Donald Trump, UEFA European Championship, and Inside Out 2: there are no surprises in Google’s top trending searches of 2024
We’ve reached that point of the year. Spotify Wrapped has happened, and now it’s time for endless ‘year in review’ and ‘best of 2024’ outpourings. Not wanting to miss out, Google has revealed the top trending searches of 2024.
The very nature of listing the top trends is that they are popular, and therefore predictable. As such, the appearance of searches relating to the US election was to be expected, as was people looking up the meaning of “demure”. So what else does Google have to share with us?
Google is making YouTube and other services delightfully free of political ads... in Europe
The nature of modern-day politics means that parties of all colors, all leanings, spend millions on advertising -- it is something that was painfully apparent during the run-up to the US presidential election. Technology firms and social media platforms are under a lot of pressure to take steps to prevent election interference, and to increase transparency.
This is something that has been playing out in Europe with regulation on Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising (TTPA) due to come into force in the EU. With concerns about the, “operational challenges and legal uncertainties” this could lead to, Google has announced that it will not only will stop serving political advertising in the European Union, but will do so before the TTPA comes into force.
Meta bans RT and other Russian state media from Facebook and Instagram
Citing "foreign interference activity", Meta has introduced a global ban on Russian state media outlets on its social media platforms. The move is fueled in part by concern about attempts by Russia to influence the 2024 US presidential election.
The ban, which is coming into force over the next few days, means that the likes of RT (formerly Russia Today) and Rossiya Segodnya will no longer have access to Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads.