Parents call for Google to change answer to question spoiling Christmas for children
Having all the information in the world available at our fingertips can cause some unexpected trouble for parents at Christmas.
While in days gone by keeping up the ruse that Santa Claus does in fact come into the house and deliver presents, it's a bit more difficult in the age of Google.
If you were to search 'Is Santa real?' on Google, you are presented with a number of options that mostly talk about the history of the figure, and of St Nicholas, in particular.
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In addition to children, St Nicholas is also the patron saint of sailors, archers, brewers, and repentant thieves, among other things.
But parents have been left less than impressed by the accounts of how the devout St Nicholas was transmogrified into the scarlet-clad menace of Christmas airspace, Santa.
This is because it makes it substantially more difficult to keep the ruse going for young children.
And finding out Santa isn't real, well, it's a watershed moment.
Things aren't helped by the suggested question which comes after 'is Santa real?', which is 'is Santa real or is it your parents?'
Previously, Google had showed previews of results which immediately gave the game away.
But it seems that the online pleas of parents may not have gone unnoticed, as if you search 'is Santa real?' in Chrome, and scroll down, and you have to look to find a result which gives the game away.
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One result says: "According to historical records, Santa is real. Santa is real in the sense that he was an actual person."
Another says: "Santa Claus is real, of course! The New York Sun even reported it back in 1897!"
But another sadly gives the game away, saying: "For many kids, their friends or siblings will break the news to them that Santa isn't real."
Uh oh.
But it seems that there is a pattern for belief in Santa. Thalia Goldstein, an assistant professor of applied developmental psychology, told CNN: “Children’s belief in Santa starts when they’re between 3 and 4 years old. It’s very strong when they’re between about 4 and 8.
“Then, at 8 years old is when we start to see the drop-off in belief, when children start to understand the reality of Santa Claus.”
Perhaps if they're old enough to start finding things out for themselves, they're old enough to know the truth.
That said, digital assistants do seem to keep the secret better than Google.
When asked if Santa is real, Siri said: “Well, those cookies don’t eat themselves.”
Meanwhile, Alexa said: “All I know is that someone has been eating all my cookies."
Kit Roberts