Just a glitch? Google hides conservative & alt-media websites from search results for hours

Google excluded major conservative and alt-media outlets from its search results for hours, hiding hits for sites like Breitbart and RedState even in searches for the outlets' names - only to mysteriously revert to normal later.

Conservative sites were in a panic Tuesday morning, reporting they seemed to have been blacklisted from Google. Articles and pages published by PJ Media, Daily Caller, The Blaze, and many other sites were absent even from searches for the publication name, replaced by links to Wikipedia and other sites talking about the outlet in question - usually negatively.

Just noticed Google has removed several conservative websites from search results (at least on my end, in the UK). RedState, Breitbart, Daily Caller, Human Events, and more - all like this for pages of results pic.twitter.com/v2PHFgZ3zY

— Charlie Nash (@CharlieNash) July 21, 2020

I can no longer find @Breitbart or @TheNatPulse on Google, either in news results or regular search. Where did they go? pic.twitter.com/d0O0TF2eHM

— August Takala (@AugustTakala) July 21, 2020

While most of the affected sites hailed from the right side of the political spectrum, leftist sites whose views don’t conform to prevailing orthodoxy also appeared to fall victim to the purge. Mediaite’s Charlie Nash posted a screenshot of a Google search for “MintPress News” that included no hits from the left-leaning antiwar outlet, while another commenter noted Occupy Democrats was MIA.

Websites providing a left-wing perspective are also affected. MintPress News has a small link in the Wiki info bubble, but no links to the website (or any of its articles) in 8 pages of search results pic.twitter.com/KtMHbYwCbo

— Charlie Nash (@CharlieNash) July 21, 2020

Looks to be a test in how they represent alternative news sources in their organic results – the same is happening for extreme left websites. pic.twitter.com/gctoMPGSTD

— Cori Graft 🦅💚 (@corigraft) July 21, 2020

Google was quick with the damage control, announcing it was “investigating this and any potentially related issues.” The search giant described the problem as if it was merely an issue with one specific search command rather than a politically-specific problem that somehow left establishment-friendly media alone.

We are aware of an issue with the site: command that may fail to show some or any indexed pages from a website. We are investigating this and any potentially related issues.

— Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) July 21, 2020

After a few hours, searches were working normally again. However, those affected had their own suspicions about why this extremely specific search plague might have hit “wrongthink” websites all at once.

One might assume it's more a "test run" of how to more effectively interfere in the 2020 U.S. election than anything else. https://t.co/BHhGhi68ol

— Mollie (@MZHemingway) July 21, 2020

Google has millions of websites blacklisted….I pray their full blacklist gets leaked https://t.co/vAeo1eNWFE

— Back to NORMAL Yvonne (GDT) 🇺🇸 🐻 (@_YvonneBurton) July 21, 2020

Perhaps realizing that simply returning the news sites to their rightful place in search results wouldn’t silence critics, Google later released a statement acknowledging “an issue that impacted some navigational and site: operator searches.” However, they denied any “particular sites or political ideologies” were targeted.

Today’s issue affected sites representing a range of content and different viewpoints. Our ranking systems don’t index, rank or classify content based on political lean, as we’ve explained in our How Search Works site: https://t.co/XBPf3WFUKSpic.twitter.com/Rb1AHXXT00

— Google SearchLiaison (@searchliaison) July 21, 2020

https://www.rt.com/news/495445-google-hides-conservative-alt-news/

WTF?

Ukraine hostage siege ends after President Zelensky fulfills gunman’s bizarre demand & publicly endorses 2005 Joaquin Phoenix film

The gunman who took some 20 people hostage in a western Ukrainian city has freed them after President Volodymyr Zelensky fulfilled his rather strange wish.

Giving in to the gunman’s demands, Zelensky recorded a short video address and released it online. By then, the hostage situation in the city of Lutsk had been unfolding for more than nine hours.

“The film ‘Earthlings’, 2005. Must watch, everyone,” the president says in the clip – exactly as the hostage-taker requested.

