Karachi: In a press release outlining how its products can be useful during the polls in Pakistan, Google stated that supporting elections is a crucial part of its responsibility to its users and the democratic process, particularly as Pakistanis prepare for general elections on February 8 to choose representatives for the National Assembly and provincial assemblies.
It stated, “We are dedicated to collaborating with the public sector, business community, and civil society to provide voters with reliable and useful information while safeguarding our platforms from misuse.”
Linking voters to useful information
Google claimed that because people require pertinent and helpful information to assist them understand the political process, it provides trustworthy information readily accessible through useful product features, displaying data from reputable, impartial organizations on where and how to vote across our products.
According to the firm, Google Search is made to elevate reliable sources and give users context for a range of election-related information. Additionally, it added that links on the Google homepage will take voters to reliable sources for information on “how to vote” and “how to register to vote.”
In order to connect users to top-notch election news and information, YouTube noted that its recommendation algorithm prominently presents material and pertinent context from reliable sources, including local and national news sources on the homepage, in search results, and in the “Up Next” panel.
Conversely, it stated, Google Trends assists the public and media in examining the issues that voters are concerned about in this election. The top searches, subjects, and interests of the political parties are displayed on the Google Trends page.
It further stated that the page provides information on the most popular election-related searches around the nation, including information on the economy, taxes, and wages, among other subjects. It was made clear, “This does not reflect voting intentions but does offer unique insights into what people are searching for.”
Google announced that as part of its “News Initiative,” it conducted a number of seminars to provide journalists with the necessary tools to support their reporting during elections. These workshops covered topics such as using Google Trends, digital security, and tools for news verification.
Farhan Qureshi, Google’s Country Director for Pakistan, stated: “We have concentrated our efforts in the run-up to the election to support Pakistanis who are anticipated to cast their vote by connecting them to relevant and beneficial election-related information online.
Ahead of the election season, we have also made investments in the news ecosystem and trained newsrooms and journalists in the art of providing reliable and authoritative news. We recently introduced the Google Trends Pakistan General Election website to facilitate journalists access to this information for their reporting.
preventing abuse of our platforms
In just three months, from July to September 2023, Google said that it has taken down over 8.1 million videos and 10 million channels worldwide for breaking YouTube’s community guidelines.
It stated, “We use a combination of human reviewers and machine learning to find and remove content that violates our policies.”It stated that safeguarding election integrity also entails preventing misuse of its goods and services.Qureshi stated, “We’ve been working to make sure the proper systems and policies are in place to support the country’s elections. Election integrity is a top priority for YouTube.” In addition to providing links to reliable and high-quality content, we quickly identify and eliminate offensive content using machine learning and in-house reviewers. Our objective is to strike the correct balance between safeguarding our community from damage and allowing a range of opinions to flourish on YouTube.
