Is Suppression Ethical Or Is It Censorship?

What Is Suppression?

Suppression is the tactic of actively pushing down the search rankings of certain web pages by optimizing other websites for the same target keywords.

Many people or businesses use suppression to remove themselves from the internet or hide negative online content to protect their reputation.

Although the best way to resolve the issue would be to remove yourself to contact the author of the article and submit a content removal request, most will be denied unless they’ve violated Google’s community guidelines.

Suppression gives users and businesses more options to combat negative online reputation.

Is Suppression Good Or Bad?

Yes and No. Suppression is used on both ends of the spectrum. Some don’t want to take responsibility for their mistakes, and others use it for proper censorship.

The internet has become a powerful resource for people to answer their questions or concerns.

The internet made it capable for anyone to share valuable information and ideas with the rest of the world, but I think we can all agree that not all of it has been beneficial.

The problem isn’t the act of sharing information, but that nowadays, it has never been easier for someone, without a credible background, to publish negative online content.

We see it all the time. Whether it is bad publicity or fake news, the internet blows up, and people make quick conclusions without hesitation.

Bad reputations mean bad business. One bad review can deter business relationships or employers from considering new job applicants.

It’s sad to say, but if we are all honest, no one wants to associate themselves with anyone with a bad reputation.

How to Perform Suppression?

After you have identified where your unwanted information is coming from, the next step is to identify which keywords that article is ranking for. Google ranks websites by how relevant the content is to the user’s search inquiry.

One major factor aspect Google factors into determining rankings are by searching for targeted keywords. Evaluate and keep a note of which words are driving the most traffic to that website.

If you want a more professional and accurate assessment, you can look into keyword research tools like Moz or SEMrush. They will analyze specific links and provide you with a list of recommended keywords they are ranking for.

The next step is to create and optimize online assets (websites & articles) that include the list of gathered keywords. The more relevant and original they are then the more likely they are higher to rank.

Make sure you don’t keyword-stuff; Google is keen on determining useless content. Your main priority is to create compelling content for online users, along with high-performing keywords.

Conclusion

Like many other things, suppression can be used for good and bad. Because there are so many different situations, the ethics around suppression should be determined at a case by case situation.

The internet is not perfect, nor is it close. If you are not aware, the internet has more than enough abusive online users looking to bring people down. People suffering from wrongful negative online reputation are well within their right to fight back.