Undeterred by Facebook news blackout, Australia commits to content law
Facebook stripped the pages of domestic and foreign news outlets for Australians and blocked users of its platform from sharing any news content on Thursday (February 18), saying it had been left with no choice ahead of the new content laws. The move, which also erased several state government and emergency department accounts, as well as non-profit charity sites, caused outrage.
Morrison, who blasted Facebook on its own platform for "unfriending" Australia, said on Friday the leaders of Britain, Canada, France and India had shown support. The Australian law, which will force Facebook and Google to reach commercial deals with Australian publishers or face compulsory arbitration, has already been cleared by the federal lower house and is expected to be passed by the Senate within the next week.
