Google Blacklist

Ever since Google unveiled its new search function, hackers have been compiling a list of banned words, including Latina and “meats.” Brian Ries talks to some of the blacklisted.

Robert E. Klein / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---bare-naked-ladies_t8maoo — This band, like its peer The New Pornographers, has a jokey name that Google takes very seriously.
Robert E. Klein / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---meats_qak4vp — Results for “Meats” itself are as tame as ads from your local grocery store, but “meat” is a popular prefix for many sex-related coinages, especially those involving penises. The prank from the mid-2000s, involving a video called “meatspin,” is probably the main result our Google censors are trying to avoid.

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---panties_fmxczb — No one wants their boss to think they’re buying lingerie at work. “Panties” becomes censored once you reach the “E.” Add an “N” and you’re back in business, as the search engine thinks you’re a bad speller hunting for shampoo.
Bob Bird / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---women-rapping_xdtjst — Trailblazing female hip-hop artists suffer here at the hands of sadistic bad spellers.

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---tea-bagging_lb97no — Liberal bloggers reacted with glee in the early days of the Tea Party movement, when some activists called themselves “tea baggers.” The term refers to a sexual act involving the scrotum. CNN’s Anderson Cooper got into a bit of trouble when using this term with barely concealed joy on air.
Mel Evans / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---smells-like-teen-spirit_x6ljjh — Googling “teen” + anything can be risky, but it looks like Google Instant results for this 1990s megahit song are limited thanks to the naked baby on the cover of the album, Nirvana’s Nevermind.
Kevin Mazur, WireImages / Getty Images

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---dirty-pillows_tpigjr — Teens who grew up in the Bible Belt were far more terrified of the maniacal fundamentalist mother in Carrie—the 1976 movie based on Stephen King’s classic tale of high school horror—than of the main character’s psychic fire-starting abilities. The mom’s admonition that Carrie not expose her “dirty pillows” in a low-cut prom dress has stuck with church camp refugees, porn retailers, and Google censors for decades.
AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---shrimping_jeo2kx — “Shrimping” is not just a sector of the seafood industry nearly wiped out in the Gulf by the BP oil spill. It’s also something that foot fetishists do.
Gerald Herbert / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---pamela-anderson_bnvsw5 — Pamela Anderson was ahead of her time, a true Millennial in a Gen Xer’s body. The Baywatch babe was a pioneer in demonstrating the law that a sex tape is forever.
Andrey Lukatsky / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---webcam_kogcwp — Porn is an early adopter of new communications technology, and was an important force in popularizing the VCR, DVD, satellite radio, and, naturally, the webcam.

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---sasha-grey_gwfbvt — Sasha Grey is a major porn star who’s trying to go mainstream. Unfortunately, her Google results have yet to catch up.
Chris Pizzello / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---paris-hilton_h7d6vp — The first page of results for Paris Hilton are comparatively banal, but still, someone researching the Paris Hilton Hotel would probably want to avoid the many image results of the young heiress in a bikini, not to mention links to the visionary drama 1 Night in Paris.
Matt Sayles / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---cream-pie_sy9ebn — Those searching for grandpa's favorite desert might wonder why a simple recipe is NSFW. Let's just say that it's a porn thing.

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---camel-toe_du6kky — A fascinating and distinctive part of the hoofed animal’s anatomy! Also a major wardrobe malfunction.
Petros Giannakouris / AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---phone-sex_ww5l0g — Type these letters into Google and you’ll get tons of NSFW results, including a how-to in the first page.
Getty Images

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---beaver-lips_urwg1y — “The beaver’s lips are lined with fur and can close behind the front teeth to prevent water and other unwanted materials from entering the trachea,” explains Outdoor Alabama. “These are some of the physical adaptations that allow the beaver to feel right at home under water.” However, most people searching for “beaver lips” are not seeking such edification in mammalian adaptation. Or, at least, not this particular mammal.
AP Photo

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---babes-in-toyland_womkqx — The classic 1961 movie Babes in Toyland, starring Annette Funicello, is one of those pop-culture artifacts that's somewhat puzzling to later generations, much like the James Bond film Octopussy. Searchers are most likely hunting for the sex shop inspired by the musical’s title, Toys in Babeland.

galleries/2010/10/02/google-blacklist/google-blacklist---school-girl_kkhyei — Obvious. Yuck.

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