Google News Indexing Disruption Causes Traffic Decrease For Content Publishers

Google is investigating a service disruption affecting Google News indexing, according to the Google Search Status Dashboard.

In the latest update, Google informs users that a fix has been implemented. An update to confirm the resolution of the issue will be posted within the next 24 hours.

Screenshot from Google, July 2023

The Google Search Status Dashboard is a tool that provides status updates for Google Search systems and indicates any issues affecting multiple sites or users that might explain changes in site performance.

When Google News Indexing Issues Began

Trouble with Google News traffic was reported on Twitter several hours ago.

is Google News platform (https://t.co/ILD5MsHxuu) broken broken since june 20th ? Le https://t.co/Te9GswWSKA = 0% visibility (source : @NewsDashboard) Thanks for feedback ! Poke @JohnMu pic.twitter.com/7aGU56IGQJ

— Virginie Clève – largow Stratégie digitale ☕️ (@largow) July 10, 2023

John Mueller, Google Search Advocate, responded:

Hi folks, we have this listed as an incident that the team is investigating now: https://t.co/NlsLfymPx4

— John Mueller (official) · Not #30D (@JohnMu) July 10, 2023

The Publisher Center Help community is also discussing the issue.

Screenshot from Publisher Center Help, July 2023

Some have noted volatility in Google News traffic for the last few weeks, possibly because of syndicated content rankings.

If I worked for a news publisher who syndicates through Yahoo, I would definitely check my Google News traffic. According to @NewsDashboard data, Yahoo’s visibility across Google News skyrocketed beginning June 20. #SEO #NewsSEO

🧵 pic.twitter.com/Q1OdSKaaJZ

— Will Flannigan 🌵 (@Will_Flannigan) June 26, 2023

Semrush Sensor has also noticed the Googlequake in the News category in the last 30 days.

Screenshot from Semrush, July 2023

What’s Next

When an issue is detected, the Search Relations and Search Engineering teams at Google collaborate to resolve it.

Detection is often based on various signals, such as internal monitoring and community feedback.

Now, the Search Engineering team is tasked with investigating the root cause of the issues with Google News indexing.

While the issue is in progress, mitigation measures may be employed to reduce the problem’s scope or impact.

Continued Updates About Google News Indexing

During the lifecycle of this issue, the Search Relations team should provide regular updates.

These updates should include more details about the issue, such as the scale or affected regions, a timeline for the next update, and progress toward resolving it.

We will continue monitoring the situation for updates expected within 24 hours. 

Featured image: BigTunaOnline/Shutterstock