While giving in to a terrorist’s demands might be a controversial tactic, it seemed to have worked this time. Shortly after Zelensky’s address, the gunman released three of his hostages, handing them over to the deputy head of national police. Shortly afterwards, he apparently let the rest of the people go.

Коваль забрал трех заложников pic.twitter.com/t0WA6OLEbi

— Arsen Avakov (@AvakovArsen) July 21, 2020

Footage showed Ukrainian police detaining the suspect after tackling him to the ground.

Луцк. Все целы! pic.twitter.com/ivB4u6sQEH

— Arsen Avakov (@AvakovArsen) July 21, 2020

Shortly after the suspect was detained, Zelensky thanked everyone involved in rescuing the hostages, stressing that he was particularly glad that no one was killed during the standoff. He also deleted the embarrassing video.

The bus standoff began early on Tuesday, when the armed man, identified as Maksim Krivosh, 44, entered the vehicle. Some 20 people were inside at the time.

Photos circulating online suggest the attacker was armed with a shortened military-grade AK assault rifle, a revolver and at least two grenades, one of which appears to be a training dummy.

А вот что было при себе у террориста, захватившего автобус в Луцке. Автомат, пистолет, несколько гранат и россыпь патронов. pic.twitter.com/bpdsUpCUTB

— Артем (@A_Yuzhakov) July 21, 2020

The hostage taker called the police shortly after capturing the bus, introducing himself as Maksim Plokhoy (The Bad). He also rolled out demands to top Ukrainian officials, telling them to film videos of themselves acknowledging they were “terrorists under law” and called upon the president to ‘promote’ the 'Earthlings' animal cruelty documentary from 2005.

Ukrainian police say the suspect had spent over 10 years behind bars for assorted crimes. These included fraud, robbery, extortion and illegal firearms possession, according to Deputy Interior Minister Anton Herashchenko.

https://www.rt.com/news/495437-ukraine-bus-standoff-hostages/

Hijackers make off with Covid-19 samples in South Africa, raising biohazard concerns

A truck carrying a large number of Covid-19 samples has been hijacked in South Africa, prompting alarm about the loot posing a biohazard threat to the region.

The incident happened in Port Elizabeth, in the Eastern Cape province, on Monday night. The region’s premier, Oscar Mabuyane, spoke about the incident during his coronavirus media briefing on Tuesday, confirming that a container of Covid-19 specimens intended for a local laboratory has been stolen at gunpoint during a hijacking.

“We condemn this act of criminality, which puts the lives of people at risk,” Mabuyane said.

Armed suspects robbed the driver and passenger of their personal possessions and seized the courier truck. The vehicle was found abandoned later, but a container holding about forty liters of live coronavirus samples was no longer inside.

South Africa’s National Health Laboratory Service has cautioned that the samples may be highly contagious, and local authorities said that anyone who suspects they have seen a white cooler box must report it immediately to law enforcement.

It’s not clear how many people were involved in the theft. Police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said that investigators currently have no suspects and the search is ongoing. Meanwhile, health officials are trying to determine exactly how many – and which – samples are missing, as well as the number of citizens who will have to be tested again.

This is not the first time that the Eastern Cape province has been put in danger due to the loss of Covid-19 testing kits. At the end of June, multiple containers of coronavirus samples were found dumped on the side of a road between King William's Town and East London. The Eastern Cape Health Department has launched an inquiry into the discovery.

https://www.rt.com/news/495432-hijackers-steal-coronavirus-samples-africa/

>>10037774

yep

>>10037777

digits confirm

Fort Hood IDs Another Soldier Found Dead Off Post

Army officials today released the name of a 1st Cavalry Division soldier who was found "unresponsive" near Fort Hood, Texas on July 17.

Pvt. Mejhor Morta's body was found in the vicinity of Stillhouse lake, southeast of Fort Hood, according to a Fort Hood news release.

The incident is currently under investigation by Bell County Sheriff's Department, the release states.

