Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau criticized Meta for blocking national news on its platform.
In a Reuters report on Wednesday (8/23/2023), Justin Trudeu accused Facebook’s parent company of only thinking about profits without considering public safety.
Trudeau’s comments represent the Canadian government’s attack on Meta, which this month began blocking information on its Facebook and Instagram platforms for all users in Canada.
Meta took the step in response to a new Canadian law that requires Internet giants to pay for news articles.
Meta has long signaled that the Online Information Act is unacceptable to its business because it sets fees on links shared by users.
Meta is also blocking news content ahead of the implementation of the law expected to be passed at the end of this year.
“Facebook puts corporate profits ahead of people’s safety,” Justin Trudeau said during a televised press conference in the Atlantic province of Prince Edward Island on Monday (8/21). /2023).
Trudeau also said the actions taken by Meta and its subsidiaries were “unimaginable.”
Last week, federal Liberal ministers called the blockade reckless and irresponsible.
Some people fleeing the bushfires complained to national media that the ban prevented them from sharing vital data about the fires.
“It’s time for us to expect more from companies like Facebook that generate billions of dollars from Canadians,” Trudeau said in Cornwall, Prince Edward Island.
A spokesperson for Meta responded by saying that Canadians continue to use its platform to connect with their communities and access information, including content from official government agencies, emergency services and non-governmental organizations.
As of Friday, more than 45,000 people had used Facebook’s “Safety Check” feature to declare themselves safe.
About 300,000 people visited the crisis response pages in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, and Kelowna, British Columbia, to seek help, according to a company release.
Previously, it was reported that wildfires hit Canada on Thursday (8/17/2023).
Mike Westwick, territorial fire information officer, said the disaster burned at least 134,000 square kilometers (52,000 square miles) of land in Canada, more than six times the 10-year average.
Additionally, nearly 200,000 Canadians were forced to evacuate at one point due to severe wildfires.
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