Google wants to help voters fact check presidential candidates

Google announced today that it will begin testing an experimental feature will allow presidential candidates to respond to issues brought up during the Republican debate in real-time directly in Google’s search results. The search company says the feature is meant to “level the playing field” as it lets the candidates share their ideas or positions – even if they didn’t have a chance to on stage. The feature is one of several Google is rolling out in partnership with Fox News Channel in advance of the final Republican presidential debate, airing Thursday on the Fox News television network. According to Google, political search interest spikes 440 percent during live televised debates as voters look for more information on the candidates and their platforms. But the problem with live debates is that not everyone gets to present their full positions – or in some cases, even address the same question as another candidate. With the new real-time search feature, that will change. When web searchers type in “Fox News debate” as soon as the debate begins at 7 PM on Thursday, they’ll be presented with all the candidates’ positions on the issue being discussed. Explains Google, the campaigns will be able to publish long-form responses as text, and can choose to add photos and videos. This will give each candidate the ability to present their own ideas, as well as “give extended responses, answer questions they didn’t get a chance to on stage, and rebut their opponents.”