The 26-year-old native of Pensacola, Florida entered the Army Sept. 2019 as a Bradley fighting vehicle mechanic, and was assigned to the 1st Cavalry's 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team in May 2020, according to the release.

"The Black Knight family is truly heartbroken by the tragic loss of Private Mejhor Morta," Lt. Col. Neil Armstrong, commander of 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry, said in the release. "I would like to send my heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and loved ones. My thoughts and prayers are with them during this difficult time.

"Private Morta was a great Trooper and this loss is felt by every member within our formation."

Morta's awards and decorations include the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon, according to the release.

Morta's death follows the recent deaths of two other Fort Hood soldiers. In late June, Hood officials announced that skeletal remains found in Killeen, Texas, had been positively identified as those of Pvt. Gregory Morales, a Hood soldier who went missing in August.

And on July 6, Army officials at Hood confirmed that the human remains discovered near the massive Texas post had been identified as Spc. Vanessa Guillen's.

Guillen, a 20-year-old 3rd Cavalry Regiment soldier who disappeared April 22, was allegedly murdered by Army Spc. Aaron Robinson, according to a July 2 criminal complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office Western District of Texas.

Guillen's case has become a rallying cry for lawmakers and advocates of female veterans, who are now calling for an end to the culture of sexual harassment and sexual assault in the U.S. military.

https://www.military.com/daily-news/2020/07/21/fort-hood-ids-another-soldier-found-dead-off-post.html

Wikipedia discovers undisclosed paid editing scheme, bans the firm and mass-deletes articles

WikiProfessionals and associated individuals have been banned from the site

Wikipedia has banned a firm called WikiProfessionals Inc. and mass-deleted articles after it was revealed that the firm was involved in an undisclosed paid editing scheme on the online encyclopedia, Breitbart reported Tuesday.

Wikipedia reportedly first learned about the scheme after an editor, "The creeper2007," divulged that a WikiProfessionals representative had admitted to paying editors to write articles without disclosure during a live chat. Wikipedia subsequently launched an investigation and discovered some troubling connections between the firm and editors who created promotional content on the site.

One such account, "HappyKatsu," was linked to the firm after it created an article on video game developer, Neil Young, who is listed on a WikiProfessionals portfolio page on the firm's website.

According to Breitbart, "'HappyKatsu' has created a dozen articles about various video game executives, such as a former CEO of THQ and various executives from Zynga, known for being behind various popular Facebook games. Alleged Wikipedia articles from the paid editing included ones on the creators of such ubiquitous titles as Words with Friends and Farmville."

Other names from the portfolio appeared to have been created by Wikipedia burner accounts and showed signs of promotional editing, though not all did.

A slogan displayed on WikiProfessionals' website reads: "You cannot afford to leave your Wikipedia page to strangers."

In consequence of the investigation, Wikipedia editors initiated a discussion about banning the firm and any editors involved and potentially banning all pages suspected of being created by the firm. In the end, there was determined to be a consensus around site-banning the firm and any individuals involved with it, as well as deleting all pages suspected of being created by the firm or associates.

The final decision did note, however, that "if any editor in good standing believes that a given article is appropriate and can be salvaged, it should be restored to draft for them."

What else?

Blaze Media's Wikipedia article was listed as an article suspected of being created by the firm, despite no signs of promotional editing.

Here's more from the Breitbart report:

One article listed in the discussion and proposed for deletion is an article on conservative media outlet Blaze Media, founded by Glenn Beck. Despite the listing, evidence suggests the editor who created the page was not engaged in promotional paid editing. Editing since 2006, the editor who created Blaze Media's page had a long history of smearing conservatives including Beck and Rush Limbaugh.

https://www.theblaze.com/news/wikipedia-undisclosed-paid-editing-scheme

Wikipedia editing courses launched by Zionist groups

2010

This article is more than 9 years old

Two Israeli groups set up training courses in Wikipedia editing with aims to 'show the other side' over borders and culture

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/aug/18/wikipedia-editing-zionist-groups

VICTIMCARD PLAYED

Twitter Bans Jewish Star of David in Profile Images – Deems it “Hateful Imagery”

In 2014, Zahra Billoo, the radical executive-director of CAIR’s San Francisco Bay Area chapter, tweeted that she “struggles with Memorial Day each year.”

