(Alex Thompson – Vice News) Trudy Wade is a Republican state senator from North Carolina and an enthusiastic supporter of President Trump.
But if you search “Trudy Wade” on Google, the search giant displays an old photo in the “knowledge panel” of its search results with “BIGOT” superimposed in big red letters.
It’s just the latest example of Google not vetting the information that gets pulled into its “knowledge panels,” which are meant to give users quick information without them having to click through search results (often on other, non-Google websites).
Wade declined to comment to VICE News, but a legislative aide reacted angrily to the search results, adding that “the picture isn’t even current.”
Google’s “Bigot” picture has surfaced as Wade is in the midst of a tough re-election battle against marketing executive and Democrat Michael Garrett. The state’s district maps were redrawn for this election after several courts ruled that the state had been racially gerrymandered to benefit Republicans.
The newly redrawn state legislative districts have made Wade and the 27th district a top target for progressives in the state. The local Indivisible group “Flip NC” has deemed the 27th one of its top 10 “most flippable” Senate districts this year as Democrats attempt to break the Republican supermajority in the state legislature that allows Republicans to override the Democratic governor’s vetoes.