To many publishers, Google is destroying independent websites, and one sees no choice but to defend it anyway. That paradox was on full display as WikiHow’s CEO testified in court about the search giant’s dominance. While AI-powered search and changing user behavior have hurt traffic, Google’s ad tools remain the lifeline keeping sites like WikiHow alive.
The AI Shift Threatening Independent Websites
WikiHow’s CEO Elizabeth Douglas described the current landscape as an “AI apocalypse.” Users are no longer clicking through to sites as often, thanks to chatbots and Google’s own AI Overviews, which directly answer questions on search pages.
For publishers that rely on ad clicks, this shift has been devastating. Fewer visitors mean fewer ad impressions, translating into shrinking revenue streams. Independent websites are feeling the squeeze harder than anyone.
Why Publishers Still Defend Google
Despite the disruption, Douglas admits that Google’s ad tech is the “stable part” of WikiHow’s business. Even as revenues decline, the system itself provides a sense of consistency.
In fact, WikiHow supplements its ads with a licensing deal from Google that makes up 10–15% of its revenue. The irony? Those same deals allow Google to train its AI on WikiHow content, feeding the very tools threatening its traffic.
The Antitrust Battle
Google is currently on trial over its alleged monopolistic grip on publisher ad tech tools. Regulators want to break up parts of its ad business, but Douglas fears that such remedies could remove the only thing keeping her company afloat.
Judge Leonie Brinkema will decide whether Google’s dominance requires structural remedies. But if Google’s ad tools are dismantled, many independent sites may collapse before they have time to adapt to the generational shift in search.
The Bigger Picture: Survival Or Extinction?
The story of WikiHow highlights a brutal reality: independent publishers are being cornered. On one hand, Google is destroying independent websites by cutting traffic with AI search. On the other, those same websites still rely on Google’s infrastructure to survive.
This uneasy dependency explains why even critics find themselves defending the company. Without Google, the digital publishing ecosystem could unravel even faster.
The paradox is clear—Google is destroying independent websites, and one sees no choice but to defend it anyway. As regulators weigh solutions, publishers remain trapped between innovation and survival. The question now is whether the industry can evolve before it’s too late.
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