There's a possible darker side to this, of course.
Today, the following story -- regarding an ex-member of the British Cabinet and a paedophile network -- started gaining a lot of traction in the UK, mainly because there are an increasing number of Members of Parliament (MPs) demanding an inquiry[0]:
Coincidentally, Google have begun removing articles relating to the story[1] -- for example, the search "Leon Brittan PIE" will return -- at the bottom of the page:
"In response to a legal request submitted to Google, we have removed 1 result(s) from this page. If you wish, you may read more about the request at ChillingEffects.org."
Currently, for this notice, chillingeffects.org returns[2]:
"Notice Unavailable: The cease-and-desist or legal threat you requested is not yet available. Chilling Effects will post the notice after we process it."
Coincidence or not, it's a troubling how easily this mechanism can be abused.
Today, the following story -- regarding an ex-member of the British Cabinet and a paedophile network -- started gaining a lot of traction in the UK, mainly because there are an increasing number of Members of Parliament (MPs) demanding an inquiry[0]:
http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/jul/02/lord-brittan...
The story itself has been around for decades.
Coincidentally, Google have begun removing articles relating to the story[1] -- for example, the search "Leon Brittan PIE" will return -- at the bottom of the page:
"In response to a legal request submitted to Google, we have removed 1 result(s) from this page. If you wish, you may read more about the request at ChillingEffects.org."
Currently, for this notice, chillingeffects.org returns[2]:
"Notice Unavailable: The cease-and-desist or legal threat you requested is not yet available. Chilling Effects will post the notice after we process it."
Coincidence or not, it's a troubling how easily this mechanism can be abused.
[0] http://www.exaronews.com/articles/5282/pressure-builds-in-pa...
[1] http://tompride.wordpress.com/2014/07/02/google-searches-for...
[2] http://www.chillingeffects.org/notice.cgi?sID=1719125