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A wildfire burns near the Ingraham Trail in Canada’s Northwest Territories, forcing evacuations. On Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau blasted Facebook parent company Meta for blocking local news on its platforms during the wildfires. Photo courtesy of NWT Fire
Aug. 21 (UPI) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is blasting Facebook parent company Meta for blocking local news on its platforms, calling it “inconceivable” as hundreds of wildfires continue to force evacuations throughout Canada.
“Right now in an emergency situation, where up-to-date local information is more important than ever, Facebook is putting corporate profits ahead of people’s safety, ahead of quality local journalism,” Trudeau told reporters Monday during a three-day cabinet retreat in Prince Edward Island.
“Instead of making sure that local journalists are fairly paid for keeping Canadians informed on things like wildfires, Facebook is blocking news from its sites,” Trudeau added. “This is not the time for that.”
In June, Meta announced it would remove news from Facebook and Instagram in Canada after parliament passed the Online News Act. The bill forces tech giants to pay local news outlets when their content is posted on their platforms. Google announced a week later it planned to pull its links to news outlets from search results in Canada.
“The Online News Act forces us to end access to news content in order to comply with the legislation,” Lisa Laventure, head of communications for Meta Canada, said in a statement Monday, as she directed Canadians to government websites.
“Canadians continue to use our technologies in large numbers to connect with their communities and access reputable information, including content from official government agencies, emergency services and non-governmental organizations,” Laventure added.
Meta also announced the activation of a function called Safety Check on its platforms to help users notify friends and family that they are safe.
Despite Meta’s response to Canada’s Online News Act, Trudeau refused to back down when questioned by reporters Monday.
“It is so inconceivable that a company like Facebook is choosing to put corporate profits ahead of ensuring that local news organizations can get up-to-date information to Canadians and reach them where Canadians spend a lot of their time — online, on social media, on Facebook,” Trudeau said
“This is Facebook’s choice,” Trudeau added.
“We’re simply saying that in a democracy, quality local journalism matters. And it matters now more than ever before, when people are worried about their homes, worried about communities, worried about the worst summer for extreme weather events we’ve had in a long, long time.”
