In the name of placating President Donald Trump and his band of oligarchs, the Canadian government may be getting set to kill its last-remaining bit of Big Tech regulation.
I’m told, by sources not authorized to speak on the record, that Ottawa has told publishers to be ready for the death of the Online News Act. It would be just one concession offered up to alleviate — but not end — Trump’s punitive, illegal trade war.
Such a retreat wouldn’t just be bad policy. It would be a surrendering of our sovereignty.
Oh noes! Not our sovereignty! Think of the sovereignty!
The Online News Act requires that major social media, search and advertising technology companies compensate Canadian news outlets for lost advertising revenue. That law has only applied, thus far, to Google and Meta — and the latter hates it so much that they have blocked Canadians’ access to news on Facebook and Instagram for the past three years.
I can’t imagine why anyone would go to the trouble, but whole silly thing is archived here.
My guess is that both the US and Canadian government have used trade negotiations to do stuff they wanted to do anyway. America’s 50% import tariffs on aluminum was excessive to the point of significantly harming its manufacturing. Carney might have had second thoughts about the Online News Act enacted by Trudeau. But how to reduce or get rid of them without admitting to a mistake? Make them look like necessary concessions in the interests of trade harmony.
The Online News Act requires that major social media, search and advertising technology companies compensate Canadian news outlets for lost advertising revenue.
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An indirect admission that Canadian “news” outlets can’t exist in a world of capitalism because their product is being seen for what it truly is…bias, state sponsored garbage. Meta pulled their news feed, which is EXACTLY what Canadian state sponsored news media wanted. It makes that censored, spoon-fed propaganda viable. Now if they can get “X” and “Google” (although Google will act as instructed by a foreign govt….like the UK and China) to follow suit…you’ll have the pristine, safe and responsible news and nothing clouding the MESSAGE.
Go back about a year and recall the CBC getting Canada’s most popular YouTube news channel banned. Real Talk Politiks was outperforming the CBC…and talking about things the CBCdidn’t condone while taking away their advertising revenue….So, called in a solid from YouTube and had Real Talk Politiks banned.