Juan J. Monroe 
Facebook users in Australia see this message Robert Cianflone/Getty Images
Facebook has blocked Australian media organizations and users from sharing news content on the platform, in a growing rift between tech companies and the Australian government that could ultimately become a test case for media regulation and how people consume the news in the world.
The social media giant announced the move in response to government plans to require certain digital companies to pay Australian news outlets for content shared on their platforms. Facebook disputed the idea, arguing that its platform generates billions of free referrals to Australian publishers, it said in a statement.
As of today, Australians are no longer able to post links to news articles on Facebook, and all posts have been removed from Australian and international media Facebook pages, including new scientist.
The timing of the news ban, just days before the start of the coronavirus vaccine rollout in Australia, has raised concerns. “This is going to significantly aggravate the misinformation on the platform,” says Belinda Barnet of Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne.
“They’re removing the primary source of timely, current, and accurate information from their platform,” Barnet says. “It mocks their public commitment to fighting misinformation, in the midst of a pandemic.”
“Our commitment to fighting misinformation on Facebook has not changed,” Facebook said in its statement on the ban. “We are directing people to authoritative health information and notifying them of new updates through our COVID-19 information hub. We also continue our fact-checking partnerships with third parties.
An estimated 39% of Australians use Facebook as a source of general information and will now have to look elsewhere. “It means Australians have to learn the hard way that we can’t rely on Facebook for facts,” Barnet says. “We’re too dependent right now, we’re going to have to learn new ways to share and access information.”
A withdrawal like this has not happened anywhere else in the world. “It’s really an open experiment for what it means for disinformation, for news consumption,” says James Meese of RMIT University in Melbourne.
Other governments will be watching closely the outcome of the Australian legislation, particularly in Canada, which has seen recent push for media reform, Meese said. “People all over the world see Australia as a test case,” he says.
The ban initially removed many non-news related pages, including Australia health authorities, emergency services and the national weather bureau. Charitable organizations, including one childhood cancer research institute and one domestic violence helplinewere apparently also affected.
A Facebook spokesperson said new scientist that the Australian government pages should not have been affected by the decision. “As the law does not provide clear guidance on the definition of information content, we have adopted a broad definition in order to comply with the law as written. However, we will reverse any inadvertently impacted pages.
Google last month threatened to pull search engine services out of Australia if they came under media regulations, but the tech giant has since signed payment deals with media companies including Seven West Media and News Corp, and may be exempt from paying for news content. displayed in Google searches.
Learn more about these topics:
