{"id":631549,"date":"2024-08-20T18:06:08","date_gmt":"2024-08-20T15:06:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/"},"modified":"2024-08-20T18:06:08","modified_gmt":"2024-08-20T15:06:08","slug":"googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/","title":{"rendered":"#Google\u2019s Top stories looks broken: Are news publishers to blame?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a22f320095ff\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a22f320095ff\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/#International_publishers_are_overtaking_local_news_brands_in_Googles_Top_stories_raising_questions_about_search_relevance\" >International publishers are overtaking local news brands in Google&#8217;s Top stories, raising questions about search relevance.<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/#Top_stories_Have_the_rules_changed\" >Top stories: Have the rules changed?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/#%E2%80%98Publishers_cant_afford_for_Google_to_get_this_wrong\" >\u2018Publishers can\u2019t afford for Google to get this wrong\u2019<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/#Bringing_the_data_to_the_table\" >Bringing the data to the table<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/#Google_confirms_the_issue_%E2%80%93_however_theres_a_%E2%80%98but\" >Google confirms the issue \u2013\u00a0however, there\u2019s a \u2018but\u2019<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/#%E2%80%98Publishers_cant_be_hypocritical\" >\u2018Publishers can\u2019t be hypocritical\u2019<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/googles-top-stories-looks-broken-are-news-publishers-to-blame\/#Putting_journalism_first\" >Putting journalism first<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"subhead\" itemprop=\"alternativeHeadline\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"International_publishers_are_overtaking_local_news_brands_in_Googles_Top_stories_raising_questions_about_search_relevance\"><\/span>International publishers are overtaking local news brands in Google&#8217;s Top stories, raising questions about search relevance.<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"bialty-container\">\n<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> publishers have been working harder than ever to squeeze search traffic out of Google.<\/p>\n<p>Just when editors start to feel confident that they\u2019ve perfected a winning SEO formula, the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a> changes. From supposedly \u201chelpful\u201d algorithm updates to site reputation policies enforced by manual actions to the lurking threat of AI Overviews, the pressure is constant.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>And now, a new challenge has landed in our laps: the unprecedented surge in competition from international publishers in Google\u2019s <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-top-stories-have-the-rules-changed\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Top_stories_Have_the_rules_changed\"><\/span><em>Top stories<\/em>: Have the rules changed?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The dramatic shift in news brands gaining visibility in Google\u2019s <em>Top stories<\/em> was impossible to ignore during the British <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General<\/a> Election.<\/p>\n<p>On the big day, a search for \u201cgeneral election updates\u201d in London revealed that The Hindu, an Indian English-language newspaper and The Washington Post, a U.S. daily, were outranking every single British publisher \u2013 including the BBC.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"2048\" alt=\"The Hindu and The Washington Post outranking British publishers\" class=\"wp-image-445322\" style=\"width:490px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-scaled.jpg.webp 946w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-156x338.jpg.webp 156w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-277x600.jpg.webp 277w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-52x113.jpg.webp 52w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-768x1662.jpg.webp 768w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-710x1536.jpg 710w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-scaled.jpg.webp\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"2048\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-scaled.jpg.webp\" alt=\"The Hindu and The Washington Post outranking British publishers\" class=\"wp-image-445322\" style=\"width:490px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-scaled.jpg.webp 946w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-156x338.jpg.webp 156w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-277x600.jpg.webp 277w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-52x113.jpg.webp 52w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-768x1662.jpg.webp 768w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-1-710x1536.jpg 710w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>When searching for other competitive terms like \u201cKeir Starmer,\u201d the top search result was an article by The Times of Israel, an Israeli multi-language online newspaper.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"2048\" alt=\"\u201cKeir Starmer,\u201d the top search result was an article by The Times of Israel\" class=\"wp-image-445323\" style=\"width:490px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-scaled.jpg.webp 946w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-156x338.jpg.webp 156w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-277x600.jpg.webp 277w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-52x113.jpg.webp 52w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-768x1662.jpg.webp 768w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-710x1536.jpg 710w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-scaled.jpg.