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Ottawa: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday criticised Meta for blocking domestic news from its platforms, saying the Facebook-parent was prioritising profit over safety as devastating wildfires force tens of thousands to evacuate their homes.
Trudeau’s comments represent the latest government attack on Meta, which this month started blocking news on its Facebook and Instagram platforms for all users in Canada in response to a new law requiring internet giants to pay for news articles.
The McDougall Creek wildfire burns on the mountainside above houses in West Kelowna, B.C.Credit: AP
Meta had long-signalled that the Online News Act was unsustainable for its business because it puts a price on links shared by users, and enacted the ban ahead of the news law’s expected implementation by the end of this year.
“Facebook is putting corporate profits ahead of people’s safety,” Trudeau told a televised news conference in the Atlantic province of Prince Edward Island, saying the company’s actions were “inconceivable”.
Federal Liberal cabinet ministers last week described the ban as reckless and irresponsible. Some people fleeing wildfires complained to domestic media that the ban prevented them from sharing important data about the fires.
“It’s time for us to expect more from corporations like Facebook that are making billions of dollars off of Canadians,” Trudeau said.
Meta did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The ban imposed on Canada’s news sites repeats Meta’s response to the passage of Australia’s Media Bargaining Code.
In February 2021, Meta blocked news and government sites in Australia immediately after Canberra passed a media bargaining code that the social media platform opposed.
For days, no news links could no longer be shared and publishers could no longer post from their Facebook pages.
Along with banning traditional media outlets such as the ABC, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, scores of government agencies were caught in the net, including health departments, fire and rescue and the Bureau of Meteorology.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.Credit: Bloomberg
A Meta spokesperson said Canadians continue to use its platforms to connect with their communities and access information, including content from official government agencies, emergency services and non-governmental organisations.
As of Friday, more than 45,000 people had used Facebook’s “Safety Check” feature to mark themselves safe, and some 300,000 people had visited crisis response pages for Yellowknife, NWT and Kelowna, B.C. to request support, according to the company.
Canada is experiencing its worst wildfire season on record, and blazes in the past week have ravaged western province of British Columbia and the Northwest Territories.
More than 35,000 people have been driven out of their homes over the past four days as flames spread in the western region, forcing the federal government to deploy the military.
Blazes are also raging further north as Canada reels from its worst wildfire season on record, which many experts have blamed on climate change. Other fires, exacerbated by severe drought, have been reported closer to the US border and in the US Pacific Northwest.
“People are facing horrific situations. … This is a scary and heartbreaking time,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in Cornwall, Prince Edward Island, on Monday.
Jerrad Schroeder, deputy manager at the Kamloops Fire Centre, late on Sunday said he was expecting “really good” firefighting conditions over the next 24-36 hours with temperatures down in the mid-20s degrees and humidity rising.
British Columbia, which sits on Canada’s Pacific coast, could get some rains this week from Tropical Storm Hilary, which hit California on Sunday, forecasters have said.
Reuters with reporter
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