The insights on this article are coming directly from a Google patent US20120158711A1: Systems and methods for improving the ranking of news articles
Read until the end of the article where you can find additional support on this topic.
Want to appear in Google’s Top Stories? First, follow Google News content policies and verify your site in Google News Publisher Center.
Google loves fresh news. Publish as soon as a story breaks to increase your chances of appearing in Top Stories. Cover trending topics that people are searching for, using tools like Google Trends to identify what’s popular. Well-researched, accurate articles help build trust and credibility with your audience. Keep your writing professional but engaging, and always check for spelling and grammar mistakes to maintain quality.
| Date Type visible on Top Stories | No. of URLs | Avg. Position |
| Minutes ago | 2 614 | 3.47 |
| Hour ago | 6 059 | 4.56 |
| Exact Date | 30 | 4.87 |
| Days ago | 2 834 | 5.5 |
| Months ago | 78 | 6.84 |
| Weeks ago | 387 | 7.32 |
Data source: Svet Petkov (founder of StoryHawk) - How to track Google Top Stories carousel
Adding structured data like NewsArticle schema helps Google understand your content better, increasing visibility. If you’re covering live events, implementing LiveBlogPosting schema ensures your updates are recognised as real-time coverage.
Using relevant keywords in headlines and throughout the article helps Google categorise your content correctly. Additionally, creating attention-grabbing but accurate headlines encourages more clicks and engagement from readers.
Google measures engagement differently for news:
Having an editorial calendar ensures a steady flow of news coverage and prevents gaps in publishing. Diversifying your content with breaking news, in-depth analysis, and multimedia pieces keeps your audience engaged and coming back for more.
Promote your articles on social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn to increase visibility. Sending out email newsletters keeps your audience updated with fresh content. Collaborating with other publishers can expand your reach and attract new readers.
✔ Verify your site in Google News Publisher Center.
✔ Make sure your site is mobile-friendly and fast.
✔ Publish frequent, high-quality news.
✔ Follow SEO and structured data guidelines.
✔ Track your performance and make improvements with StoryHawk
Follow these steps, and you’ll boost your chances of appearing in Google Top Stories—getting more readers and visibility!
I trained a custom chatGPT model with this patent from Google. If you have some additional question you can ask and learn what you want.
TL;DRTrisolute News Dashboard offers enterprise-level Google Top Stories tracking but comes at a high, quote-only price. StoryHawk gives you the same speed, visibility, and competitive insights - without the cost or complexity. What Does Trisolute News Dashboard Do? Trisolute News Dashboard (ND) has long been used in big newsrooms. It refreshes Google News and SERP […]
Google is testing a new way to personalise Top Stories in Search results - one that could reshape your visibility overnight. TL;DR What’s Changing in Top Stories? In late June 2025, Google rolled out a Search Labs experiment called “Preferred Sources”. This feature lets users: Source: http://searchengineland.com/google-search-tests-preferred-sources-for-top-stories-457640 This doesn’t replace algorithmic rankings—it supplements them with […]
Google Top Stories highlights trending news articles at the top of search results. It updates frequently, showcasing articles from various sources based on relevance, freshness, and authority. Tracking Top Stories helps SEO specialists, audience performance specialists, content creators, and news publishers understand ranking trends. By analysing this data, they can optimise content in almost real-time, […]
