Search Politicized
Search engines enable users to parse the overload of information available online. But there is a trend for search companies to track personal search histories as well in order to provide customized content. Private companies now hold vast databases of information about the behavior of large portions of populations. What are some possible results of customization enabled by detailed, personal information about individual behavior? How far can it go? Will it help create cross-cutting communities as people find each other with similar interests, or will it serve to isolate people as they are served information that continually reinforces social boundaries that have already been constructed? Is the use of link structure to evaluate quality a democratizing force? Or does it reinforce the status quo? Are phenomena like Google Bombing quirks or do they open up new avenues of serious political commentary?
- Google Bombing article at wikipedia. Especially check out the scientology struggle.
- Philip Howard. 2003. Digitizing the Social Contract: Producing American Political Culture in the Age of New Media. The Communications Review v. 6. http://faculty.washington.edu/pnhoward/publishing/articles/socialcontract.pdf.
- GoogleZon: A dystopic story of the future of media content. Far-fetched? Maybe, maybe not! Regardless, it raises interesting questions. (8 minutes).
