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Undesirable results : The right wing’s perception of the politics of search engines

Sundin, Olof LU orcid (2026) In Information and Culture 61(2). p.145-166
Abstract
This article aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the reasoning behind the current US right-wing movement’s articulated politics of search engines.
The aim is pursued through the prism of metapolitics, understood as a culture war focused on formulating and establishing dominant societal norms and values. Methodologically, the study uses qualitative content analysis to examine how Google Search was discussed in US right-wing online media outlets from 2020 to 2024. The analysis reveals an ongoing ideological struggle over who defines relevance, neutrality, and truth in the digital information landscape. Presented as a defense of free speech and neutrality, this critique operates as a form of metapolitics aimed at reshaping the... (More)
This article aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the reasoning behind the current US right-wing movement’s articulated politics of search engines.
The aim is pursued through the prism of metapolitics, understood as a culture war focused on formulating and establishing dominant societal norms and values. Methodologically, the study uses qualitative content analysis to examine how Google Search was discussed in US right-wing online media outlets from 2020 to 2024. The analysis reveals an ongoing ideological struggle over who defines relevance, neutrality, and truth in the digital information landscape. Presented as a defense of free speech and neutrality, this critique operates as a form of metapolitics aimed at reshaping the normative assumptions embedded in search engine functionality. The analysis demonstrates that search engines, far from being neutral intermediaries, are sites of political tension where ideological boundaries are negotiated. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
search engines, right wing politics, politics of search, metapolitics, right wing, neutrality
in
Information and Culture
volume
61
issue
2
pages
22 pages
publisher
University of Texas Press
ISSN
2164-8034
DOI
10.1353/lac.00049
project
Search engines and the order of knowledge: Cultural perspectives on search engines in society
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
7973c6d0-eddc-4d1c-bd7d-ae3a6c8005dd
date added to LUP
2026-04-21 06:39:36
date last changed
2026-08-27 15:42:24
@article{7973c6d0-eddc-4d1c-bd7d-ae3a6c8005dd,
  abstract     = {{This article aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the reasoning behind the current US right-wing movement’s articulated politics of search engines.<br/>The aim is pursued through the prism of metapolitics, understood as a culture war focused on formulating and establishing dominant societal norms and values. Methodologically, the study uses qualitative content analysis to examine how Google Search was discussed in US right-wing online media outlets from 2020 to 2024. The analysis reveals an ongoing ideological struggle over who defines relevance, neutrality, and truth in the digital information landscape. Presented as a defense of free speech and neutrality, this critique operates as a form of metapolitics aimed at reshaping the normative assumptions embedded in search engine functionality. The analysis demonstrates that search engines, far from being neutral intermediaries, are sites of political tension where ideological boundaries are negotiated.}},
  author       = {{Sundin, Olof}},
  issn         = {{2164-8034}},
  keywords     = {{search engines; right wing politics; politics of search; metapolitics; right wing; neutrality}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{2}},
  pages        = {{145--166}},
  publisher    = {{University of Texas Press}},
  series       = {{Information and Culture}},
  title        = {{Undesirable results : The right wing’s perception of the politics of search engines}},
  url          = {{https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/files/257320613/project_muse_997427.pdf}},
  doi          = {{10.1353/lac.00049}},
  volume       = {{61}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}