Google search adds new ‘Perspectives’ and ‘About this author’ features to help users verify information

Google is introducing new ways for users to verify search information, the company announced on Tuesday. The search giant is launching new features called ‘Perspectives’ and ‘About This Author’, while expanding some of its current tools, including ‘About This Result’.

The new Insights feature is a carousel that will appear under Top Stories and feature insights from a range of journalists, experts, and other relevant voices on the topic you are looking for. The idea behind the feature is to give users a variety of notable voices on a hot topic to broaden their understanding of the topic. The carousel will soon launch in English in the United States and will be available on desktop and mobile, Google says.

Picture credits: Google

Google is also launching a new feature called “About This Author” that makes it easier for users to learn about the authors of the content they read. With this new feature, users will be able to find more background information about authors that Google shows on search. The feature is launching on English search results globally and on the Perspectives carousel in the United States in English.

The “About this author” feature is an extension of Google’s current “About this result” feature, which first rolled out in 2021 in English. The company announced that it is now launching the “About This Result” feature globally in all languages ​​where search is available in the coming days. Now all users will see three dots next to most Google search results. Tapping on these three dots gives users details about where the information came from and how Google’s systems determined it would be useful for the query.

Picture credits: Google

Additionally, Google announced that it is making it easier for users to access its “About This Page” feature starting today.

“When you click on the three dots next to a result, you can get more information about the source and topic of a particular page,” the company said in a blog post. “Now we are making this information even easier to access. Suppose you are looking for a rainforest protection organization. Starting today, you can enter the organization’s URL into Google Search and the About This Page information will appear at the top of the search. You’ll be able to quickly see how the website describes itself, what others on the web have said about a site, and any recent coverage of it. From there, you can assess whether you want to visit the website and find out more. This feature is now available worldwide in English.

Last August, Google rolled out notices in search results that are triggered when its systems lack confidence in the overall quality of the results available. The company is now expanding these advisories to languages ​​such as German, French, Italian, Spanish and Japanese in the coming months. The idea behind these reviews is to provide context about the overall results on the page. It should be noted that you can still see the results of your query, even when the notice is present.

Google also provided an update on its $13.2 million grant to the International Fact-Checking Network to launch a new Global Fact-Checking Fund, originally announced last year. The company says the fund will open in the coming days and will support more than 130 fact-checking organizations from 65 countries covering more than 80 languages.