[Baeocystin]

> I am asking this question to a search engine, I definitely do not expect to need to fact-check the results.

Genuine, honest question: How did you come to the belief that search engines are reliable sources of truth?

I completely agree that search engines provide a valuable service. But in my own work, I find them to very often point to inaccurate information, sometimes greatly so. I don't think this is terribly surprising, given Sturgeon's law, but still.

[kelseyfrog]

I can see how someone could extrapolate Google's goal of indexing knowledge(JTB) into being a reliable source of truth. It's simply a matter of taking them at their word on the J and T parts. The B is up to the user.

Google's branding frames itself as the expert in the novice-expert problem. The vast number of users implicitly take on the role of the novice by virtue of using the product. They've already self-identified as a novice which makes both parties complicit in the arrangement.