What does the author imply by describing search engines as turning 'the past into a permanent present'?
Search engines have turned the past into a permanent present. A youthful mistake, reported once in a local paper, can now be summoned by anyone typing a name. Supporters of a right to be forgotten say that people should be able to ask for such links to be removed once they have lost their relevance. Opponents reply that this amounts to censorship and rewrites history. The reply is overstated. The original article remains in the archive; what is removed is the ease of finding it. Libraries have always made some things harder to find than others. What matters is whether a person's reputation should depend on the efficiency of an algorithm. Of course, the right needs limits: a public official should not be able to bury an old scandal that still bears on their fitness for office.
Answer and explanation
Correct answer: E. Old information is as easily available as current information
- Step 1: A 'permanent present' means past events do not recede from view.
- Step 2: The next sentence gives the effect: a youthful mistake can be summoned at any time.
Answer
Old information is as easily available as current information.
Why not the others: The phrase is not about current events only, human memory, accuracy or newspaper practice.
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