Facebook blocks Australian users from viewing or sharing news - BBC News 2021-02-17, 10(41 PM

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Facebook blocks Australian users from viewing or sharing news - BBC News 2021-02-17, 10(41 PM

Australians react to Facebook's news ban ADVERTISEMENT

Facebook has blocked Australian users from sharing or viewing news

content on the platform, causing much alarm over public access to key
information.

It comes in response to a proposed law which would make tech giants pay for
news content on their platforms.

Australians on Thursday woke up to find that Facebook pages of all local and
global news sites were unavailable.

Several government health and emergency pages were also blocked -

something Facebook later asserted was a mistake.

Those outside of the country are also unable to read or access any Australian
news publications on the platform.

The Australian government has strongly criticised the move, saying it

demonstrated the "immense market power of these digital social giants".

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said the ban on news information had a "huge
community impact". About 17 million Australians visit the social media site
every month.

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He said the government was committed to passing the law, and "we would like
to see them [Facebook] in Australia.
Features
"But I think their actions today were unnecessary and wrong," he added.

Google and Facebook have fought the law because they say it doesn't reflect
how the internet works, and unfairly "penalises" their platforms.

However, in contrast to Facebook, Google has in recent days signed payment

deals with three major Australian media outlets.

Facebook's action came just hours aXer Google agreed to pay Rupert
Murdoch's News Corp for content from news sites across its media empire.
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Why is Facebook doing this?
Australian authorities had drawn up the laws to "level the playing field"
between the tech giants and struggling publishers over profits. Of every
A$100 (£56; $77) spent on digital advertising in Australian media these days,
A$81 goes to Google and Facebook.

But Facebook said the law leX it "facing a stark choice: attempt to comply with
a law that ignores the realities of this relationship, or stop allowing news
Covid and suicide: Japan's
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Facebook blocks Australian users from viewing or sharing news - BBC News 2021-02-17, 10(41 PM

content on our services in Australia".

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'disappearing' women
"With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter," it said in a blog post.

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down in London

REUTERS

Facebook said it was making the change "with a heavy heart"

The law sought "to penalise Facebook for content it didn't take or ask for", the How this Mars landing will be
company's local managing director William Easton said. different to before

Facebook said it helped Australian publishers earn about A$407m

(£228m;$316m) last year through referrals, but for itself "the platform gain
from news is minimal".

Under the ban, Australian publishers are also restricted from sharing or
posting any links on their Facebook pages. The national broadcaster, the ABC,
and newspapers like The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian have
millions of followers.

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government sites?
Facebook's change also denied Australians access to many key government
agencies, including police and emergency services, health departments and
the Bureau of Meteorology.

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for Texas power cuts?

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Facebook blocks Australian users from viewing or sharing news - BBC News 2021-02-17, 10(41 PM

Malnutrition is rising across India -

FACEBOOK why?

The ban is also affecting official government pages

Other pages for charities, politicians, sports groups and other non-news
organisations were also affected.

Facebook later released a statement which said these pages had been
"inadvertently impacted" and would be reinstated, though it did not give a
deadline.

A spokesperson said the company had "taken a broad definition" of the term 'It's not the end': Russian activist
"news content" in the law. prepares for jail

How have Australians responded?

The ban sparked an immediate backlash, with many Australians angry about
their sudden loss of access to trusted and authoritative sources.

Several pointed out that Facebook was one crucial way that people received
emergency updates about the pandemic and national disaster situations.
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Others raised concerns about misinformation now freely circulating on the singers erased from history
site.

"It feels obviously very restrictive in what Facebook is going to allow people to
do in the future, not only in Australia but around the world," Sydney man Peter
Firth told the BBC.
Elsewhere on the BBC

Amelia Marshall said she could not believe the firm's decision "in the middle of
a pandemic", adding: "I've made the long-overdue decision to permanently
delete my Facebook account."

Human Rights Watch' Australia director said Facebook was censoring the flow
of information in the country - calling it a "dangerous turn of events".

"Cutting off access to vital information to an entire country in the dead of the

night is unconscionable," said Elaine Pearson.
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How is the government responding?
Australia's conservative government is standing by the law - which passed the
lower house of parliament on Wednesday. It has broad cross-party support Most Read
and will be debated again in parliament on Thursday.
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"We will legislate this code. We want the digital giants paying traditional news a heart attack' 1
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Facebook blocks Australian users from viewing or sharing news - BBC News 2021-02-17, 10(41 PM

media businesses for generating original journalistic content," said Treasurer

Josh Frydenberg who added that "the eyes of the world are watching what's Widow contests Larry King's
happening here". handwritten will 2
He said he'd also had a discussion with Facebook chief executive Mark
Facebook blocks news content in
Zuckerberg which had been "constructive".
Australia 3
But he pointed out that Facebook, like Google, had been negotiating pay deals
with local organisations. This banning action had "come at an eleventh hour"
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and damaged the site's reputation he said.
hit with lawsuit 4
"What they're effectively saying to Australians is: "You will not find content on
our platform which comes from an organisation which employs professional Children expose themselves on
journalists, which has editorial policies, which has fact-checking processes". video chat site 5
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major power cuts 6
Facebook wants to call the shots
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Australia is not a big market for Facebook. And Facebook says news isn't a big 'Strong decline' in virus in England
driver of revenue for the company. So why does it care so much about this since January 9
law?
Covid and suicide: Japan's
This is far more about the principle. Other countries have been looking at what
is happening in Australia. There's speculation that Canada, even the EU could 'disappearing' women 10
follow Australia's lead - something Facebook wants to avoid.

Facebook does already pay for some news. It's entered into commercial deals
with media companies in the UK, for example.

What Facebook wants to do, however, is call the shots.

Its executives do not want governments to step in, telling them they have to
pay for news - and even setting the price.

Facebook, then, has decided to show that there are consequences for
governments if they want to take muscular action against Big Tech.

But that could backfire spectacularly. That Facebook can essentially switch off
Australian news on its platform is already being criticised as anti-democratic -
even authoritarian - in some quarters.

You might be interested in watching:

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Facebook blocks Australian users from viewing or sharing news - BBC News 2021-02-17, 10(41 PM

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