Guaranteed Removals has been a global leader in online content removal for over 15 years, successfully removing thousands of harmful news articles to protect our clients’ reputations.
Our mission is to make the internet a safer place for everyone. We’ve created this guide to help you take control of your online reputation and remove negative news articles about yourself or your business. If you have any questions not covered here, please don’t hesitate to contact us directly or request a quote for our expert content removal services.
How to remove negative news articles
Contact the website directly
To remove a news article from a website, contacting the website should be your first step. This is the most straightforward and the best way for an article being removed. However, not all websites will agree to remove the content and you might need to provide them with quite a bit of supporting information or follow up with them a number of times.
Steps to contact a news website directly for removal
- Find the Right Contact: Start by finding the contact information for the journalist who wrote the article, the editor, or the website’s webmaster. This information is often available on the “About Us” or “Contact Us” page of the news site. You can also use tools like Email Hunter or search the website to find these details.
- Contact the Writer: Reach out to the journalist who wrote the article. Be polite and professional in your request. Clearly explain why you want the article removed or updated, and provide any evidence or reasons to support your request. Keep your message short and to the point.
- Reach Out to the Editor or Parent Company: If the journalist does not respond or declines your request, contact the editor or the parent company of the news organization. Some companies have a formal process for reviewing removal requests.
- Follow Up: If you do not get a response, send a polite follow-up email after a week. If your request is denied, consider contacting someone with more authority, such as the editor-in-chief or the site owner. Be prepared to provide additional reasons or evidence for your request.
How to remove a news article from Google
If your request is successful and they remove the article from their site, Google’s “Remove Outdated Content” tool allows users to request the removal of dead links or outdated content that still appears in search results. You can use this to speed up the process of having the link for the deleted news article getting removed from your Google search results.
Steps to Use the Outdated Content Tool
- Go to the Google “Remove Outdated Content” page at https://search.google.com/search-console/remove-outdated-content
- Click ‘New Request’
- Select ‘To refresh Google’s outdated result for a webpage that has changed’ and hit ‘Next’
- Paste the URL of the outdated or dead link that you want removed from Google’s search results into the tool and hit ‘Submit’
- Google will analyze the URL to check if the content has been removed or changed. This can take anywhere from a few minutes to several days.
- If Google confirms that the content is no longer available or has been updated, it will remove the outdated link from search results.
How to Request De-Indexing of a News Article
If a news website refuses to remove an article, requesting de-indexing can be an effective alternative. De-indexing prevents the article from appearing in search engine results, making it harder for people to find, while still keeping the content on the website. This approach can be less intrusive for the website and maintains the content’s presence without affecting their journalistic integrity.
Steps to Request De-Indexing:
- Find the Appropriate Contact: Identify the contact information for the website’s editor, webmaster, or the author of the article. This information is usually found on the “About Us” or “Contact Us” page of the website. Tools like Email Hunter or specific web searches can help locate this information.
- Explain Your Request: Reach out to the appropriate contact and politely request that the article be de-indexed from search engines. Clearly explain why you want the article hidden from search results, such as concerns over privacy, outdated information, or reputational harm. Be concise and professional in your communication.
- Supporting Evidence: Offer any supporting evidence that strengthens your case for de-indexing. This might include demonstrating how the article causes harm or contains outdated or irrelevant information.
- Benefits of De-Indexing: Emphasize that de-indexing the article allows the website to maintain its content while minimizing any negative impact on you or your business. Explain that this is a compromise solution that respects both parties’ needs.
- Follow Up: If you do not receive a response, send a polite follow-up email after a week. Persistence may be necessary to achieve your goal, especially if the website is initially unresponsive.
Using Google’s Tools as an Alternative
If the website is unwilling to de-index the article, you can also use Google’s tools to request removal of content from search results. Google allows you to request the removal of content that violates its policies, such as sensitive personal information, outdated content, or content that no longer complies with Google’s standards.
To use Google’s removal tools, visit the Google Search Help page and follow the steps to request the removal of specific URLs from search results. Note that Google will only remove or block content if it violates specific policies.
By following these steps, you can potentially have an article de-indexed, reducing its visibility without needing to have it completely removed from the website.
Redact your information
If a news article contains your personal information, such as your name, and you want it removed or obscured, you can request the website to redact it. Instead of asking for the entire article to be removed, you can ask the publication to replace your name with a more generic term, like “local man” or “an individual.”
By requesting a redaction, you can protect your privacy while allowing the news article to remain published with less personally identifiable information.
In order to do this, simply follow the same steps as you would have for contacting the site directly, just modify your request to be about updatin the content rather than removing it entirely.
If you are successful, you will need to use Google’s Outdated Content Tool to force Google to recrawl the page and notice that your name no longer appears. It might take some time for it to be completely removed from search results for your name.
What to do if you can’t remove the news article
If your initial request to remove a news article is unsuccessful, there are still steps you can take to improve your chances. Strengthening your removal request with additional supporting evidence can help persuade the news organization to reconsider.
