Google is to take on a journalistic role for the first time by allowing people who find themselves in the newspapers to comment on stories picked up by the search giant's online News service.

In a radical departure for Google, the company's staff will make phone and e-mail inquiries to confirm the identity of commentators - only those who are named in a story are allowed to air their views.

That task, which could call for a massive amount of manpower, appears to move the search engine into journalistic territory.

Though the company will not play any part in providing the original stories that underpin the service - a fact that has been fiercely criticised by newspaper executives, who say Google is profiting from their content - it is the first time Google has embarked on such a "hands on" editorial process.

The comments will be accessed through weblinks that will sit under the extracts of news stories that Google displays on its News site, which are picked up from more than 4,500 English-language websites. Readers will have to click through to a newspaper site to read the full story, but not to access the Google-hosted comments.

The "experimental service" is so far only available in the US, but Google said it could launch it globally, depending on its reception.

One comment on the site today was from a doctor working on a new Aids drug. The 500 word piece expanded on the significance of a recent reported breakthrough.

Another story, about a study that suggested children think food served in fast-food style wrapping tastes better, attracted a comment from Walt Riker, a vice president of McDonald's.

Google said its im was to open up participation in news coverage to all interested parties. However, the new service already faces criticism from newspaper executives who feel Google is profiting from their content.

Gavin O'Reilly, the chief operating officer of Independent News & Media, publisher of The Independent, said: "This is just another signal that Google news is actually a commercial endeavour, built on the conten of other media organisations."

Many newspapers have invested heavily in their own online systems that allow readers to post comments on stories carried on the web and will be concerned that Google is seeking to draw visitors’ attention away from their sites.

"It apears that we own the content, but they will own the community," one British media executive said.

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