Google is launching a pilot program to keep emails from political campaigns from going to users' spam folders this week, the company told Axios.Gmail users may start seeing a lot more political emails in their inboxes, partly a result of Google bowing to pressure from conservatives who claimed the company marked Republican emails as spam more often than others.
"We expect to begin the pilot with a small number of campaigns from both parties and will test whether these changes improve the user experience, and provide more certainty for senders during this election period," José Castañeda, a Google spokesperson, told Axios. "We will continue to listen and respond to feedback as the pilot progresses."he said.
Users will see a banner on the first email from participants in the program, asking if they want to keep seeing the messages, unsubscribe or report as spam.Online political fundraising has been a roller coaster for both parties in the past few months ahead of the midterms. Reaching potential donors via email is seen as highly important for fundraising.
Thanks I hate it
We know what's best. dontbeevil
That's ok. The whole spam email address is spam.
Nah that's a feature not a bug
Sounds like this is a great opportunity for someone else to a new chrome add-on that automatically puts those items into a new folder called junk
But... they ARE spam?
The political spam stays in my spam folder, and NGPVan does not honor unsubscribe requests.
And we'll keep reporting them as spam
Forget that.
Key question for Google, if you go through with this, will I, as a user (your customer), have the option to tag these as spam on my end? (Note: as your customer, if you push these to me, I will expect that you will provide me with the option to tag them as spam)
I’m sure this will apply equally to campaigns of all ideologies 😏
So I’ll just setup filters to move the emails with key political words to my deleted folder. Problem solved. Gmail can suck it.
BOO!
There goes my Gmail account!
No thanks
Where's our google reparations?
But they are spam.
gmail is great for spam. Use something else for email.
Making more of a case for client side spam filtering
Well why the fuck is Google doing that?
I already delete 95% of my Gmail inbox without opening messages, so I guess that number will go to 99%.
I suspect one side gets filtered more than the other....
Good job reading the room Google
Yet another instance where our very way of life is being actively sabotaged by the ruling class: the vast majority of emails from political campaigns are in fact spam, and should be treated as such. If politicians don't like that, maybe they could try not sending out spam.
Why?
If they are going to do that, they need a one click unsubscribe/block feature.
Gmail is concerned users’ email experience is getting too good; sets out to do something about it
'Google decides to make it impossible for you to keep your inbox functional because they want more money for their hard oligarchic work of 'doing nothing''. BreakUpBigTech
But they are spam
I hate government.
So after they monopolize email servers in 2021 they do this...? Wow. As an ex network engineer for the DoD, WOW. This is Google ensuring politicians can communicate while others cannot
But that's 90% of the spam I get
80% of my spam is from Gmail addresses. Clean up your own backyard first!
google nobody wants this
So let me get this straight. Junk mail has destroyed our snail mail system. Junk phone calls have destroyed landlines. And Google said, “Hey! This is a great idea!”
They should really do the opposite though
But these e-mails are one of the definitions of spam
This is annoying.
But they’re spam
It's another reason why I have 5 addresses: One each for Business, Banking and credit cards, Family & friends, Anonymity and Extra stuff.
Google we want the OPPOSITE of this!!!
Will Google listen to it's users who tag it as Spam?
But they are
I’ll kill my gmail immediately if this happens.
'Despite hundreds of negative comments, the FEC approved the program in August.'
Dear Google, When you get to 100% filtering on the gift card scam mails and garbage for people who don't know their correct address, then you can think about allowing political spam.
might I humbly suggest instead a program ensuring that all emails from political campaigns end up in spam folders
That’s why I run my Gmail through my iPhone mail app. If you block the sender just once, it goes right into trash.
Who is asking for this?
Why? What?
But....that’s where I want some of them to go.
Will they not allow me to block those addresses completely? Because that's what I'll do.
I would prefer the opposite please
Bye Gmail
Yahoooooooooo!
Once a week I unsubscribe- a chore but worth it.
Tip: NEVER donate to a PAC. You will never get off that party's SPAM lists for the rest of your life, no matter how often you unsubscribe. No matter how tempted you are to support a cause, it's not worth the inbox hell life sentence.
eww
I will seriously just stop using my gmail. I’m already on Outlook for work, don’t fucking tempt me Google!
Why, they are all spam and they won't be getting a penny from me for their worthless asses
FYI, I am a super-political person who almost never reads any political emails, because they are a bunch of marketing junk. We have so many ways to track campaigns these days, does anyone view mass emails as anything other than an annoyance?
google Must be really desparate for that MSPAC revenue.
relevant & why SprinkleUSA was built 💪
Fook, hands off my spam folder.
i dont want those fucking emails gmail they should go to spam
I love how legislators have classified THEIR email as not ever spam.
