Face-off in Australia : who should control social media news content? /
In February 2021, the Australian government enacted the News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code, a law designed to require large technology companies to pay publishers for linking to their content. This act sparked a dramatic reaction on the part of Facebook. The company responded...
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| Format: | eBook |
| Language: | English |
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London :
SAGE Publications: SAGE Business Cases Originals,
2023.
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| Series: | SAGE business cases.
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| Online Access: | Connect to the full text of this electronic book |
| Summary: | In February 2021, the Australian government enacted the News Media and Digital Platforms Mandatory Bargaining Code, a law designed to require large technology companies to pay publishers for linking to their content. This act sparked a dramatic reaction on the part of Facebook. The company responded to the legislation by temporarily suspending the circulation of all news items from the breadth of its platform, which only served to enhance fears that the platform has acquired an extraordinary amount of power. At issue was the perceived threat to their business model through the imposition of a state-ordered mandate that the social media giant pay news producers--especially those smaller, local providers--when hosting their content. Facebook bristles at the imposition, arguing that their company provides a public good. Furthermore, their platform already serves to enhance the profits of news agencies through generating clicks and traffic to their websites. Meanwhile, Australian authorities insist that local news agencies are at a marked disadvantage when negotiating a fair rate with the tech giant. The dispute offers a clear view of a few sharp disagreements between government and Big Tech. Students are challenged to examine this tension along two primary axes, politics and economics. The logic of government in this instance involves several key narratives, including nationalist responses to global corporations, preserving a withering local news industry, and anti-trust interests. But are these measures truly managing to advance the interests of democracy? |
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| Physical Description: | 1 online resource : illustrations. |
| ISBN: | 9781529617214 1529617219 |