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Despite Outbreaks Among Unvaccinated, Fox News Hosts Smear Shots

Back in December, before the queen of England and the president-elect of the United States had their turns, media mogul Rupert Murdoch received a dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Afterward, he urged everyone else to get it, too. Since then, a different message has been a repeated refrain on the prime-time shows hosted by Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingraham on Murdoch’s Fox News Channel — a message at odds with the recommendations of health experts, even as the virus’s delta variant and other mutations

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Facebook signs pay deals with 3 Australian news publishers

(AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)CANBERRA – Facebook announced on Friday preliminary agreements with three Australian publishers, a day after the Parliament passed a law that would make the digital giants pay for news. Facebook said letters of intent had been signed with independent news organizations Private Media, Schwartz Media and Solstice Media. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the new Australian law was critical to the deals that Australian media businesses were negotiating with the two gateways to the internet. News Corp. Australia executive chairman Michael Miller said last week that his company had pay negotiations with Facebook. I think the door is still open,” Miller told a Senate inquiry into Australian media diversity.

Unfriended no more: Facebook to lift Australia news ban

Facebook said on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021, it lift its ban on Australians sharing news after a deal was struck on legislation that would make digital giants pay for journalism. Google also had threatened to remove its search functions from Australia because of the proposed law, but that threat has faded. Ad“There is no doubt that Australia has been a proxy battle for the world,” Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said. The legislation was designed to curb the outsized bargaining power of Facebook and Google in their negotiations with Australian news providers. “We’re restoring news on Facebook in Australia in the coming days.

Facebook makes a power move in Australia - and may regret it

"No company should have this much influence over access to journalism.”Facebook's move means people in Australia can no longer post links to news stories on Facebook. Outside Australia, meanwhile, no one can post links to Aussie news sources such as the Sydney Morning Herald. Facebook’s news blackout swept up many of these, including humanitarian organizations like Foodbank Australia and Doctors without Borders in Australia, who found their pages temporarily disabled. Analytics firm Chartbeat said the Facebook ban resulted in a 24% drop in overall traffic to Australian publishers by late Friday morning local time compared to 48 hours earlier. Facebook would have been better off if it had given Australians a choice to opt out of news, he suggested.

Australian leader urges Facebook to lift its news blockade

The blockade was a response to the passage of a bill by the House of Representatives on Wednesday night that would make Facebook and Google pay Australian media companies fair compensation for the journalism that the platforms link to. Google has responded by quickly working out licensing content deals with major Australian media companies under its own News Showcase model. Major Australian media organization Seven West Media also reached a deal earlier in the week. Frydenberg maintains that Facebook had been having constructive negotiations with Australian media on pay deals immediately before the surprise blockade. I think the door is still open,” Miller told a Senate inquiry into Australian media diversity.

EXPLAINER: What's up between Google, Facebook and Australia?

Now, Australia is joining France and other governments in pushing Google, Facebook and other internet giants to pay. Google, a unit of Alphabet Inc., has announced agreements to pay publishers in Australia while Facebook said Thursday it has blocked users in the country from viewing or sharing news. AdFrance is the first government to enforce the rules, but the decision suggests Google, Facebook and other companies will face similar requirements in other parts of the 27-nation trade bloc. In Spain, Google shut down its news website after a 2014 law required it to pay publishers. Developments in Australia and Europe suggest the financial balance between multibillion-dollar internet companies and news organizations might be shifting.

Even without listening, US lives in Limbaugh’s media world

Limbaugh, the talk radio host who became the voice of American conservatism, has died. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)NEW YORK – You didn't have to like or even listen to Rush Limbaugh to be affected by what he did. Bumper stickers proclaimed, “Rush is Right.”“There is no talk radio as we know it without Rush Limbaugh. As Limbaugh's political strength became evident, many Republican politicians felt they couldn't cross him, or run the risk of alienating his millions of listeners, Hemmer said. “Many of these listeners didn't care if Rush Limbaugh crossed the line (of propriety),” she said.

Australian media law raises questions about 'pay for clicks'

It's a question dividing proponents and critics of the proposed Australian law: does it effectively make Google and Facebook “pay for clicks” and might it be the beginning of the end of free access? The battle is being watched closely in the European Union, where officials and lawmakers are drafting sweeping new digital regulations. Google contends the law does require it to pay for clicks. Google has reacted to the threat of compulsory arbitration by stepping up negotiations on licensing content agreements with Australian media companies through its own News Showcase model. Google has reached pay deals with more than 450 publications globally since it launched News Showcase in October.

In surprise move, Facebook blocks news access in Australia

“In response to Australian government legislation, Facebook restricts the posting of news links and all posts from news Pages in Australia. “Facebook’s actions were unnecessary, they were heavy-handed and they will damage its reputation here in Australia,” Frydenberg said. Major Australian media organization Seven West Media reached a deal earlier in the week. who have had their Facebook pages blocked, that’s a public safety issue,” Fletcher said. Some non-Australian outlets also appeared affected, with posts disappearing from Facebook pages belonging to Britain's Daily Telegraph and Sky News.