Improve Your Removal Request
- Expungement or Dismissal: If the news article references a criminal record that has since been expunged or a case that has been dismissed, provide official court documents as evidence. These records can demonstrate that the information in the article is outdated or no longer relevant.
- Sealed Records: If the article mentions information that has been legally sealed, include the court order or documentation confirming the record’s sealed status. This can support your request by showing that the content is no longer accessible to the public or relevant.
- Provide Supporting Documents: Strengthen your request with additional documents that demonstrate your positive contributions to the community or personal development since the article was published. Examples include:
- Charity Work or Volunteering
- Character References
- Therapy or Rehabilitation Records
- Reputational Damage
By enhancing your removal request with these supporting documents, you provide a stronger case for why the article should be removed or amended, increasing the likelihood of a favorable response.
Hire a news article removal expert
If you’re unable to remove a news article on your own, hiring a news article removal expert can be a practical solution. These professionals and companies specialize in online reputation management and can negotiate directly with news organizations on your behalf.
Hiring a professional can simplify the process and improve your chances of successfully removing unwanted content.
If you need help removing a negative news article, Guaranteed Removals offers a no-risk, no upfront cost solution—meaning you only pay when we deliver results. Read more about our news article removal service here.
Suppression as an Alternative to Article Removal
If removing a news article is not possible, suppression can be an effective strategy to reduce its visibility online. Suppression involves using a variety of techniques to push unwanted content lower in search engine results, making it less likely to be seen by others.
Methods for Suppressing a News Article
- Create Positive Content: Generate new, high-quality content about yourself or your business. This can include blog posts, press releases, social media updates, and website content. The goal is to create content that ranks higher than the unwanted article in search engine results.
- Optimize Existing Content: Optimize your existing content for search engines (SEO) to improve its ranking. This includes using relevant keywords, updating content regularly, and ensuring your site is technically optimized.
- Social Media Profiles: Actively maintain and optimize your social media profiles, such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook. These platforms tend to rank well in search results and can help push down the unwanted article.
- Online Directories: Get listed on reputable online directories and profiles, which often rank highly in search engines and can help push negative content lower.
- SEO and Reputation Management Experts: Consider hiring an SEO or online reputation management company to implement advanced suppression strategies. They can develop a targeted plan to improve the ranking of positive content while lowering the visibility of the negative article.
Suppression is a viable strategy when article removal is not an option. It focuses on reducing the visibility of negative content while promoting positive, accurate information about you or your business.
If you need assistance with suppressing a negative news article, Guaranteed Removals provides expert reputation management services to help protect and enhance your online presence. You can read more about our reputation management services here.
Filing a Lawsuit to Remove a News Article
If all other attempts to remove or amend a news article have failed, filing a lawsuit may be an option. Legal action can compel a news organization to remove or modify content if it is defamatory, false, or violates privacy laws. However, lawsuits carry significant risks and costs. You might consider a lawsuit for defamation if the article contains false statements that harm your reputation.
Filing a lawsuit can be expensive due to legal fees and court costs, and the process can be lengthy, taking months or even years. There’s no guarantee of success, and the court may side with the news organization, especially considering protections like freedom of the press. Additionally, lawsuits can attract unwanted publicity, drawing more attention to the negative content. There’s also a risk that the news organization might file a counterclaim, leading to further legal complications and expenses.
Remove negative news articles from Google
Guaranteed Removals news article removal service
Guaranteed Removals news article removal service focuses on removing harmful and unwanted news from the internet. Our services aim to enhance your privacy and reduce the risk of unwanted exposure online.
There is no obligation or risk. You only pay after we permanently remove your personal information.
Get started and take control of your online presence today.
Frequently asked questions
To remove a negative news article, the first step is to contact the website directly. This involves reaching out to the journalist, editor, or webmaster with a polite and professional request for removal, providing any necessary supporting information.
If the website refuses to remove the article, you can request that the content be de-indexed from search engines. This prevents the article from appearing in search results, making it harder for people to find while keeping the content on the website.
Google’s “Remove Outdated Content” tool allows you to request the removal of dead links or outdated content from search results. If an article has been removed or changed, you can use this tool to ensure that outdated versions are no longer visible in search results.
Yes, you can request that the website redact your personal information, such as changing your name to a generic term like “local man” or “an individual.” This approach protects your privacy while allowing the article to remain published.
If your initial request is denied, you can strengthen your case by providing additional supporting documents, such as proof of expungement, sealed records, or character references. This can improve your chances of convincing the news organization to reconsider.
Filing a lawsuit can be an option if all other methods fail. However, lawsuits are costly, time-consuming, and carry risks, such as attracting more attention to the negative content or facing counterclaims. Legal action should be considered a last resort.
Guaranteed Removals specializes in online content removal and reputation management. We can contact the website on your behalf, negotiate for the removal or amendment of the article, and provide a no-risk, no upfront cost solution—you only pay when we achieve results.
Yes, if a website refuses to remove an article, Guaranteed Removals can request de-indexing to reduce its visibility in search results. We can also assist in suppressing the content by promoting positive information that ranks higher in search engine results.
