The Michelle Obama Google Bomb
Google was the victim of another Google bomb when the top-ranked result for U.S. first lady Michelle Obama on Google Image Search showed a picture of the woman altered to have the features of a chimpanzee below a link to a suggested Google search for the terms "Michelle Obama monkey." The image was posted on a blog called Hot Girls, which is hosted by Google's Blogger service. Hot Girls later removed the image and offered an apology in Chinese with a choppy translation in English, which you can read here. Update: A Google spokesperson confirmed this for me: "We did not pull the image. Apparently it was taken down by the people who posted it." Indeed, Google refused to remove the image, posting a link titled Offensive Search Results:
This link led to a Web page where Google apologized for the image and offered its disclaimer:
Did the poster of the image game Google's search algorithm? That's what many experts think. The image was racist, insensitive and vulgar, to be sure. But did Google do the right thing in sticking to its guns? Should Google intervene and take moral stances, or is it incumbent upon the world's leading search engine to remain coolly detached and objective? Opinions on this vary, but the new Obama Google bomb recalls the 2004 Google bomb when the query Jew returned racist content. Remember, Google search is entirely math-based, so no human input weighs into what results surface. It's the whole slippery slope thing, as journalist and author David Vise told the BBC:
Thoughts? |
Comments (6)
Removing this site from Google's index is a MUCH worse offence than the original immature posting. It's not Google's duty to educate the world on manners, respect and common decency. This is much like the Dutch cartoonist disrespecting Islam by creating offensive art depicting Mohammed with a bomb in his turban. Yes - it was disrespectful and perhaps immature - and also 100% within the wide swath of permissible free speech. We are the society we are, and have become since the enlightenment movement began over 500 years ago, because we understand that these 'undesirable elements' of our society also are a binding ingredient in our societal mix - the straw in the mud brick - the steel rod in the concrete pillar. There is a very strong reasoning behind Free Speech being the FIRST item in the American 'Bill of Rights' ... lets keep it free.
Posted by PulSamsara | November 25, 2009 12:35 PM
How vein and arrogant have our leaders become that such parody even shows up on anyone's radar map. With real unemployment at 18%, hunger in the US as historic highs, and entire American neighborhoods being foreclosed by the very banks our president is forcing our children to bail out in their future; we have a President who is flying around the world with Oprah, apologizing and bowing to the world's most oppressive dictators, and complain about how they photos look online!
What is this man turning this country into? Where have the American values gone?
Posted by Dan Fields | November 25, 2009 12:44 PM
hi Dan... don't tell me... let me guess... you are a Republican!!! and you are scare that things might get better and you and your party will become extinct...
Posted by Fernando | November 25, 2009 1:32 PM
Not sure what the fuss is about. She is dog ugly anyway, so any photo of her is offensive.
P.S.
Fernando, there is no chance of anything "getting better" under a communist president.
Posted by Ken | November 25, 2009 3:44 PM
Hey Fernando, Dan is just showing his ignorance as it has nothing to do with party lines I hope. They are so ignorant, they think our world problems began with our current President. Obama is cleaning a mess from the previous administration and correcting corrupted government. It's offensive to see racism and ignorance run rampant, to then say stupid things showing that some people need to throw away their GED and get their high school diploma. If this isn't the case, then our world is seriously in trouble with people who are attacking and disrespect our President, which I can see down the line America becoming a militant society, if this continues.
Posted by Shawn | November 25, 2009 4:11 PM
This is simple ethics, and it is not about freedom of speech. I mean, she IS the First Lady of America, she deserves some kind of respect.
Posted by Eprocurement software | November 25, 2009 8:04 PM