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Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

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Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#241

Post by johnnycab »

sincerely wrote: post #3

This is actually fascinating (even if it may not be the behavior we expect from our elected leaders). He did the same thing in June where he gave a completely baffling interview [1] about how his hobby was painting models of buses out of used fruit crates. But people suspected [2] then that it might be a similar strategy, to monopolize the results for "boris johnson bus" searches. I wonder why nobody else is willing…

>I wonder why nobody else is willing to do this? It seems like it works, and it keeps you in the news...

The gaming of keywords, offline and online, to influence SERP's has been done before and continues to do so ─ the optics on the practice of Google-bombing is a matter of frequency illusion. As an example, 'Santorum' clearly demonstrated the value and the power it holds. The eponymous search engine has a role to play by favouring newer content e.g. news media involving politics, entertainment and culture.

https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-algorithm-history...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campaign_for_the_neologism_%22...

Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#242

Post by ghostDancer »

viraptor wrote: post #119
SmellyGeekBoy wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Indeed. The "lovable bumbling fool" image he puts across is a very conscious choice on his part. Despite what you think about his politics (and I'm personally not a fan) you can't deny that Johnson is much smarter than he wants us to think.

In this case we don't even know if it was his idea. For all we know he's paying a lot of money to a really good PR company.

He's smart enough to have one and follow their advice, at least in this case.

Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#243

Post by adgasf »

SmellyGeekBoy wrote: post #33
AznHisoka wrote: post #29

My respect level for Boris actually went up a few notches after reading about this :)

Indeed. The "lovable bumbling fool" image he puts across is a very conscious choice on his part. Despite what you think about his politics (and I'm personally not a fan) you can't deny that Johnson is much smarter than he wants us to think.

Read this https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2019/06/my-boris-story/

Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#244

Post by joncrane »

wastedhours wrote: post #42
SmellyGeekBoy wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Indeed. The "lovable bumbling fool" image he puts across is a very conscious choice on his part. Despite what you think about his politics (and I'm personally not a fan) you can't deny that Johnson is much smarter than he wants us to think.

> you can't deny that Johnson is much smarter than he wants us to think. In playing the political game at least, definitely so. Lots of reports from coworkers (especially from the Foreign Office) that he is genuinely as clueless as he comes across when it comes to other elements of his job.

This means he's also meta-smart. He focuses his limited mental energy on the things that lead to success in the areas he wants (he's been elected PM, that's the peak of success by any measure). The fact that he has gotten away with being "dumb" on some details is a fault of the system.

Same goes for the USA POTUS. At some point you have to say "don't hate the player, hate the game."

Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#245

Post by sergioj97 »

akerro wrote: post #240
mda wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Eh, so you want older news on this one but you probably want newer ones on others? I don't think this rant makes any sense.

This isn't a rant, it's a statement of facts.

Seems like a rant to me. What exactly are you criticizing about the way Google decides which results to show first, in this particular case?

Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#246

Post by sergioj97 »

laurent123456 wrote: post #135
olivierduval wrote: post #38

The most worrying for me? Even after countless updates to their algorithms, breakthrough AI and ML, breaking hundred of thousands of legit website each time, Google is still dumb enough to be tricked by such a simplistic tactics :-( Or is Google biased toward "official" speech (even from a really-not-trustable source) like Twitter is when it will allow BS from a President (because it's an official account so not subj…

Isn't Google supposed to comply with the "right to be forgotten" in the EU? In that case Boris Johnson could have asked to remove the offending articles and, since they are gone, new ones take their place. Just a guess thought, but indeed it's strange that they can be so easily tricked.

I think right to be forgotten doesn't include public figures.

Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#247

Post by usrusr »

Time to re-read Stephenson's (well, "Stephen Bury") Interface. I don't remember it as a particularly good read, but it might be great fun to contrast the innocuously blunt politicization of mediatech envisioned 25 years ago with the realities of the Trump/Johnson way of playing democracy.

Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#248

Post by ineedasername »

At least in the case of the search, "boris johnson model", the tactic isn't working anymore. "boris johnson bus" on the other hand still shows a bunch of his model-building bus stories. However, if you change it to "boris johnson london bus" then you get some top results that include the controversial red bus.

Re: Boris Johnson uses search terms in interviews to hide negative articles?

#250

Post by akerro »

sergioj97 wrote: post #245
akerro wrote: post #240

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This isn't a rant, it's a statement of facts.

Seems like a rant to me. What exactly are you criticizing about the way Google decides which results to show first, in this particular case?

I'm not necessary criticizing, but it's a bit sad that most popular search engine turned to be manipulation and persuasion machine. I no longer thing about it as search engine, more like "what's trendy network", BUT I recognize that Google Search belongs to google and google is a business, and business does what's most profitable! That's good for them, not necessary for us, I personally almost never use google search, but I use android with google account, just because duck duck go is better search engine and google android is really comfortable.
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