I strongly disagree that the democratization of knowledge is hard to find / that what floats at the top is the most popular, and I strongly disagree that Google

I strongly disagree that the democratization of knowledge is hard to find / that what floats at the top is the most popular, and I strongly disagree that Google is doing anything to make it so. Imagine in 1995 asking someone whether MSG is harmful or whether razor blades were ever found in Halloween candies. You would hear fairly confident answers of yes to both. Perhaps someone would feel like checking things, and they'd pull out a book of popular facts or an encyclopedia that happily answered yes (or perhaps no) without much discussion, and that would be the end of it. (The Encarta College Dictionary, which awkwardly straddled the transition from books to the internet, had an entirely uncritical definition of "Chinese restaurant syndrome" as a real thing, for instance.) Go to Google and type in "is msg harmful" and the featured snippet says that while some people have a sensitivity to it, it's definitely not harmful in anywhere near the amounts used in food. Go to Google and type in "razors in halloween candy" and the top result is a Wikipedia page debunking the urban legends of the '80s. After it is a YouTube video reporting on an actual case of razor blades being found in candy this past Halloween, which Wikipedia hasn't been updated for. In a single Google SERP above the fold, you already have a more accurate synthesis of multiple sources than any single publication has. (And no, I didn't plan this, I didn't even know about the 2019 cases until just now!) What about political correctness? There's no shortage of content criticizing either the current president or his political opponents past and present. Or, say, search for "puberty blockers" and you get YouTube videos both in favor of them and against them, an handout from Seattle Children's Hospital on how to get them, an article from The Federalist on why they're clearly dangerous, a paywalled article from The Economist discussing it, an article from NBC News saying they've lowered the suicide rate among trans kids... basically any viewpoint you want or don't want, you can find it. It's all there.