This is the extension used for an educational organization such as a college or university. Information from sites with this extension are usually pretty reliable. This is the extension used for a non-profit, civic or other type of organization. These types of sites are usually reliable. This is the extension used for a government web site.
Information is usually reliable and accurate.
Try to stay away from personal sites. The plus signs instruct the search engine to look for sites that have the words South Carolina, state flag, and controversy in them. If I had just used the words, state flag, the search engine I was using would go out and search for sites that had the words state OR flag in them. By putting these words in quotes I instructed the search engines to look for sites that had both of these words together in them. To broaden a search I would use the word OR .