Google Slices, It Dices.

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Author: Peek, Robin1 robin.peek@simmons.edu

Google's recent upgrade to Google News brought back memories of the Veg-o-Matic, a vintage food slicer, and its memorable television slogan, "It slices, it dices. …"

Google News has been a bit of a sleeper in the Google family of products--just another news service in a world seemingly full of them. But Google's recent effort in hashing up news content may have the makings of a killer application. And some folks in the publishing community may conclude that Google is also chopping up published goods, or, at the very least, taking a slice out of the revenue stream.

There are a lot of things cooking at Google these days, so a recently added customizable news feature in Google News (which is still in beta) may not stand out against the company's other products, such as its new Local Directory service, which will probably soon squelch many comparable directories. Similarly, Google Labs has a new service devoted to maps and driving directions, which, once released, will likely put similar services, such as MapQuest, on notice.

The Google News customization feature is the first major facelift the service has had since it was first launched in 2002. But this is not your plain vanilla, "move some fixed generic content feeds around on a page" enhancement; this customization has finesse. Instead of just getting a newsfeed called "sports," the user can customize the content to a specific team or a specific sport. So, if someone wants the latest news on knowledge management from sources in Madagascar, Google News can be tailored to fit. And this content can be further customized from 22 different regional editions of Google News, including independent versions for Canada in both French and English.

Google News users can create 20 sections for their custom page. The customization is stored in a cookie, which means that customized news isn't portable. However, users can distribute their settings by e-mail.

Google News also has been amassing a miniature war cheat of news content. It claims to have content derived from more than 4,500 sources in English worldwide. But we will have to take its word about this, because Google does not reveal a list of its sources. In effect, we are slicing and dicing our way through mystery-meat news.

Now, Google News claims that, "news sources are selected without regard to political viewpoint or ideology, enabling you to see how different news organizations are reporting the same story. This variety of perspectives and approaches is unique among online news sites, and we consider it essential in helping you stay informed about the issues that matter most to you."

So what happens if you don't find your favorite news source (or perhaps your own publication) in Google News? According to the FAQ, "We're as shocked as you are! If we're missing a publisher that we should be covering, please send us your ideas. While we can't guarantee that we'll heed your recommendation … we do promise to review all the suggestions we receive without regard to political viewpoint or ideology."

It seems to me that, if Google is so proud of its balanced approach to content, it would show off this magnificent stable of news providers. Call me paranoid, but I would like to understand the selection policy for deciding which of the animals are going to make it onto the ark. And let's face it, this may well become the Google Giant Ark of News Content. If your content is not on this news boat, it may not float.

Without a source list in hand, you can make an approximation of the news sources on board at Google News. Not surprisingly, the big guns are CNN, ABC News, Reuters, and Fox. I found lots of newspapers, including India's Hindustan Times and Australia's Brisbane Courier Mail. There are also a surprising number of press releases; some are delivered by Business Wire, but others appear as standalone items. And, then, there are some interesting inclusions, such as the Voice of America and Radio Free Europe. There were also a few odd ducks, such as Elites TV and ObviousNews.com. Only a few magazines came up in the searches I ran; some of the hits indicated that a subscription was required to access content.

Has Google created the killer news app? Google News only provides its sources' previous 30 days of content and updates the content every 15 minutes. And the service prides itself on the fact that the results are "compiled solely by computer algorithms, without human intervention." This is a feature that actually forces a person to view a more extensive array of news sources than someone would normally encounter. Indeed, I found myself wishing for a feature that would turn off a particular news source, such as MTV. In fact, I would like a feature that could turn off certain story topics--for instance, the Michael Jackson case.

But there is a certain randomness in which sources are presented. For example, items seem to be arranged in reverse chronological order. But on a customized section I created on the semantic Web, a March 9 item came before a March 14 item. The lack of human touch was also evident in another customized section on open access journals. My results included an article from the U.K. on how accessible the great outdoors was.

So, no, Google News has not yet created perfection, but then again, it is still in beta. And. in Google-land, that may mean months (or even years) before its formal launch. But even in its imperfect state. I find it a compelling tool. While it is not clear to me how Google plans to make any money from Google News, or if it will help or harm the publishers who have teamed up with the venture, I think Google News could soon become a powerful news force to be reckoned with.

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By Robin Peek

Robin Peek is associate professor at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science. She can be reached at robin.peek@simmons.edu.