Google shares five insights that can help site owners better understand how news appears on surfaces like Google News and Google Search.
In a new blog post, Google answers the following commonly asked questions about news content:
- Where does news appear on Google?
- Is my site eligible to appear in these places?
- How do I know if my site is appearing?
- Is there anything I can do to improve my visibility?
- I’m following Google’s advice. Why is my site still not appearing?
Here’s a quick summary of each answer.
Where Does News Appear On Google?
News content can appear on:
- Google News
- Google Search
- Google Assistant
- YouTube
- Discover
Google News, which can be accessed via the mobile app or on news.google.com, displays news in two ways.
The “For You” tab contains a feed of news stories based on a user’s interests, while the “Headlines” tab surfaces the same set of news stories for all users in a particular region.
In addition to showing links to news content in web results, Google Search surfaces news in the Top Stories carousel and the News tab.
Can My Site Appear Where Google Displays News?
Sites are automatically indexed in Google News if they meet the following criteria:
- Has high levels of expertise, authority, and trustworthiness.
- Has a consistent history of producing original news-related content.
- Complies with Google’s News policies.
Google previously required publishers to go through an application process to appear in Google News, but that was retired in 2019.
Related: How to Get Your Website Listed in Google News
How Do I Know if My Site is Appearing in Google News?
The best way for site owners if their content is appearing in Google News is to look at the performance reports in Search Console.
Specifically, check the Google News report and the Google Search report (filtered to the News search type).
These reports indicate if a site is receiving traffic from Google News and news surfaces within Google Search.
Google notes that while the site: search query can be used on Google News or the News tab to see if pages are indexed, it doesn’t mean that those pages are eligible to appear for news searches.
Related: A Guide to Optimizing for Google News
Is There Anything I Can Do to Improve Visibility of News Content?
Once Google’s systems identify content that is eligible to appear in news surfaces, its ranking is determined automatically by a variety of factors, including:
- Relevance
- Prominence
- Authoritativeness
- Freshness
- Location
- Language
Google’s Publisher Center can be used to manage content that’s deemed eligible, but eligibility is determined through the automated process.
Site owners cannot use the Publisher Center to force content into Google News, for example.
I’m Following All This Advice, Why is My Site Not Appearing?
Google emphasizes the importance of regularly producing original news content that’s high in expertise and authoritativeness.
Following that advice should make a site eligible to appear on Google’s news surfaces.
Google notes that it’s systems run regularly and will recognize if a site has improved its content to better meet this criteria.
Source: Google Search Central Blog
