Google updated its Google News crawler documentation to clarify that publisher crawler preferences directed at Googlebot-News do not influence the News tab in Google search results.
The Google News tab is a section in the search results pages (SERPs) that showcases content from news publishers eligible for Google News, adhering to specific news content policies.
The changelog indicated that the previous user agent description incorrectly suggested that publisher preferences impacted the News tab. Google clarified that the statement, “Crawling preferences addressed to the Googlebot-News user agent affect all surfaces of Google News (for example, the News tab in Google Search and the Google News app),” was misleading. The revised statement now specifies that these preferences only affect the Google News product, including news.google.com and the Google News app.