“If one dies in an unjust war in which we illegally invaded and occupied a sovereign nation, should that person be honored?” – @DawudWalid

— Zahra Billoo (@ZahraBilloo) May 23, 2014

Billoo also retweeted radical comments from CAIR official Dawud Walid from Michigan and radical Islamist poet Remi Kanazi.

In January 2019 The Wall Street Journal reported that Zahra Billoo was directing Facebook and Twitter on censoring conservative voices.

Billoo had an exceptional hatred for Jewish conservative Laura Loomer and pushed Facebook and Twitter to delete Laura from their platform.

As Jordan Schachtel reported at Conservative Review — Zahra Billoo has numerous tweets that violate so-called Twitter and Facebook standards for hate speech.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2020/07/twitter-bans-jewish-star-david-profile-images-deems-hateful-imagery/

FF

Up to 16 People Reportedly Shot in Chicago Funeral Home

Unofficial reports from the scene say up to 16 people were shot in Chicago's Auburn Gresham neighborhood.

CBS Chicago reporter Jermont Terry reported that up to 16 people were struck at the mass shooting.

CBS Chicago's Charlie De Mar was told that the funeral was for a shooting victim.

"Spoke with people here who said they were inside a funeral home when the shots started," he wrote on Twitter. "Spoke to a woman who had blood on her jeans. She didnt know whose blood it was."

The Chicago Fire Department announced Tuesday evening that 11 people in total were taken to area hospitals - all in serious or critical condition.

Police have yet to announce the estimated number of shooters in the event. No arrests have been made public.

https://sputniknews.com/us/202007221079949194-mass-shooting-reported-at-chicago-funeral-home/

Liz Warren demands Ivanka Trump be investigated and possibly disciplined over Goya tweet

Democratic senators insist tweet violated federal ethics rules

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) demanded that Ivanka Trump, President Trump's daughter, be investigated and possibly disciplined over a tweet she posted about Hispanic-owned food-maker Goya.

Warren joined Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) in calling for an investigation by Office of Government Ethics into whether Ivanka Trump violated federal ethics rules with the July 14 tweet. Politico first reported the request.

The tweet came during a controversy when the company CEO, Robert Unanue, joined a roundtable on July 9 at the White House for Hispanic businesses and leaders. Liberals and other critics of the president quickly demanded a boycott of the company after Unanue praised the president's leadership at the event.

Supporters of the president responded to the liberal boycott by buying Goya products and posting tweets of grocery store shelves emptied of their Goya stock.

The president's daughter weighed into the debate by showing support for the company on her official Twitter account.

"If it's Goya, it has to be good," she tweeted, the slogan of the business.

If it’s Goya, it has to be good. Si es Goya, tiene que ser bueno. https://t.co/9tjVrfmo9z

— Ivanka Trump (@Ivanka Trump)1594778706.0

"Si es Goya, tiene que ser bueno," she added in a Spanish translation of the company's slogan.

Unanue told Fox News that he refused to apologize for his comments about Trump despite the boycott.

Critics attack the tweet

Critics of the president and his family attacked the social media missive as an improper abuse of government power.

"There used to be a time where law was respected, of all places, in the White House," groused former Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Miss.) on MSNBC's "Morning Joe."

"The Trump family is so used to promoting their own brand illegally, that they don't see the line there about promoting a different brand," she added.

Ruling sought on disciplinary actions

The letter from Warren and Carper pointed out that Ivanka Trump called herself an "advisor to POTUS on job creation + economic empowerment, workforce development & entrepreneurship" on her Twitter profile when she tweeted about Goya foods.

They requested the ethics office investigate and answer whether her tweet violated the "rule against misuse of position, which relates to the proper use of official time and authority."

They also requested a ruling on whether they or the White House should take disciplinary actions against the president's aide and daughter. The Democratic senators requested an answer to their questions by Aug. 10.

