Google's new initiative to curb fake news and help publishers

Google announced a new initiative called "Google News Initiative" to combat fake news and help publishers get more subscribers. The search engine giant described the new initiative as a part of an effort to help journalism thrive in the digital age.

Google chief business officer Phillip Schindler said, "I have always believed that the future of Google and the future of our publishing partners were linked." Google will enable its users to subscribe to news sites in as little as two clicks through their Google accounts and will step up efforts to help news organizations add paying subscribers.

The company in its blog post said the new initiative will focus on three objectives-

a. Elevate and strengthen quality journalism- It will look to combat misinformation during breaking news situations.

b. Evolve business models to drive sustainable growth- It will help news organisations grow their digital revenue.

c. Empower news organisations through technological innovation

To fight fake news, Google is also launching the Disinfo Lab with the First Draft to fight misinformation during elections and breaking news. The company meanwhile is teaming up with the Poynter Institute, Stanford University and the Local Media Association to launch MediaWise, which is designed to improve digital literacy for the young.

Additionally, Google announced Subscribe with Google, a tool that streamlines the sign-up and subscription process for premium news sources. Launch partners include The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Telegraph and the Financial Times. Another new tool is Outline, an open-source tool from the company’s technology incubator Jigsaw that makes it easy for news organizations to create VPNs for journalists and provide them with more secure access to the internet.

Google is also committing $300 million dollars over the next three years to meet its goals.