Why would anyone opt in? I want mine in spam pls
Is this fascism?
'The customer is never right'
Damn them
Glad I only use gmail for a 🗑 bin.
What a terrible decision.
Next, Google will just use our Google Pay accounts to donate to the correct campaigns. Thanks for undoing our choices, Google!
Dear Google - no, just no!
Emails from Hawaiian politicians should only go to the spam folder.
It would be nice if Google spent it’s time keeping porn spam and all other manner of vulgar crapola out of my email entirely. I don’t want it in my inbox, I don’t want it in my spam folder, and I consider it harassment.
Google Noooooooooooooo
To Google and the FEC: There is nothing about campaign emails in my Inbox that could improve my user experience. It could guarantee that I will vote against any candidates responsible for such emails.
I’d love to get their spam SMS to finally go to my junk. I don’t know this number, why am I seeing the alert?
“D. Trump wants you to try his special Penile enhancement trick” Now google must deliver or they are infringing on political process.
Wow, I thought I would die with my Gmail account, but here we are.
This is some seriously f’ed up bs, Google
How about no, gmail
This might actually help. I've stopped donating to candidates because of the deluge of spam it generates. If marking them as spam, preferably at a high level, keeps them out of my inbox forever, I might like it.
We need the exact opposite. Plus, political campaigns should not be exempt from the Do Not Call phone rules.
No one is above the SPAM. EmailAndOrder
If they're spammy I'm still reporting them as spam. Every single one.
Dear google - that's a hard hard hard No from gmail users. Let that unwanted inundation of political ads go where it belongs - spam. Better yet, don't bother delivering it at all.
Why? It’s spam. The pure definition of spam.
No!
I am solicited by every Dem running for office everywhere. Unsubscribing is my unpaid part-time job. I will get something to you soon though, katieporteroc. I can’t vote for you, but your whiteboard must live forever.
Google can you also pilot a way to block all political campaign emails?
Will Google enforce the sender’s required unsubscribe mechanism? Seems only fair.
This is what you've decide to focus your time and considerable resources on? Google googledevs
Why?
Thanks. I hate it.
Geezus. Another reason not to use gmail.
No one asked for this 🤬
and that's why I created a spam email account.
Reason 1000 why I don’t use gmail
But....this is the definition of 'Spam'.
I need a pilot campaign to keep that garbage out of my inbox, not in I’m glad I don’t use Gmail.
This is not a subpoena why are you forcing it into our view
Reminder kids if you grow up to sabotage corporations you are doing the lord's work.
Will they keep the spam out of the campaign ads?
But what if we WANT them to go to spam?
Bet I can beat it.
No google no.
Why not take the next unethical step and just prevent people from deleting them? I know, I know Google, this idea sounds horrible and evil, but you could even stop people from unsubscribing to emails!
Thanks Google, I hate it.
THANKS I DEFINITELY WANT THIS THANKS
I WISH THEY WOULDNT 😭
Dear Google, when I mark them Spam please do send them to Spam regardless the fragile egos and dog whistle topics used to deflect attention from their inability and unwillingness to work on bipartisan legislation that is good for the whole of our nation. Thank you 🫥
How about Google combats the spam that is these emails? When NGP VAN spreads our info to every single person running THAT'S spam. That's what is hurting deliverability for the candidates I WANT to hear from and actually signed up for!
Never been so happy to have Apple mail in my life 👍🏻
Not gonna bother me! Despise Gmail!
why
no
They should skip this step and just deliver the political messages directly to a large screen installed in every home.
Starting a pilot program this week to keep telling Google to go F themselves
Please crash that pilot right into the goddamn mountain
idk seems like the textbook definition of spam to me
So we're going from free speech to compelled listening.
They belong there
whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy
If I'm not expecting it its spam.
But what if we want them in spam?
For those choosing to not read the article.
Lol
Gave $$ to a couple of campaigns in 2016 and 2020. Must have sold my information and I now get frequent solicitations from (probably nice) people running for positions such as school board in KS and State Leg in Alabama... Those are spam!
Route0660 Weird.
just like we all asked for right?
GREAT - another political actor 'censoring for salvation' - Hallelujah
I will still mark it as spam. Already getting a ton that used to go to spam.
Can they just send them directly to my Trash folder instead?
But that's where they belong!
I thought that was a feature...
We want them to go to the spam folders!
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