Final answer:
Advertising in search results from keyword searches is called search engine advertising or PPC advertising. This content-loaded advertising uses search engine marketing strategies, but users must be cautious as even misleading websites can utilize SEO to appear credible.
Step-by-step explanation:
Advertising that appears in search results produced by users' keyword searches is known as search engine advertising or pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. This type of content-loaded advertising is central to search engine marketing (SEM), where businesses can bid to have their ads shown to users who are searching with specific keywords relevant to their products or services. The process is competitive and governed by the procedural rules of search engines, which prioritize not just these paid advertisements but also factors like popularity and web interconnectivity.
In addition to understanding the functionality of search advertising, users must also be wary when searching for information online. Websites spreading misinformation can exploit SEO strategies to climb higher in search results, which makes media literacy and fact-checking skills crucial. Digital literacy expert Mike Caulfield’s SIFT method—consisting of the 'four moves' of student fact-checkers—can be an advantageous strategy for discerning genuine content from misleading information.