Google refuses to remove racist Obama picture
Thursday November 26 2009
Google last night refused to remove a racist caricature of Michelle Obama that was the first result presented to users of its search engine.
The US firm conceded that the picture -- which depicts the US First Lady with the features of a monkey -- was offensive but resisted calls to remove it.
In a rare move, Google posted a message at the top of the results page for Michelle Obama distancing itself from the image.
The note stated: "Sometimes our search results can be offensive. We agree", and directed users to a page explaining their approach to dealing with distasteful search results.
While apologising for any offence caused, the statement read: "Google views the integrity of our search results as an extremely important priority. Accordingly, we do not remove a page from our search results simply because its content is unpopular or because we receive complaints."
But despite Google's stated opposition to self-censorship, it does have the power to remove pages from its search results -- something it frequently does to child pornography and websites that propagate viruses.
The blogger who posted the racist image removed it yesterday after the controversy hit the headlines worldwide. (©Daily Telegraph, London)
Irish Independent
