How to use Google's "about this result" feature

In July 2021, Google launched a feature called "About this result." This feature can be accessed by clicking on the three dots to the right of a search engine result.

The "About this result" panel provides Google users with information about why each search engine result was produced, giving insights into some of the search engine's processes and helping users improve their search results.

It also links background information on the sites themselves, making "About this result" a useful tool for a media literacy skill called "lateral reading." When reading laterally, users look for details about the source of the information before diving too deep into the content itself. This helps avoid misinformation.

How is this useful?

If your search results produce content from a page that you don't recognize, click on the "About this result" panel for the site. This will give you basic information about the site as well as how long it has been indexed on Google. Click "More about this page" to see what other websites say about that page.

If a page has not been indexed on Google for very long, or if other sites say the page is unreliable, dig deeper before relying on information provided by the site. It may be better to use information from another source altogether.

Be a savvy consumer. Use "About this result" to ensure your information comes from reliable sources.

Stanford University Civic Online Reasoning: “Teaching Lateral Reading,” shorturl.at/bDL07

Google Product Updates Blog: “Learn more -- and get more -- from Search,” shorturl.at/ainpZ