Close X
Sunday, November 10, 2024
ADVT 
National

B.C.'s premier urges Meta to allow news sharing in B.C. amid wildfire crisis

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 21 Aug, 2023 02:11 PM
  • B.C.'s premier urges Meta to allow news sharing in B.C. amid wildfire crisis

Premier David Eby is calling on the social media company Meta to reverse its decision to block Canadian news from being shared online in British Columbia, saying it feels like it is holding the province "ransom" in its ongoing spat with Ottawa.

Eby is imploring the company and its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, to open up access to critical information that could help keep residents safe as the province grapples with devastating wildfires that have forced thousands of people from their homes.

He says the decision to permanently ban Canadian news on Facebook an Instragram is "incredibly frustrating" and he hopes "common sense prevails."

Meta's decision to block news came in response to Canada's Online News Act, which will require tech giants like Meta and Google to make deals with news publishers whose content they link to or repurpose on their platforms to compensate them for their work.

Meta showed an unwillingness to co-operate on a potential deal and decided to remove news content from its platforms in Canada instead.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau echoed Eby's sentiments at an earlier news conference in Charlottetown, saying it is "inconceivable" that a company would put corporate interests and profits over people's safety during an emergency.

MORE National ARTICLES

Business groups ask government for labour changes after end of B.C. port dispute

Business groups ask government for labour changes after end of B.C. port dispute
Business groups continued to call on the federal government to take action in the wake of the recently resolved British Columbia port workers dispute on Saturday, arguing Ottawa must ensure such a disruption never happens again. But the federal government is walking a difficult tightrope between the demands of the business community and protecting workers' constitutional rights.

Business groups ask government for labour changes after end of B.C. port dispute

Mounties in Coquitlam seek witnesses to attempted murder in city park

Mounties in Coquitlam seek witnesses to attempted murder in city park
Coquitlam RCMP say they're investigating an altercation between "at least two adult males" in Brookmere Park that occurred around 9:15 in the morning. Investigators say they're looking for more witnesses and any video footage of the altercation, but the nature of what exactly happened remains unknown. 

Mounties in Coquitlam seek witnesses to attempted murder in city park

Edmonton police charge man with attempted murder after unprovoked machete attacks

Edmonton police charge man with attempted murder after unprovoked machete attacks
Bobby-James Lavallee, who is 33, of Prince George, B.C., is charged with attempted murder, four counts of aggravated assault and breaches of conditions. Police are asking for the public’s help to locate the machete as it may still be near the scene.

Edmonton police charge man with attempted murder after unprovoked machete attacks

Cyclospora Outbreak in BC

Cyclospora Outbreak in BC
The B-C Centre for Disease Control says there have been a record high 43 cases of cyclospora infections in the province this year. The illness is from a parasite not found in Canada but the centre says infections are linked to eating contaminated, imported raw produce, especially leafy greens, fresh herbs and berries.

Cyclospora Outbreak in BC

More Osoyoos, B.C., wildfire evacuees can head home as another order lifts

More Osoyoos, B.C., wildfire evacuees can head home as another order lifts
An evacuation order that includes an industrial area in the town has been downgraded to an alert as the threat from the Eagle Bluff wildfire recedes, days after it threatened the town before favourable winds pushed it away. 

More Osoyoos, B.C., wildfire evacuees can head home as another order lifts

Extreme weather risk changing Canada's insurance industry, raising costs

Extreme weather risk changing Canada's insurance industry, raising costs
Statistics Canada's latest inflation report showed home insurance costs were up 8.2 per cent nationally in June, compared with one year earlier. Increases were about 10 per cent in Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan, and nearly 12 per cent in Nova Scotia.

Extreme weather risk changing Canada's insurance industry, raising costs