Facebook blasted as Canadians blocked from news as fires rage

A dispute with tech giant Meta is complicating matters as Canadians fight for their lives and property against megafires.

Facebook has been blasted for preventing Canadians sharing critical emergency news on the social media site while megafires threaten.

Thousands were fleeing wildfires advancing on one of the largest cities in Canada’s far north on Thursday, as convoys snaked south to safety on the only open highway and evacuation flights took off from the airport.

The order to evacuate Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories marks the latest chapter in a terrible summer for wildfires in Canada. More than 20,000 residents of the regional capital have been given until noon Friday to leave.

Megafires have spread across Canada with remarkable intensity. Picture: AFP

As of Thursday, more than 1,000 wildfires were burning in Canada, including about 230 in the Northwest Territories, where more than 21,000 square kilometres have been set ablaze.

But a spat between Facebook’s parent company Meta and the Canadian government has drawn sharp criticism after some citizens were unable to share critical information on the site that has nearly 3 billion users worldwide.

Meta enacted a ban on Canadian users sharing news on August 1 after the nation enacted new laws that forced Google and Meta to negotiate deals to pay news publishers. A similar scenario played out in Australia in February 2021 before Facebook backed down.

The move by Meta to block the sharing of news has been highlighted during the disastrous fires.

AFP reporter Geneviève Normand wrote on social media: “At a time where a massive evacuation is underway in Canada’s North and people are fleeing home with not much but their cellphone, news reports remain restricted on Facebook and Instagram for Canadians.”

Aussie firefighter Nathan Warner wrote: “[Facebook] sticking to its ban on news posted in Canada while tens of thousands face evacuations from life threatening fires across the country,”. He labelled the move “ruthless” and “disgusting”.

“The timing could not have been worse for this,” Shawna Bruce from the disaster and emergency management program at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology told the BBC.

She said nearly 80 per cent of Canadians used Facebook and many relied on the platform for news updates.

Frustration as Facebook blocks news

Facebook and Instagram users across Canada are being blocked from reading the news on social media platforms as it emerges that Google might soon follow suit.

While Google is trying to find a solution with the Canadian government to these new laws, Facebook and Instagram have been unsuccessful in reaching an agreement.

Local Ontario resident Rachel Korinek, who is a dual citizen of both Canada and Australia, said that not having a TV means she primarily gets her news through social media platforms that she already spends time on.

“One thing you can’t get from news outlet apps or websites is the ability for me to share articles or news that [are] important to me with a larger audience … That’s how I’d often find out about breaking or interesting news stories,” Mrs Korinek said.

Mrs Korinek expressed her frustration that the convenience to access information from around the world that she is interested in has been taken away.

“In a free speech, democratic society like Canada, it feels weird not to have access to news on social media. Money and power should never come before information”, said Mrs Korinek.

These changes came into effect because of the Online News Act.

Canadians are experiencing a social media news blackout. Picture: iStock

The Online News Act, Bill C-18 was passed by the Canadian Liberal government in June 2023, which demands digital companies pay news organisations when someone accesses a web story through their social platforms.

Similar situation unfolding in Australia

In 2021 Australia faced the same issue as Canada, however, Australia successfully passed The News Media Bargaining Code (NMBC), a law similar to the Online News Act.

A fair bargaining arrangement has emerged between platforms and news providers in Australia, Canada, and the UK.

“Without these mechanisms there is real doubt about whether platforms such as Meta and Google will continue to serve professionally made news to their users,” said Timothy Dwyer, Associate Professor from The University of Sydney.

The NMBC was passed to make large Australian tech companies pay for news published on their platforms.

Should Aussies be worried?

Australians could soon face the same issues as Canada with the current NMBC agreement coming to an end within the next 12 months.

“There is virtually zero transparency about whether they will be renewed or whether they will lapse. So Australia could easily again be in the same position as Canada currently is in,” said Professor Dwyer.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Picture: Dave Chan / AFP

Professor Dwyer explains there’s sufficient evidence to show that many people use search engines such as Google and social media platforms to access their news, however, he feels the best way to obtain your news is going “directly to the website of the new organisation itself,” he said.

Once the NMBC law had been passed in Australia, Facebook temporarily blocked online news from its social media platforms for a week, accidentally limiting access to emergency services pages in the process.

Facebook’s parent company, Meta have said they have learned from this mistake, with Rachel Curran, head of public policy for Meta Canada, stating the company ‘absolutely’ wants to make sure the same thing doesn’t happen in Canada.

Curran went on to say that would mean not applying any potential blocks to government pages, emergency services or community organisations.