Fortune, Google, and the Seven Deadly Sins

August 6, 2014

I read a darned amazing article at Fortune.com. The story is “The Seven Deadly Sins of Googling.” The article is not about Google. The article is about the humans who use Google.

What I find interesting is that Fortune has reached into the world of cardinal sins. Instead of the ethics embraced by folks, Fortune hooks SALIGIA to using an ad supported online service.

“I don’t have much time. Please, don’t confuse me with facts,” says the modern MBA. Image source: http://gargoyle-statues.hubpages.com/hub/3-Types-of-Gargoyle-Statues-For-Your-Garden

I find the linkage fascinating because it illustrates the type of analysis that seems to be sophisticated with the so called search expertise of Fortune readers, executives, and writers.

I liked the envy section. The article states:

Envy: When you’re jealous of someone else’s Google results. Social media can lead to envy. It can lead, possibly, to depression. In a 2013 study, University of Michigan researchers Ethan Kross and Philippe Verduyn texted people while they were using Facebook, and found that as time on Facebook increased, a person’s mood and overall satisfaction with their lives declined. In other words, Facebook can make you jealous. It can make you feel more alone than connected. Kross and Verduyn didn’t look at other social media networks, but it’s fair to say that looking through lists of other people’s accolades, impressive resumes, and social media clout can just as easily turn you green around the ears.

I found this amusing, although I am not certain that Fortune intended the write up to be funny, even Onionesque.

The meshing of the Seven Deadly Sins with lousy research skills is an example of faux intellectualism. Another recent example is an IDC report that uses the phrase “knowledge quotient” in its title. The reference to cardinal sins sounds good and seems to make sense. “Knowledge quotient” seems to make sense until one looks at how the phrase was used 40 years ago, then the jargon is almost meaningless and little more than an attempt to sound intelligent.

I am encouraged that Fortune is, to some degree, thinking about the dependence business professionals have on the results from a Google query. I am troubled that the information presented is superficial.

There are some important questions to be answered; for example:

What are the searching and online information behaviors of Fortune readers?
What specific methods do Fortune readers use to obtain online information?
What do Fortune readers do to verify the information obtained online?
What additional research does a Fortune reader do when searching for information?

Answering these questions would provide more useful information. But in the pursuit of Web site traffic, many “real” journalists and publications embrace the listicle.

Is this the 8th deadly sin? Superficiality.

Stephen E Arnold, August 6, 2014

Written by Stephen E. Arnold · Filed Under Google, News, Uncategorized

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Stephen E. Arnold monitors search, content processing, text mining and related topics from his high-tech nerve center in rural Kentucky. He tries to winnow the goose feathers from the giblets. He works with colleagues worldwide to make this Web log useful to those who want to go "beyond search". Contact him at sa [at] arnoldit.com. His Web site with additional information about search is arnoldit.com.