Here's MSNBC's condemnation of Ivanka Trump's tweet:

https://www.theblaze.com/news/liz-warren-demands-ivanka-trump-be-investigated-and-possibly-disciplined-over-goya-tweethttps:

34 arrested amid mass anti-government protests in Jerusalem

Two different protests were integrated together in front of the prime minister's residence in Jerusalem - one demanding the resignation of Netanyahu and another organized by restaurant owners.

Thirty-four people, among the thousands who were protesting in Jerusalem on Tuesday night, were arrested due to alleged disruption of public order and assaulting police officers.

Thousands of protesters gathered in front of the Prime Minister’s Official Residence in Jerusalem on Tuesday evening to protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the government’s dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

Two different protests took place on Balfour street. One group demanded the resignation of Netanyahu over charges of breach of trust, accepting bribes and fraud. The other one, organized by restaurant owners, rallied against the government’s recent attempts to limit activities in restaurants in an attempt to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

Restaurant owners demanded that the government devise a plan for properly compensating the businesses that suffered economic losses during the coronavirus pandemic.

In an act of criticizing the government’s handling of the crisis, restaurant owners prepared various dishes to hand out “to any hungry person who will come.” The gesture was meant to “emphasize the importance of maintaining solidarity and being empathetic to others even in hard times like this, just as [they] would expect to be treated by the government,” they said. The “battered industry has not been getting clear answers since the crisis began,” they added.

Some 61 residents from the Rehavia neighborhood, where the Prime Minister’s Official Residence resides, had petitioned the High Court of Justice in a request to prevent the protests which have become a norm in recent weeks.

“Children, elders and adults from all sectors and genders have found themselves in the position of hostages, in a protest that has become in part violent, unrestricted and completely ignoring the coronavirus pandemic,” the petition read.

Police approved the protests despite the coronavirus restrictions, announcing that the adjacent streets and intersections will be blocked until protests end. These included Azza Road and the Paris Square, as well as the streets of Ben Tzvi, Ramban, King George, Keren Hayesod, Rupin and Kaplan.

Protesters later continued to march all the way to the Knesset.

https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/thousands-gather-in-jerusalem-to-protest-against-netanyahu-govt-635846

Mladenov warns: PA at risk of total collapse due to COVID-19, annexation

During the first wave of the virus Mladenov praised the joint Israeli-Palestinian efforts to combat the disease.

The Palestinian Authority is on the verge of “total collapse” due to the twin combination of COVID-19 and Israel’s pending annexation plans, UN Special Coordinator to the Middle East Peace Process Nickolay Mladenov warned on Tuesday.

“May salary payments were delayed due to an 80 per cent reduction in Palestinian revenues,” Mladenov said. “It is unclear whether the Palestinian Government will have sufficient resources to make any future salary payments or, indeed, to continue to carry out its governing functions in the coming months,” Mladenov told the UN Security Council during its monthly meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

During the first wave of the virus Mladenov praised the joint Israeli-Palestinian efforts to combat the disease. Now that the second wave has hit, Mladenov said, the two sides were more at odds.

“We are far below the level of coordination that existed in the beginning of the year,” Mladenov said.

“This situation could have serious repercussions on the ability to control [COVID-19’s] spread and its impact on people’s lives,” he added.

Steps to combat the second round of the pandemic have been hampered by the PA’s response to Israel’s pending annexation plans, Mladenov explained. This has included the PA’s decision to “end” its security coordination with Israel and its refusal not to accept tax revenues from Israel.

Closures due to COVID-19 has only compounded the PA’s financial crisis, he said. The lack of security coordination with Israel, means that Palestinian security services are less able to move around the West Bank to enforce restrictions and thu delnicivery of humanitarian aid is more difficult, Mladenov said.

In addition, he added, the PA has blocked medical patients from Gaza from traveling to Israel.

https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/pa-at-risk-of-total-collapse-due-to-covid-19-annexation-mladenov-warns-635875