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"2048\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-scaled.jpg.webp\" alt=\"\u201cKeir Starmer,\u201d the top search result was an article by The Times of Israel\" class=\"wp-image-445323\" style=\"width:490px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-scaled.jpg.webp 946w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-156x338.jpg.webp 156w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-277x600.jpg.webp 277w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-52x113.jpg.webp 52w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-768x1662.jpg.webp 768w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-2-710x1536.jpg 710w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>SEOs debated what might be causing this shift. Was Google trying to provide UK-based readers with a broader range of opinions with less political bias? Possibly.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>However, this theory didn\u2019t hold up when, just a few days later, a Google search for \u201cPrince William\u201d returned only international publishers in the <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel, including the Hindustan Times, an Indian English-language daily, People, an American weekly magazine and Mint, an Indian business and financial daily.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"2048\" alt=\"Google search for \u201cPrince William\u201d returned only international publishers in the Top stories carousel\" class=\"wp-image-445324\" style=\"width:490px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-scaled.jpg.webp 946w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-156x338.jpg.webp 156w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-277x600.jpg.webp 277w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-52x113.jpg.webp 52w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-768x1662.jpg.webp 768w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-710x1536.jpg 710w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-scaled.jpg.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"2048\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-scaled.jpg.webp\" alt=\"Google search for \u201cPrince William\u201d returned only international publishers in the Top stories carousel\" class=\"wp-image-445324\" style=\"width:490px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-scaled.jpg.webp 946w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-156x338.jpg.webp 156w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-277x600.jpg.webp 277w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-52x113.jpg.webp 52w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-768x1662.jpg.webp 768w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-3-710x1536.jpg 710w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>The issue took a bizarre turn a few weeks later when riots erupted across the UK in one of the biggest and most shocking news stories of the year. <\/p>\n<p>This time, international publishers not only dominated the <em>Top stories <\/em>carousel but also led Local news, with NDTV, an Indian news <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a> company and The New York Times, an American daily newspaper, ranking highest in a carousel literally labeled \u201cnear England\u201d by Google.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"2048\" alt=\"Local news near England dominated by international publishers\" class=\"wp-image-445325\" style=\"width:490px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-scaled.jpg.webp 946w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-156x338.jpg.webp 156w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-277x600.jpg.webp 277w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-52x113.jpg.webp 52w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-768x1662.jpg.webp 768w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-710x1536.jpg 710w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-scaled.jpg.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"946\" height=\"2048\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-scaled.jpg.webp\" alt=\"Local news near England dominated by international publishers\" class=\"wp-image-445325\" style=\"width:490px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-scaled.jpg.webp 946w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-156x338.jpg.webp 156w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-277x600.jpg.webp 277w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-52x113.jpg.webp 52w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-768x1662.jpg.webp 768w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-4-710x1536.jpg 710w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 946px) 100vw, 946px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: How to master Google News optimization to boost content visibility and traffic<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-publishers-can-t-afford-for-google-to-get-this-wrong\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%98Publishers_cant_afford_for_Google_to_get_this_wrong\"><\/span>\u2018Publishers can\u2019t afford for Google to get this wrong\u2019<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>It turns out this issue isn\u2019t limited to British news publishers. Lily Ray, VP of SEO strategy and research at Amsive, has been tracking similar problems in the U.S. for the past year and sharing her findings on X.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"704\" height=\"843\" alt=\"\" murder search query in google class=\"wp-image-445326\" style=\"object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5.png.webp 704w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5-282x338.png.webp 282w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5-501x600.png.webp 501w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5-94x113.png.webp 94w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5.png.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"704\" height=\"843\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5.png.webp\" alt=\"\" murder search query in google class=\"wp-image-445326\" style=\"object-fit:cover\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5.png.webp 704w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5-282x338.png.webp 282w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5-501x600.png.webp 501w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-5-94x113.png.webp 94w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cThis problem seems to be getting worse over time,\u201d Ray told me.