Search Engines: More than Clicks, Queries and Links

by Daniel Chu ’25

Billions of people rely on information from search engines like Google Chrome and Bing on a daily basis, yet the algorithms behind them may not be as impartial as we believe. This issue, commonly known as search engine optimization, is just one part of a rising trend of discrimination and prejudice targeting marginalized communities within technology.

What is search engine optimization?

Search engine optimization, or SEO, is the process of maximizing the visits to a specific webpage by pushing it to the top of search results. This is done through the use of PageRank, Google’s algorithm which counts the number of times a website is cited by other websites rather than the number of times it is visited. This way of sorting websites based on hyperlinks rather than views is obviously inaccurate: in the past, the PageRank system led to “Google bombing,” where websites would repeatedly hyperlink to another website to boost its standing within the rankings. 

But beyond a simple falsification of search rankings, SEO plays a much more important role in the digital ecosystem: algorithms create search rankings in a way that actively generates profit for Google, preserving advertisers’ interests rather than the general public. By using hyperlinks as a way to “judge” a website’s popularity, PageRank boosts ads at the top of the search results, in turn making money for Google. 

Yet, systems like SEO have existed far before the use of AI. Dr. Beata Szymków, a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford’s History Department, notes that even during the early 20th century, news played a substantial role in the public’s beliefs; the press did not have absolute control over all of the media, but it nonetheless created an atmosphere that shaped the direction of the public’s decisions. Today, the influence of the media continues to be seen in the world around us, but the main difference is the possibility of radicalization, where information consumers create their own bubbles and engage in confirmation bias, solely exposing themselves to information matching their beliefs. 

On SEO’s impact

Google’s prioritization of profit over accuracy has a troubling impact: as consumers keep seeing ads and inaccurate content at the top of their search results, they in turn begin to internalize the same claims and prejudices presented in the ads. Historically, SEO has privileged those in power while disproportionately targeting Black communities and women with discriminatory, hegemonic narratives. Examples included “Black girls,” which exclusively returned sexualized content, “beautiful” and “ugly,” which predominantly showed images of women, and “professor style,” which featured men in most of the photos. Through this, portrayals of women and people of color embedded in search results begin to inadvertently impact our own thinking.

The most well-known example of SEO’s role in marginalization emerged in the early 2010s, when the search term “Jew” promoted anti-Semitic webpages. In response to public outrage, Google responded by encouraging users to use terms like “Jews” and “Jewish people” instead, claiming it lacked the authority to remove or alter the search results. The (no longer existing) website “google.com/explanation” included Google’s explanation for the results, where the company apologized for the anti-Semitic results but refused to intervene on the grounds that the results were not unlawful.

Why can’t we get rid of SEO?

Despite SEO becoming an issue at the forefront of digital regulation, it remains controlled exclusively by private interests. Dr. Szymków points to the monopoly of big tech companies as the main reason, giving them no incentive to choose accurate results over increased profit. An algorithm is “only as good as the data you feed it, and the people who feed the data to it,” she said. The problem of SEO stems from algorithms like PageRank, created to cater to advertisers and big businesses. As companies like Google use SEO to champion the dominant narrative, their search engines will continue to marginalize the communities that need media representation most. 

Progress towards changing or discarding SEO is also unlikely as long as its victims are excluded from the media. Because of the dominance of the Internet as our primary access to information, contemporary attitudes towards search engines tend to view them as unconditionally accurate, depoliticized, and credible. Coupled with discriminatory results against women and people of color, consumers then normalize claims that these marginalized groups are aberrant and less than their male and white counterparts. In essence, search results with carefully engineered messages allow discriminatory beliefs to prevail among users of search engines, promoting a narrative that dehumanizes and debases groups that have already been historically oppressed. 

What can we do?

The regulation of SEO may mostly lie under the jurisdiction of tech companies and governments, but we as users of the Internet also play a part in changing SEO. To begin, Dr. Szymków argues that we need to stop viewing ourselves as passive consumers of search results and information, but rather think of our role within the Internet as netizens with responsibility. With this comes the need to recognize that the way we interact with ads and search results has an impact, however small, on Google’s actions. Furthermore, Dr. Szymków argues against the personification of technology as something somehow separate from its creators; instead, tech companies and engineers need to be held accountable for the design of PageRank and similarly impactful algorithms. Instead, she suggests “diversity among the people who shape the Internet,” such that accurate and sufficient representation begins with the creation of technology itself. 

The last step to challenging SEO’s discriminatory ideals is simply refusing to take part. Dr. Szymków admitted that there is no “one trick to be immune to damaging content online,” but critical reading, critical thinking, and even simply reading books can combat the ways in which SEO spreads misinformation. 

In this digital age, technology and the companies behind it hold more control than ever, but our job as consumers is to continue advocating for accurate and equal information.