A decision by Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris’ campaign to alter Google headlines promoting her raises “serious ethical concerns” that could “mislead” the public, media analysts told The Washington Post on Wednesday.
The vice president’s team launched sponsored posts on the search giant that linked to actual news articles from a variety of unsuspecting publishers, including CNN, USA Today, The Guardian and The Associated Press, but the headlines and descriptions had been edited by her team.
Google said the practice was “common” and that the ads were clearly marked as “sponsored” so it did not violate its policies.
But Rich Hanley, associate professor emeritus of journalism at Quinnipiac University, called the marketing tactic “problematic” and “exploitative.”
“I think this crossed a line and, frankly, I don’t think Google or the Harris campaign should be anywhere near that line tied to news sources,” Hanley said.
Hanley, who teaches a class on disinformation, said the Harris campaign was “exploiting vulnerabilities in the information ecosystem” which he said is dangerous in a “climate of disinformation and misinformation.”
“You’re running a campaign where you’re trying to gain the public’s trust, so why do something that would undermine that?” Hanley said.
He added that even if Google says this is common and adheres to standards for labeling paid posts as “sponsored,” the case is “misleading.”
“What they’re actually doing is manipulating other people’s content by changing the headlines,” he said. “There needs to be a clear and distinct line when it comes to news organizations.”
Colin Campbell, an associate professor of marketing at the University of San Diego, also said the ads promoting Harris were cause for alarm.
“This is a major ethical concern,” he said. “The big problem is that Google is allowing advertisers to edit headlines, which could lead to users misinterpreting the meaning of the article.”
The altered headline, which appeared on the Google ad and was paired with a “Funded by Candidate Harris for President” banner, was changed without the news organization’s knowledge. Axios first reported the news on Tuesday.
For example, one sponsored ad Link to NPR’s website While the headline reads “Harris Lowers Health Care Costs” Link to the Associated Press “Vice President Harris’ Economic Vision – Lower Costs, Higher Wages,” it reads.
Some media outlets on Wednesday criticized the Harris campaign and called for action.
“We have reached out to the Harris campaign to accurately support USA Today’s impartial reporting and ask that our content be portrayed in a manner that complies with our ethical standards,” said Christine Roberts, Gannett media chief content officer. Post to X.
It links to the AP article. Google Ads Transparency
The Harris campaign did not respond to The Washington Post’s request for comment.
Both Hanley and Campbell said the media should continue to fight back against Google and the Harris campaign because it was damaging the brand of journalism.
“These ads have the potential to change people’s perceptions,” Campbell said. “Google certainly has an ethical responsibility.”
