So it wasn't my imagination. InformationWeek confirmed that Google News was out yesterday afternoon for about two hours.
Google said in an email to InformationWeek that ...
"Today, from about 12:25 p.m. to 2:20 p.m. PDT, many users experienced difficulties accessing Google News. We know how important Google News is to our users, and we take issues like this very seriously. This issue has now been resolved. We apologize for the inconvenience."
Google has had a series (see here, here and here, for instance) of system glitches over the past year.
Robert N. Charette is a Contributing Editor to IEEE Spectrum and an acknowledged international authority on information technology and systems risk management. A self-described “risk ecologist,” he is interested in the intersections of business, political, technological, and societal risks. Charette is an award-winning author of multiple books and numerous articles on the subjects of risk management, project and program management, innovation, and entrepreneurship. A Life Senior Member of the IEEE, Charette was a recipient of the IEEE Computer Society’s Golden Core Award in 2008.