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>\u201cWhen I post about confusing international results, I get messages from people seeing the same thing all over the world. People in Brazil are seeing Portuguese websites. People in Mexico are seeing websites from Argentina.\u201d\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>\u201cIt\u2019s not just an English-language site issue and the content often doesn\u2019t make sense for local readers. I know this has been a problem for a while, but it seems to be getting worse recently.\u201d\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1242\" height=\"889\" alt=\"Barron Trump search query in Google\" class=\"wp-image-445327\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6.png.webp 1242w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6-472x338.png.webp 472w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6-800x573.png.webp 800w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6-158x113.png.webp 158w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6-768x550.png.webp 768w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 1242px) 100vw, 1242px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6.png.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1242\" height=\"889\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6.png.webp\" alt=\"Barron Trump search query in Google\" class=\"wp-image-445327\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6.png.webp 1242w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6-472x338.png.webp 472w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6-800x573.png.webp 800w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6-158x113.png.webp 158w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-6-768x550.png.webp 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1242px) 100vw, 1242px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Rewarding international publishers with visibility for local news searches impacts news brands and creates a poorer user experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cIt\u2019s a zero-sum game when non-U.S. news publishers get to <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ear in the <em>Top stories<\/em> news carousel for the British or U.S. election for searchers in those respective regions,\u201d Ray explains.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>\u201cYou have to remember, there are only around ten or fewer slots available \u2013 and things like elections are one of the most significant events in the news calendar. Giving one or two of those slots away is devastating. Many news publishers cannot afford for Google to get this wrong.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><!-- START INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<p><!-- END INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color has-css-opacity has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color has-background\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-bringing-the-data-to-the-table\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Bringing_the_data_to_the_table\"><\/span>Bringing the data to the table<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Data from NewzDash supports the theory that international publishers have seen a significant increase in visibility in the <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel, both in the U.S. and the UK.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The tool, founded by John Shehata, the former global VP of audience development at Cond\u00e9 Nast, calculates search visibility for SERP features like <em>Top stories<\/em> by analyzing factors such as ranking position, estimated CTR, ranking duration and the number of ranked URLs.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>According to NewzDash:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The Times of India\u2019s visibility in the <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel in the U.S. increased fourfold since the end of November 2023. This means they are now receiving four times the traffic they previously did in Top stories for major trending news keywords.<\/li>\n<li>The Times of India doubled its visibility year-on-year in the <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel in the UK.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li>The New York Times\u2019 visibility in the UK\u2019s <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel increased 121.74% year-on-year.<\/li>\n<li>The Washington Post and NDTV both more than doubled their visibility year-on-year in the British <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"371\" alt=\"Newzdash - Times of India\" class=\"wp-image-445328\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-7.png.webp 600w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-7-547x338.png.webp 547w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-7-183x113.png.webp 183w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-7.png.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"371\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-7.png.webp\" alt=\"Newzdash - Times of India\" class=\"wp-image-445328\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-7.png.webp 600w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-7-547x338.png.webp 547w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-7-183x113.png.webp 183w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Commenting on the unprecedented surge in visibility for international publishers, combined with the myriad other challenges news publishers are currently facing, Ray tells me:\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cThis has been the hardest year of my career. Normally when people ask me for advice, I say, \u2018These are Google\u2019s guidelines, this is how Google works and if you do a better job of following these guidelines, you\u2019re more likely to succeed.\u2019 But for the last eight months, I haven\u2019t been able to confidently do that.