Meta’s News Ban in Canada Triggered a 90% Drop in Engagement on Canadian News Outlet Pages, Report Finds
Dec. 14, 2023. In response to Bill C-18 The Online News Act, Meta has prevented Canadians from being able to view, access, and share links to news articles. The Media Ecosystem Observatory investigated how this news ban impacted Canadians and released their findings as part of a broader assessment of Canadian information ecosystem health.
On the ban, the report finds:
Views of Canadian news on Facebook dropped 90% after the ban went into effect, equivalent to a loss of approximately 5 million views per day from official news outlet pages.
Local Canadian news outlets have been hit hardest, and many have gone dark and disconnected from the social web.
Canadian political discussion groups have remained active and appear to have replaced news links with less-informative content.
“Meta’s blocking of news in Canada is the culmination of a multiyear trend for the company to get out of the distribution of journalism. This comes after over a decade of incentivising and normalizing both Canadian citizens and publishers to using their platforms for news. The loss of journalism on Meta platforms represents a significant decline in the resiliency of the Canadian media ecosystem.” says Taylor Owen, one of the Principal Investigators of the Media Ecosystem Observatory and co-author of the study.
The investigation was part of a broad study on the state of the Canadian media ecosystem, using a unique methodology that combines the analysis of social media data with behaviour survey research. The study draws upon four large surveys (totaling 9055 Canadians) and social media posts from over 3000 politically influential individuals and organisations in Canada. Key findings include:
The number of Canadians relying primarily on social media for political news has increased. These individuals have low trust in traditional media and contribute to an overall dramatic decline in trust in Canadian and international news outlets over the past five years.
Social media use is ubiquitous among Canadian politicians, particularly on the Meta platforms. 96% of Canadian federal and provincial politicians have a Facebook page and their content tends to focus on their riding and province.
A small number of Canadian individuals and organisations enjoy a disproportionate share of social influence. For example, on YouTube, among Canadian political content makers the top ten garner 71% of views.
English Canadians are more aware of the political and media environment of the United States than they are of French-speaking Canadian content. They have very low recognition of public figures from French-speaking Canada, even among those who have risen to national prominence. French-speaking Canadians are similarly (un)aware of public figures in English-speaking Canada.
Canadians who deny that human activity is causing climate change are far less likely to report that the 2023 wildfire season personally impacted them and their friends and family.
This report is produced as part of the Canadian Digital Media Research Network and is intended to benchmark the health of the Canadian Information ecosystem, political discourses, and the attitudes and behaviours of Canadians.
“The Canadian Digital Media Research Network officially launched this year, with ten partners from all over Canada. We are here to support Canadian researchers rapidly accelerate our understanding of our information ecosystem and to work collectively towards a healthier and more reliable information environment.” says Aengus Bridgman, Director of the Media Ecosystem Observatory.
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Media Contact: Nina Solomun at info@cdmrn.ca. Researchers are available to share additional information in both English and French.
About the Media Ecosystem Observatory
The Media Ecosystem Observatory is an interdisciplinary research initiative dedicated to analyzing the complex web of online harms and digital threats to democracy, while actively working to safeguard against them.
About the Canadian Digital Media Research Network (CDMRN)
The Observatory coordinates and supports the Canadian Digital Media Research Network (CDMRN). The CDMRN is a pioneering initiative committed to fortifying and fostering resilience within Canada's unique information ecosystem. Its mission is to understand the dynamics of information production, dissemination, and consumption across digital media with the goal of empowering Canadians to navigate the complexities of the modern digital age.
The report by the CDMRN has been made possible in part by the Government of Canada.
Ce projet a été rendu possible en partie grâce au gouvernement du Canada.