The confrontation between Facebook and Australia shows that Mark Zuckerberg thinks he is not only above the law but also strong enough to bend the law at will.
Facebook and Australia are going head-to-head, although the Australian parliament has not passed the News Communications Negotiations bill, which requires Google and Facebook to pay Australian press agencies when the news is shared across platforms. this technology.
The tech giant responded to the bill by preventing publishers and press agencies in Australia from posting news on their Facebook pages. Users of this country cannot share and view news articles, both domestically and internationally, on Facebook. Facebook users worldwide cannot share or view stories from Australian publishers either.
Facebook confirmed there was no other option and said that the bill "does not understand how our services work". The consequences of this action not only affected publishers but also prevented emergency response agencies, domestic violence helpline, medical forces, and charities from sharing content. on my Facebook page.
Australian Environment Minister Sussan Ley urged people to access the website instead of Facebook, while Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the Australian government "would not be intimidated".
This is not the first time Facebook has been against the law or the rulership of a nation. This social network in October 2020 announced that it did not comply with the regulations on appointing a representative in Turkey, but later approved the request from Ankara.
Facebook also blocked Myanmar military access after the coup and arrested State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi and many high-ranking officials earlier this month.
The facts show that Facebook behaves like a transnational machine and at will, unobstructed, exercising power. The move with Australia is seen as an act of the "global mafia" when Facebook seeks to pressure the government because of the law that does not suit them. The responses of Australia and others, including the United States, will likely shape the relationship between governments and the tech giants in the future.
There are irony points in Facebook's decision to block news in Australia. This conglomerate focuses on connections between people but blocks the right to share the information of millions of people. A platform that is grappling with fake news and extremism restricts the right to access useful information from the outside, amid ongoing epidemics and natural disasters.
What does Facebook really want? The first is that there is no tax or expense to be paid. But the bigger problem seems to be that Facebook wants to ensure a firm grasp of the entire advertising market of a country, and freely adjust the algorithms that control how information is displayed to millions of users.
Everything that prevents Facebook's control of how information is received is considered a threat to this social network. Facebook's response to Australia shows that it is willing to take tough action to secure market dominance and tens of billions of dollars in profits, and show that the social network has too much power.
Facebook claims that "the news accounts for less than 4% of the content users see on the News Feed", recent information shows that it wants to lower this number even further to cut down on the split on the platform.
The ideal Facebook space is where users receive the smallest amount of news and enough other content to retain them. Even so, this dynamic has come in the form of shocking, fake news and divisive for many years on Facebook, while the social network has taken almost nothing.
Facebook once favors the uncontrolled flow of information because it helps companies grow, they rarely admit that the role of information sharing platform comes with responsibility.
This also seems to be fading with Facebook leaders, as they always see the world through Zuckerberg's eyes. Zuckerberg's tendency to punish those who disagree is evident during his confrontation with Australia, especially when news doesn't seem to matter to Facebook and its boss.
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