Last week we reported on Google executives coming out in public support of Referendum 71. Like us, many of you were disturbed by one of the nation’s largest internet search engines taking a public position on a such a sensitive and political issue. It is fair reason to question the reliability and neutrality of an organization that filters the information most people receive. We wanted to make sure Google was made aware of these concerns, so we drafted and sent the following letter:
To Eric Schmidt:
We, United Families International, are writing in response to a recent letter sent by Google executives Brian Bershad and Scott Silver to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer on the issue of Referendum 71. Given the position of your organization as one of the most prominent and powerful search engines on the internet, we feel it is a gross abuse of your visibility and power to take a public position on an issue unrelated to your business or its practices.
Now that you have publicly made evident your organization’s biases and ideology, those of us who disagree with your position must question the accuracy and reliability of Google search results. We would hope that as the filter standing between the public and the information available on the internet Google would maintain a position of neutrality on all public, political or cultural issues in order to assure the public that your search engine provides results that are free of bias and/or manipulation. Due to this most recent letter to the editor, the public can no longer trust that this is the case and must question what sort of bias is filtering the news and information we receive.
We recognize that what you have written cannot be rescinded. However, we encourage you in the future to avoid weakening your integrity further by becoming involved in the political sphere. Such involvement diminishes the reliability and trustworthiness of your entire organization.
Sincerely,
United Families International