Facebook News Ban May End: Ottawa Rethinks Trudeau’s News Law

Prime Minister Mark Carney says Ottawa is rethinking the controversial Online News Act—and may even replace or rescind it altogether—in an effort to make local news more accessible to Canadians.

Speaking Tuesday in West Kelowna, B.C., where he also announced $1 billion in new support for the struggling softwood lumber industry, Carney hinted that the feds are weighing alternatives to the legislation, which led Meta to ban Canadian news from Facebook and Instagram two years ago.

“This government is a big believer in the value of … local news and the importance of ensuring that that is disseminated as widely and as quickly as possible. So, we will look for all avenues to do that,” said Carney, reports the National Post.

He stopped short of confirming the government would repeal the law, but suggested that bringing back Canadian news content to platforms like Facebook is on the table.

The law—formerly Bill C-18—was passed with the goal of forcing Big Tech firms like Meta and Google to share revenue with Canadian media outlets for linking or sharing news stories. Meta responded by blocking news entirely from its Canadian platforms, arguing it doesn’t benefit from sharing news and shouldn’t be forced to pay.

Meanwhile, Google took a different approach, agreeing to a $100 million annual deal with Canadian publishers.

Former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau previously slammed Meta’s decision, especially during natural disasters. During the 2023 wildfires, Trudeau accused the company of “putting corporate profits ahead of people’s safety” by blocking news at a time when up-to-date local information was critical.

What’s ironic about the Online News Act is that Facebook users have started sharing screenshots of news stories and just pasting text, to circumvent the news link ban. In the end, publishers are losing out on ad revenue because of this news law that was meant to get newspapers paid. You can’t make this stuff up.

So far, the Prime Minister’s Office has not provided details on what specific changes to the Online News Act are being considered.