Grimemlmann, James. "The Google Dilemma". New York Law School Review 53.1 (2009): 939-950. Print.
Citation
Grimemlmann, James. "The Google Dilemma". New York Law School Review 53.1 (2009): 939-950. Print.
Annotation
The purpose of Grimemlmann’s (2009) article is to affirm that search engines, especially Google, have a great amount of power and to depict the many ways in which individuals, organizations and political entities have tried to influence Google to wield some of the great power it has to serve their various objectives. Some of the individuals, organizations and political entities who have attempted to control Google for their benefit have succeeded, others have not.
In this article, Grimemlmann (2009) states that search engines have immense influence on all internet users as they influence what gets seen or heard on the internet. He also states that Google is by far the most powerful search engine.
According to Grimemlmann (2009), various entities manipulate the power of Google in different ways. These include:
· Googlebombing: This term refers to a method of creating various fake links to trick Google’s algorithms into ranking the “Googlebombed” webpage higher on its results list. The Google algorithm aims organize search results by popularity where most linked to pages are defined as the most popular. “Googlebombing” takes advantage of the automation process, making even unpopular and irrelevant webpages ranked higher.
· Lawsuits: Some organizations and individuals have sued Google for their positioning on its search results list.
· Government/ Legislative censorship: Some countries have requested to completely remove some search results from Google. The reasons for this sort of government action can range from protecting vulnerable members of society to pure political propaganda.
Grimemlmann (2009) uses relevant case studies to illustrate his points and to reach a conclusion. The theoretical framework for this article is the politics of technology as Grimemlmann (2009) argues that technology (Google) has great power over social, economic and political life, leading to a power struggle for control over the technology. This article adds to the body of works that criticize the role of search engines in society, the democracy of Google, the politics of technology and internet censorship.
The author discusses various relevant and interesting points about how various entities can aim to manipulate Google’s power for their own agendas but brushes off Google as though it was a completely dismissive entity with no agendas of its own. He does not discuss the ways in which Google can use its immense power to shape society, economics and politics in-depth. I believe this is missing the most important point of discussion on the topic.