In the spotlight: Open war between Facebook and Australia
Audio 05:33
An Australian Broadcasting Corporation Facebook page is posted without publication in Sydney on Thursday, February 18, 2021. Facebook pledges to restrict news sharing as Australian lawmakers consider forcing digital giants to strike deals payment.
AP - Rick Rycroft
By: Sébastien Duhamel
12 mins
Publicity
“
How Facebook Failed in Australia - Message to Our Readers
”.
This is what we find today on the site of the
Canberra Times
, the largest newspaper in the Australian capital.
A message that recalls the calls for mobilization.
He invites here to boycott Facebook, because this "
Facebook of Mark Zuckerberg has chosen the nuclear option",
warns the
Canberra Times
.
“
From today
, we read,
Australians will no longer see national or international news in their so-called News Feed
.
It's an insult to all users of the platform
, writes the Canberian newspaper.
It is a shameful attempt by a global giant to intimidate Australia into complying with its demands
.
"
The stage is set.
The bone of contention: for months, Google and Facebook have rejected a bill providing for remunerating journalistic content.
And if Google has argued, yes, "
Facebook ultimately chose the nuclear option,"
the term is also in
The Australian
, the largest national newspaper.
"
Mark Zuckerberg is acting like North Korean dictator Kim-Jong Un,"
echoed
The West Australian
, quoting the words of Western Australian Prime Minister Mark McGowan.
He calls on the United States to intervene.
Many entities targeted by this "Facebook Ban"
The problem is that the media are obviously not the only ones affected by this Facebook ban.
It is time to “
detach
” from the digital giant, believes a former journalist today responsible for a think tank on technological responsibility.
The problem, he reports in
The Sydney Morning Herald
, the problem is that "
the NSW Fire and Rescue Services, the Weather Bureau, the Australian research institute that works on the Covid, the health services of the States and many associations such as Médecins sans frontières are among the many to have been placed on the blacklist, which shows the scope of the edict of Mark Zuckerberg ”
.
"This is an arrogant and reckless gesture"
, especially in times of coronavirus, continues
The Sydney Morning Herald
.
This move, "
it will be dangerous for all Australians who rely on an evidence-based response to a global pandemic
.
"
But "
Facebook ignores the public interest while acting in its own interest
", we can read.
And the
Sydney Morning Herald
concludes: “
For Facebook, we are all just data to observe, exploit and monetize.
As citizens, we are worthless.
"
A debate that goes beyond Australian borders
“
The Facebook blackout could happen in New Zealand,
” warns neighbor
Stuff
.
The New Zealand media, of which
Stuff
is just one part, are fighting the same fight to see their productions paid for at their fair value.
Anyway, the article points out, quoting the creator of another media outlet, "
Australian restrictions are already affecting New Zealand publishers as the approximately 600,000 New Zealanders living in Australia cannot access news
" from their country. on Facebook.
More broadly, specifies a researcher from the University of Auckland, other countries could be in turn concerned: "
it could happen anywhere, you cannot trust Facebook
", she tells us.
Freedom of expression, at the heart of Spanish news
Another debate that goes far beyond borders ... "
Second night of unrest for the Hasel case
", headlines
La Vanguardia
.
The Spanish newspaper displays the same photo as its colleagues and compatriots in
El País.
In the middle of the night, in a street in Barcelona, young people, bags on their backs, hoods on their heads.
These young people face a police truck and throw objects at it.
They thus demand the release of a rapper, Pablo Hasel, arrested Tuesday to serve a 9-month prison sentence, he was sentenced for tweets deemed offensive against the monarchy and the police.
This is "
his fourth conviction in five years
", reports
El País
.
So, in support, "
hundreds of young people took to the streets of big cities for the second consecutive night
," the newspaper explains.
Barcelona therefore, but also Madrid, Girona, Valencia, Granada ...
Demonstrations that turn into riot
The clashes with the police are violent.
In addition to many injured in Barcelona, "
a woman lost an eye in the night from Tuesday to Wednesday,
" says
El País
.
And, "
at the height of the violence
" precisely, the Podemos party "
encourages protests
" for its part deplores
El Mundo
.
The political scene has obviously seized on this news and
El Mundo
here denounces the position of Podemos spokesperson, Pablo Echenique, who has given his "
support to young anti-fascists demanding justice and freedom of expression
", these are words.
A debate that could bring back memories, in France for example.
A debate that interests as far as Peru, where
El Comercio
dissects the Spanish Penal Code, which the government of Madrid has promised to modify without giving a date.
The Peruvian daily is categorical: for some, articles condemning religious offenses or offenses against the monarchy can be read as “
attacks on freedom of expression
”.
El Comercio also
emphasizes that more than 200 artists have signed a platform to defend rapper Pablo Hasel.
Among the signatories, names like Pedro Almodovar and Javier Bardem.
In India, a battle won for freedom of expression
In India, a woman has won her battle for freedom of expression.
His face is on the front page of
The Hindustan Times
, the world's leading English-language daily.
Also on
The Hindu
or
Times of India
.
The
BBC
also talks about it on its site.
Her name is Prya Ramani.
Journalist, author and above all spokesperson for the #MeToo movement in India, she was sued for defamation by a former minister, MJ Akbar.
A powerful one whom she had made resign by revealing sexual abuse, but a court in New Delhi finally acquitted the young woman, tells us the
Times of India
and the others.
The
Times also
displays in front page the explanation of the judge who made this decision.
Once, he will have the last word: “A
woman cannot be punished for having raised her voice against sexual abuse.
"
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