In your recent Google searches, you might have noticed something that feels new — suddenly the world’s largest search engine is flooded with links that feel like something between product reviews and ads. Reviews and rankings linking to retailers (frequently Amazon) and earning the publisher a sales commission are nothing new; many publications, including this one, have been doing them for years. In recent years though, the space has become a lot more crowded. As technology columnist John Herrman elegantly describes in this story, digital publishers ranging from blue-chip traditional media names to anonymous and sketchy upstarts are now trying to get in on what many see as easy money. A key challenge is finding a way to get on the first page of Google's search results, even if that often\xa0means\xa0misleading readers into\xa0believing that their articles contain\xa0actual research\xa0and testing. Google claims to be taking steps to address the problem, but, as often seems to be the case with big tech companies, it mostly seems interested in claiming more of the business for itself.
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