The High Court decision in the Voller case concerns whether a publisher can be held responsible for comments readers post on its website. Specifically, the decision applies to Facebook but would appear to apply equally to any social media publisher, potentially including this website. Indeed, The Conversation seems sufficiently concerned to shut down all comment and discussion on the case in question – an over-reaction perhaps.
In objective terms, Trump’s lawsuits look weak. But this is not about him winning in a federal court. By challenging Facebook, Google, and Twitter this way, he achieves two key goals: he keeps the conspiratorial demagoguery flowing and he keeps the cash pouring in. This case isn’t about justice. It’s about fear and money—the two things that make Trump’s world go around.
It’s increasingly clear that market-based solutions for news production aren’t helping foster a more equitable and inclusive democracy. In the United States, commercial media share a sizable portion of the blame for the rise of Donald Trump—and, with him, Trump-style white nationalism. What happened in the 20th century, when local print, radio and TV outlets were the best way for advertisers to target local audiences, was a historical fluke. Attempts to rebuild or insulate that old-media model in the 21st century are a fool’s errand. Future solutions must involve new hybrid private- and public-sector models, or direct public funding for journalism, so long as it includes guardrails to protect the editorial independence of news organizations on the receiving end.
Google was prepared to pay these “premiums” to make sure that its business model would still survive. It is the company’s advertising business model that it was keen to protect and for that reason, it was prepared to pay off the news companies. So nothing fundamental has been solved by the Australian Government through its media code. It is now simply waiting for the next battle and the regulator (ACCC) has also already foreshadowed that it will concentrate on that advertising business model. This will be a much tougher battle that Australia will not be able to win on its own. Google will use its full legal power with gigantic financial resources to defend their business.
It’s a win for misinformation because since when has News Corp actually printed News or Information. It’s greater impact being the ABC yet again has been locked out providing News Corp and Ch9 with a far larger playing field of bullshit heading into an election ODT
But its bid to limit news content is a double-edged sword. It may save users from some heated debate, but it also leaves the platform wide open to those who wish to spread false information while restricting fact-checked news content. As Liberal MP Craig Kelly showed before being banned from Facebook for a week, he was able to freely promote his views on treatments for COVID-19 and mask wearing that were at odds with official government and medical advice. He is hardly alone.
Why is this all happening? Our gutless Government is owned lock stock and barrel by conservative media. Our monopoly mainstream media is jousting with the monopoly social media platforms to gouge whatever they can out of each others’ revenue streams. Without the backing of monopoly level conservative media our current Government would have been chucked out long ago. So no surprise that the Coalition is sucking up to Murdoch. Bit trite for our Government to argue on behalf of Murdoch et al about how their revenue streams are being ripped off by the larger social media platforms, when that same Government is flaying the revenue streams of the ABC.
Tony Abbott closed Radio Australia down and let the Chinese in to take that space. Now the Morrison Government is preventing Australian News reaching the Pacific again giving that space to the Chinese while they slash the ABC’s budget instead 0f expanding it to to compete with Facebook. The LNP is supporting Murdoch and Costello’s private interests in exchange for political influence and ensuring fake news is concentrated in their hands. LNP are certainly the Pillocks of the Pacific( ODT)
Facebook’s move has also drawn an angry response from Pacific community groups in Australia. Nai Tuuut from the Pacific Community Council of Far North Queensland said her organisation relied on Facebook to share community news, as well as vital public health information in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. “Without us being able to share Australian news or even the Queensland Health is unable to post on Facebook, that just makes it extremely hard to keep our community up to date and just aware of what’s going on,” she told the ABC.
“It has left us facing a stark choice: Attempt to comply with a law that ignores the realities of this relationship, or stop allowing news content on our services in Australia. With a heavy heart, we are choosing the latter.”
In effect News Corp has it’s ability to churn opinion for the LNP boosted. It’s sacked it’s journalists for churnalists just as Google and Facebook have been accused of but with a difference Murdoch has a pact with the LNP. Maybe a exclusivity agreement should be drawn up between the ABC Facebook and Google while they forget News Corp and Ch9.
Contrary to suggestions otherwise, Voltaire would have applauded the decision by Twitter and Facebook to suspend the access of Donald Trump to their platforms. Much like John Stuart Mill, the British philosopher and guru of classical liberalism, Voltaire supported criminal laws against libel, slander, incitement to violence and treason. Mill is credited with developing “the harm principle” under which laws restricting personal freedom should be promulgated “to prevent harm to others”.
“If the aim of this code is to ensure the viability of Australia’s media, then the Government should ensure ABC is included, that AAP doesn’t fail and that small and independent publishers don’t miss out,” Hanson-Young said.
But stuff Google and Facebook, says Morrison and his gang of dollar store Batman villains, if Rupert wants something, no matter how obviously idiotic, odious or borderline corrupt, Rupert will bloody well get it. His media monopoly is the only thing keeping the Coalition in power, after all.
Irrespective of how you look at it, the Murdoch media is working with the Morrison Government to achieve its goal of controlling the narrative and manipulating the way people can find news and information. A job which they already fulfil with aplomb, but which will be that much easier without pesky Google searches and Facebook sharing platforms unearthing more and more alternative views.
Whichever way it goes, Rupert Murdoch gets what he wants. Either a new stream of revenue from Facebook and Google, or a potentially crippling blow to his emerging online news rivals.
Come to think of it, maybe the old coot does understand the internet? More likely his staff do.
The Trump administration has raised concerns with Australia’s competition regulator about proposed legislation that would force powerful US tech companies Google and Facebook to pay publishers for news.
Snake Oil selling has always been an American tradition. At least pet rock’s were refreshingly honest as was a can of Fresh Air. James Murdoch couldn’t “TAKE IT ANYMORE” Tucker Carlson wants to do more selling (ODT)
The Daily Caller is a right-wing publication with a history of promoting false information and hiring or publishing white nationalists and other bigots. In 2019, Facebook began partnering with Check Your Fact for the social media giant’s fact-checking program. Popular Information’s Jugg Legum documented in March how the Daily Caller used “its role as a Facebook fact-checker to boost Trump and discredit a mainstream media outlet, Politico.”
Check Your Fact states on its “about us” page that it is “a for-profit subsidiary wholly owned by The Daily Caller, Inc. Majority owners of The Daily Caller, Inc. are co-founder and publisher Neil Patel and co-founder Tucker Carlson. The Daily Caller’s fact-checking team is funded by The Daily Caller’s general news budget, as well as revenue generated through advertising.” (Carlson sold his stake in the Daily Caller last month.)
He’s now denying any of it on Twitter employing his two word slogan Fake News (ODT)
President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign has harnessed Facebook advertising to push the idea of an “invasion” at the southern border, amplifying the fear-inducing language about immigrants that he has also voiced at campaign rallies and on Twitter.
“We don’t have a country right now,” he said in footage shown in one ad. “We have people pouring in, they’re pouring in, and they’re doing tremendous damage.”
He seized on the “invasion” imagery again in the run-up to the 2018 midterm elections, when he claimed without evidence that a caravan of migrants making its way north toward the border had been infiltrated by “criminals and unknown Middle Easterners.”
Facebook and the rest, those are commercial institutions. Their constituency is basically advertisers, and they would like to establish the kinds of controls over their consumers that will be beneficial to [a] business model that enabled them to get advertising. That has very serious distorting effects. And we know that they provide massive information to the corporate system, which they use in their own efforts to try to shape and control behavior and opinion. All of these are dangerous developments. The power of these private corporations to direct people in particular [is] a serious problem which requires considerable thought and attention.