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cI just hope that eventually, Google figures this stuff out. They always do. We just have to understand that things are a bit broken right now.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-google-confirms-the-issue-nbsp-however-there-s-a-but\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Google_confirms_the_issue_%E2%80%93_however_theres_a_%E2%80%98but\"><\/span>Google confirms the issue \u2013\u00a0however, there\u2019s a \u2018but\u2019<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Here\u2019s the good news: Google tells me there is an issue on their end that they are addressing. A spokesperson wrote in a statement:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cWe are aware of an issue that\u2019s leading to the display of non-local news sources in the Local News block on Search for a small number of users. We\u2019re working on an update to address it.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The not-so-good news? The spokesperson quite clearly only addresses the issues with Local news carousels \u2013 not <em>Top stories<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Although Google\u2019s <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/intl\/en_uk\/search\/howsearchworks\/how-search-works\/ranking-results\/\">guidelines<\/a> state that its search algorithms consider a user\u2019s location to deliver the most relevant information, international publications that cover global topics may still get visibility in a <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel if Google\u2019s systems deem the content original, helpful and high-quality.<\/p>\n<p>Commenting on Google\u2019s response, NewzDash founder Shehata says the increasing presence of international publishers in <em>Top stories<\/em> carousels signals a deeper problem. He explains:\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cGoogle\u2019s recognition of the Local News issue is positive, but the effect on <em>Top stories<\/em> is equally troubling. When publishers are already grappling with financial challenges, each ranking lost to a non-local\/national site directly impacts their revenue.\u201d\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>\u201cWhile we must acknowledge the global reach of news consumption, local context and relevance must remain a top priority in <em>Top stories<\/em> ranking algorithms.\u201d\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>\u201cGoogle needs to improve its algorithms to strike a better balance, one solution is to provide international sites as a secondary <em>Top stories<\/em> carousel like what they do on <em>Local Top stories<\/em>.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cAnother area where we see a rise in international sites is <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/developers.google.com\/search\/docs\/appearance\/translated-results\">Translated Results<\/a>, where Google might translate search results that are not in the same language as the search query, if available. However, this also raises questions about how effectively Google\u2019s algorithms are weighing the relevance and authority of these translated results against local sources.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-publishers-can-t-be-hypocritical\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%98Publishers_cant_be_hypocritical\"><\/span>\u2018Publishers can\u2019t be hypocritical\u2019<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Although this may be a bitter pill for some media outlets to swallow, Barry Adams, award-winning SEO consultant and founder of Polemic Digital, suggests that U.S. and UK publishers may have themselves to blame.\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cLet\u2019s face it, this setup is benefitting British and American publishers too,\u201d he explains.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe Daily Mail is the tenth largest news website in the U.S. But all of a sudden, this is happening in our own backyard and it\u2019s a problem? We need to make sure we\u2019re not being hypocritical.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"762\" height=\"426\" alt=\"Joe Biden son - Google Top stories\" class=\"wp-image-445329\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-8.png.webp 762w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-8-600x335.png.webp 600w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-8-200x113.png.webp 200w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(max-width: 762px) 100vw, 762px\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-8.png.webp\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"762\" height=\"426\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-8.png.webp\" alt=\"Joe Biden son - Google Top stories\" class=\"wp-image-445329\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-8.png.webp 762w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-8-600x335.png.webp 600w,https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/IMAGE-8-200x113.png.webp 200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 762px) 100vw, 762px\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Adams points out that many U.S. and UK publishers have made a conscious decision to target international audiences by making their content less U.S. and UK-centric. In doing so, these news outlets have opened the doors for other global publishers to come into the U.S. and UK market.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cWe can blame Google a little bit because something weird is going on,\u201d says Adams.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>\u201cGoogle needs to work harder at understanding what country a website belongs to \u2013 not necessarily to limit that publisher, but to make sure that a locally focused publisher is given preference over a website from a foreign country.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cPublishers like The Times of India do have every right to be in our <em>Top stories<\/em> carousels. I don\u2019t think people realize how long these brands have been around for and how much readership they have \u2013 we\u2019re talking about a 1.3 billion reader market.