimized pages were exclusively positive, while optimized pages tended to receive positive as well as negative assessments. We found no differences between the ratings of laypeople and experts. Since nonoptimized, but high-quality content may be outranked by optimized content of lower quality, trusted sources should be prioritized in rankings.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Does Search Engine Optimization come along with high-quality content?

Schultheiß

Häußler

Lewandowski

2022

ACM SIGIR Conference on Human Information Interaction and Retrieval

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“…Throughout previous years, there were many cases of Google having to deal with critiques of search results biased by racist, sexist, and other offensive values (Sundin et al, 2022). Some instances of potentially discriminatory narratives of Google autocomplete and results were described by Cadwalladr (2016).…”

Section: Biased Algorithmic Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethical concerns of search technology: search engine bias

Pastierová¹

2022

ProInflow

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Purpose – Search engines are a dominant part of our everyday activities and lives. These tools support decision-making, play a crucial role in constructing knowledge, and have a significant impact on our individual and social behaviour. The paper is aimed at the search engine bias problem as one of the important ethical issues associated with search technology algorithmic design and development. Design/Methodology/Approach – Conceptual analytical method and critical approach are applied to a problem of search engine bias. Based on analysis, typology of specific problems and solutions are summarized and characterized. ANT (actor-network theory) (Latour, 2005) was used to introduce model consisting of search engine bias problem actors present in a complex bidirectional relations. Results – The focus of this conceptual article is mainly on search engine bias in connection with manipulation techniques such as SEO (search engine optimization) methods and paid results. Problems of Google as a gatekeeper, personalization, and biased algorithmic design are also further analysed in more detail. As a result of the analysis, possible solutions to the search engine bias problem are categorized and discussed. Originality/Value – This work provides new insights into search engine bias problem in the context of recent technological development and trends. The current methods, principles, and frameworks as a solution to the ethical issues of search engine technology are summarized. Keywords: search engines, search engine bias, ethical issues, SEO, paid results, personalization, algorithmic design and development

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“…The process of commodification is enhanced by the constant exchange and generation of data. In the platform society, the relevance of information can be solely commercial decisions (Sundin et al, 2022). That is to say, these platforms are not obliged or held accountable to provide quality or trustworthy information.…”

Section: Situational Information Meets Platformizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Information, platformized

2022

Asso for Info Science & Tech

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Scholarly publications are often regarded as “information” by default. They are collected, organized, preserved, and made accessible as knowledge records. However, the instances of article retraction, misconduct and malpractices of researchers and the replication crisis have raised concerns about the informativeness and evidential qualities of information. Among many factors, knowledge production has moved away from “normal science” under the systemic influences of platformization involving the datafication and commodification of scholarly articles, research profiles and research activities. This article aims to understand the platformization of information by examining how research practices and knowledge production are steered by market and platform mechanisms in four ways: (a) ownership of information; (b) metrics for sale; (c) relevance by metrics, and (d) market‐based competition. In conclusion, the article argues that information is platformized when platforms hold the dominating power in determining what kinds of information can be disseminated and rewarded and when informativeness is decoupled from the normative agreement or consensus co‐constructed and co‐determined in an open and public discourse.

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Whose relevance? Web search engines as multisided relevance machines

Cited by 27 publications

References 20 publications

Does Search Engine Optimization come along with high-quality content?

Does Search Engine Optimization come along with high-quality content?

Ethical concerns of search technology: search engine bias

Information, platformized

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