DuckDuckGo joins the online censorship movement and down ranks Russian websites (March 11, 2022)

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Duck Duck Go used to present itself as an "uncensored" search engine, that was not messing with the search results. They wanted to be the reliable alternative to Google. But that illusion collapsed today as the owner (Gabriel Weinberg) publicly stated that they would down rank Russian sites. Now, before anyone starts calling me a Putin supporter, I'm not. I believe that with the recent actions in Ukraine, the Russian government has shown that they, just like NATO, are more concerned with their empire building than with human lives.

That said, I don't believe in censorship. At all. And we deserve a lot more than one-sided information. Do we suddenly trust only information coming from the Ukrainian government, a country that in 2012 was listed among the three most-corrupt nations of the world? I'm sick and tired of our internet being more and more controlled, and it needs to stop.

If any of you can suggest actual uncensored search engines, please reply below this post.

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If any of you can suggest actual uncensored search engines, please reply below this post.

I do not know if this is possible, but maybe a good software developer could build one on blockchain technology.

Maybe I wrote a very stupid thing here. Sorry, if that is the case. I do not really know the background of programming/coding.

They were never a real alternative anyway. I used the search engine once and thought it was just a 💩 Google anyway.

Sad ... how all pages go fuck up 🥲🥲🥲

Can someone say what is "Azov battalion" ... 🙄... so lot users not know it and I'm a little confused.... do Ukrainians still understand what their government is doing and has been doing for the last 10 years 👁👁

When I look in and dig in all this info, I start say wow 👀

Wow, the silence is deafening. This is a good, highly relevant article, @yourmarklubbers. I wrote about this type of stuff in a three-part Google Series, a few years back.

I think this could still be useful, even though much of it has become outdated. One thing I noticed...do you remember the push for "Privacy Search Engines?" I do. They were all taken over or crushed by the big guys.

Google Turns a Massive Monopolistic Eye in the Direction of Privacy Search Engines
https://hive.blog/informationwar/@canusapatriots/google-turns-a-massive-monopolistic-eye-in-the-direction-of-privacy-search-engines

Yes I do remember that, and I was a person who embraced Duck Duck Go as a valid alternative. So this shocked me and I had to write about it.

Ya, figured they were corrupt a while back too...did you read any of those articles? You'll see what I mean... You know all the search engines typically use each other's algorithms, right? At least in part. Even the new ones I've checked out blatantly do this. Presearch comes to mind. Yes, you can shut stuff off... but most won't.

Mostly now it's just the smaller ones using Google's search results, which is why they're still so similar when you compare them. Also, most people still register with Google or its affiliates so that gives em a whack of power.

Probs still a random few specialized ones, if you look hard enough, but the way forward is to avoid SE's and lilly-pad-hop, using the recommended websites from your trusted sites, bookmarks and going direct to source whenever possible.

Absolute agree that this is appalling. Hive is turning into the only refuge for censorship resistance.

Where will it end?

Search engines can demote and filter Hive links too if frontends can't comply and ICANN and ISPs can make frontends unreachable. .onion or IPFS hosted frontends would be nice.

Ahhh thank you. So although we can't delete content from our blockchain, they can stop us being found or allowing us any visibility!

This is already happened and happening. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and other traditional social networks often censor cryptocurrency related things. Including even one of the most famous blockchain game nowadays, the Splinterlands. Twitter even banned Splinterlands's Twitter account once.

Traditional social networks are full of censorship.