Facebook blocks Australian users from viewing or sharing news

Australian users have been blocked by Facebook from posting or accessing news content on the site, creating a lot of alarm about public access to key information. On Thursday, Australians woke up to find that the Facebook pages of both local and worldwide news sites were inaccessible. On Thursday, some government health, emergency and other pages were also blocked - something later asserted by the tech giant was a mistake. The government of Australia said that the ban undermined the "credibility" of Facebook.

Anyone outside Australia can also not read or view any Australian news publications on the site. The step by Facebook is in response to a proposed law in Australia that would make news content payable to tech giants. Companies such as Google and Facebook have argued that the legislation does not represent how the internet operates, and that their sites are disproportionately penalized. The Australian government has said that it is proceeding with the bill that passed the lower house of Parliament on Wednesday.

Paul Fletcher, communications minister, told ABC, "Facebook needs to think very carefully about what this means for its reputation and standing," The action by Facebook came hours after Google agreed to pay for content from news outlets across its media empire to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. The competition regulator of Australia said that it had drawn up legislation to "level the playing field" over income between tech companies and publishers. But Facebook said the law left it "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," it said in a blog post. Australian publishers are also prohibited from any links on their Facebook pages being shared or updated. There are millions of followers from the national broadcaster, the ABC, and newspapers like The Sydney Morning Herald and The Australian. Facebook said it helped Australian publishers raise around A$407 million (£228 million;$316 million) last year by referrals, but "the platform gain from news is minimal" for itself. The law aimed to "to penalise Facebook for content it didn't take or ask for" said William Easton, local managing director of the company. The shift in Facebook also refused Australians access to several main government agencies' accounts, including police and emergency services, health departments, and the Meteorology Bureau.