# Definition of Failure

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/definition-of-failure/370905>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [August 31, 2006, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/definition-of-failure/370905 "2006-08-31T12:16:13Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Long\_Time\_First\_Time](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@Long\_Time\_First\_Time](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Long_Time_First_Time)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2006, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/definition-of-failure/370905/1 "2006-08-31T12:16:13Z")

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At least according to Google.

Search the word “failure” in Google and see the first topic they pull up.

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**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2006, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/definition-of-failure/370905/2 "2006-08-31T12:21:38Z")

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[Googlebomb 1](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=383864&highlight=failure+google)  
[Google Bomb 2](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=341123&highlight=googlebomb)  
[Other Google Bomb](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=250870&highlight=googlebomb)

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**Author:** ![Pixisis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@Pixisis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixisis)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2006, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/definition-of-failure/370905/3 "2006-08-31T12:22:03Z")

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> [@Long Time First Time](#):
>
> At least according to Google.
> 
> Search the word “failure” in Google and see the first topic they pull up.

googlebombing.

[These results may seem politically slanted. Here’s what happened.](http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2005/09/googlebombing-failure.html)

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**Author:** ![Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Il_Palazzo)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2006, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/definition-of-failure/370905/4 "2006-08-31T12:33:58Z")

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Basically, people who wanted to make a point repeatedly used the word “failure” as a link to the White House page. Because of how Google works, this pushed that page higher on the search results.

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**Author:** ![Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Lord\_Il\_Palazzo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Il_Palazzo)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2006, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/definition-of-failure/370905/5 "2006-08-31T12:36:27Z")

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[hijack]There was just a Google ad for “Lds Ringtone”. What’s an LDS Ringtone? The Tabernacle Choir? The sound of multiple wives telling you the phone’s ringing?

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**Author:** ![DooWahDiddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9bcb4/32.png) [@DooWahDiddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DooWahDiddy)\
**Post date:** [August 31, 2006, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/definition-of-failure/370905/6 "2006-08-31T14:34:54Z")

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Can we please put a sticky up for this or something?