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThink of the sheer volume of links and citations they would have accumulated over the years. So we can\u2019t be surprised when they appear in <em>Top stories<\/em> \u2013\u00a0but this should be some of the time and they shouldn\u2019t be the primary news source in London for the UK General Election.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-putting-journalism-first\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Putting_journalism_first\"><\/span>Putting journalism first<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Although Google has historically been considered a more stable traffic source for publishers, it can be as unpredictable as social.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Given this volatility, it\u2019s not surprising that traditional web search now accounts for just 36% of publishers\u2019 Google traffic, down from 46.5% last year, according to new research from <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/johnshehata_seo-news-googlesearch-activity-7227719494289281026-Zo1m?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop\">NewzDash<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, the share of traffic from Google Discover jumped from 41.6% to 55.6% of publishers\u2019 total Google traffic \u2013 a 14% increase.<\/p>\n<p>With these statistics in mind, how can news publishers future-proof their companies in an increasingly competitive search environment?\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>\u201cThe worst mistake a publisher can make is chasing after Google clicks,\u201d concludes Adams. \u201cIt might work in the short-term, but in the long run, you need to build a unique news brand.\u201d\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>\u201cThe best approach for news publishers is to focus on the quality of your journalism, strengthen your brand\u2019s identity and prioritize building a secure audience.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><em>Dig deeper: An SEO guide to optimizing your Google Publisher Center account<\/em><\/strong>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"about-author\">\n    About the author<\/p>\n<div class=\"information\">\n<div class=\"author-module\">\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-3 text-center\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n                        <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid rounded-circle avatar-border\" alt=\"Nicola Agius\" width=\"140\" height=\"140\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/nicola_agius\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-fluid rounded-circle avatar-border\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/nicola_agius\" alt=\"Nicola Agius\" width=\"140\" height=\"140\">\n                                            <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-9\">\n<div class=\"about\">\n<div class=\"name\">\n                            <strong>Nicola Agius<\/strong>\n                        <\/div>\n<div class=\"row g-2 pt-2\">\n<div class=\"col-auto twitter\">\n                                    <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/follow?original_referer=https%3A%2F%2Fsearchengineland.com%2F&amp;region=follow_link&amp;screen_name=nicola_agius&amp;tw_p=followbutton&amp;variant=2.0\" aria-label=\"opens in a new tab\"><i class=\"fab fa-x-twitter\"><\/i><\/a>\n                            <\/div>\n<div class=\"col-auto\">\n                                    <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/nicola-agius-8b330956\" aria-label=\"opens in a new tab\"><i class=\"fab fa-linkedin\"><\/i><\/a>\n                                <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>                        Nicola Agius is the Director of SEo and Discover at Reach PLC<span style=\"font-family: Calibri, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;\">. Previously, she <\/span>was Paid Media Editor of Search Engine Land from 2023-2024. She covered paid media, retail media and more. Before this, she was SEO Director at Jungle Creations (2020-2023), overseeing the company&#8217;s editorial strategy for multiple websites. She has over 15 years of experience in journalism and has previously worked at OK! Magazine (2010-2014), Mail Online (2014-2015), Mirror (2015-2017), Digital Spy (2017-2018) and The Sun (2018-2020). She also previously teamed up with SEO agency Blue Array to co-author Amazon bestselling book Mastering In-House SEO.                 <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMN63nwsw68G3Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more like this article, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Technology<\/a><\/span> category.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/google-top-stories-looks-broken-445320\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>International publishers are overtaking local news brands in Google&#8217;s Top stories, raising questions about search relevance. News publishers have been working harder than ever to squeeze search traffic out of Google. Just when editors start to feel confident that they\u2019ve perfected a winning SEO formula, the game changes. From supposedly \u201chelpful\u201d algorithm updates to site&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":631550,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2024\/08\/Googles-\u2018Top-stories-looks-broken-Are-news-publishers-to-blame-800x450.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[149358,78070],"class_list":["post-631549","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-technology","tag-google-news","tag-seo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631549","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=631549"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631549\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/631550"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=631549"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=631549"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=631549"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}