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Google a blue site?

Stefanie Olsen Staff writer, CNET News
Stefanie Olsen covers technology and science.
Stefanie Olsen

Google has long tried to be apolitical when serving up search results and text ads. It says so in the Google users' guide. But sometimes the Internet search giant slips into hot water with one group or another. This time, it's the the conservative organization Rightmarch.com, which has slammed Google with a liberal bias label in accepting ads that criticize Tom Delay, the Republican House Majority Leader being investigated for ethics. Rightmarch.com's William Greene said that Google refused an advertisement against House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Delay's rival), but sanctioned the reverse. Google denied the charges and removed both ads, according to CNSNews.com.

It sounds like a kindergarten spat, but it's not uncommon in Google's sandbox. The company's self-service automated advertising system has been known to let through ads that offend someone. The policing and PR cleanup follows.