As the United States moves towards a significant election on November 5, Google is stepping up its efforts to ensure you receive accurate and trustworthy information. On Friday, the tech giant announced new measures to further protect election-related content across its platforms, including YouTube, Google Search, Google Play, and its artificial intelligence (AI) products. These steps build on the company's initiatives from last year to strengthen transparency and reliability in the digital space.
YouTube boosts election information visibility
To inform you about election candidates, YouTube is introducing information panels that will appear above search results for many federal election candidates. These panels will provide key details, such as the candidates' political affiliations and links to more information on Google Search. The panels might also link directly to the candidates' official websites or other verified channels. As Election Day draws closer, YouTube will remind you where and how to vote, with notifications appearing on the platform's homepage.
Google Search offers more voter resources
Google Search enhances its election support by including aggregated voter registration resources directly from state election offices. This feature is made possible through a partnership with Democracy Works, a nonpartisan nonprofit organisation dedicated to helping voters get the information they need whenever they need it. By offering easy access to this crucial information, Google aims to make the voter registration process more accessible for everyone.
To help you find reliable election-related content, the Google Play Store is introducing a new badge to identify apps from official government agencies. Google has set specific requirements for apps that communicate government information, as detailed in a developer help document. If an app meets these criteria and submits the necessary forms, it will be eligible to display an “official endorsement” badge, providing you with a clearer indication of its authenticity.
New AI safeguards against misinformation
Google is also expanding its restrictions related to AI-generated content to prevent misinformation. Building on guidelines introduced late last year, the company will require disclosures for ads created or generated using AI and labels for AI-generated content. Additionally, Google's AI products will feature embedded digital watermarking (SynthID) for text, audio, images, and video created using AI technology. These measures will initially apply to Google's Gemini apps and on the web. Still, they will also extend to Search AI overviews, YouTube's AI-generated summaries for live chat, custom chatbots known as Gems, and AI-generated image creation.
With these new steps, Google aims to provide accurate and transparent information during the election period, helping you navigate the digital landscape confidently.
