The Guardian: Greens may back forcing Facebook and Google to pay for news if ABC is included. “The Greens have signalled they could support a code to force Google and Facebook to pay for the value they receive from the distribution of Australian journalism if it is extended to cover the ABC, and if the Coalition comes up with a rescue package for the news wire service [Australian Associated Press].” ABC in this case is the Australian Broadcasting Association.
Australia
Sky News Australia: ‘New online safety act’ to curb graphic content on social media platforms
Sky News Australia: ‘New online safety act’ to curb graphic content on social media platforms. “Communications Minister Paul Fletcher has spruiked the Morrison government’s ‘basic online safety expectations’ legislation after a graphic suicide clip was viewed and resent multiple times on Facebook and TikTok before being removed.”
Cosmos Magazine: Renewed interest in weathered records
Cosmos Magazine: Renewed interest in weathered records. “Each week Cosmos takes a look at projects and news about citizen science in Australia. This week, we report on a new initiative launched by Climate History Australia at the Australian National University (ANU). Scientists at ANU have an ambition to create Australia’s longest daily weather record, beginning in 1838, and they’d like help from citizen scientists.”
Travel Weekly: Thousands Of Stranded Aussies Map Their Stories On ‘Remove The Cap’ Website
Travel Weekly: Thousands Of Stranded Aussies Map Their Stories On ‘Remove The Cap’ Website. “According to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), at least 23,000 Australians have registered with the Commonwealth saying they want to come home. The Board of Airline Representatives of Australia estimates the real figure is closer to 100,000. Up to now, the pleas of travellers stranded outside the country have appeared merely as numbers. But a new website founded by an Australian citizen trapped overseas visually conveys the difficulties and delays Aussies are facing in their attempts to return home.”
Reuters: Australian watchdog to examine competition between Apple, Google app stores
Reuters: Australian watchdog to examine competition between Apple, Google app stores. “Australia’s competition regulator on Tuesday said it would look into the extent of competition between the app stores of Apple Inc AAPL.O and Google, and also examine whether more pricing transparency is needed in the country’s mobile apps market.”
Don’t blame us for classified ad decline in newspapers: Google (CanIndia News)
CanIndia News: Don’t blame us for classified ad decline in newspapers: Google. “Google reiterated on Monday that it is passing on the vast majority of money advertisers pay the Search engine giant directly to Australian publishers and it should not be blamed for classified ads decline in newspapers. The company said it does not object to the idea of an Australian Code called ‘News Media Bargaining Code’ to oversee relationships between news businesses and digital platforms.”
Welland Tribune: Australia is in a fight with Facebook and Google. Canada could be next
Welland Tribune: Australia is in a fight with Facebook and Google. Canada could be next. “It’s language typically reserved for armed conflicts or natural disasters. This week, Canada’s heritage minister used it for a regulatory spat in Australia. ‘The Canadian government stands with our Australian partners and denounces any form of threats,’ Steven Guilbeault said in an emailed statement to the Star’s Susan Delacourt. The ‘threats’ Guilbeault referred to involved some of the world’s richest and most influential corporations, Facebook and Google, which have separately warned Canada’s friends down under that they will suspend services in Australia or block media organizations from using their platforms if Canberra follows through with a law they don’t like.”
Coronavirus: Melbourne lockdown extended by two weeks (BBC)
BBC: Coronavirus: Melbourne lockdown extended by two weeks. “A strict lockdown in the Australian city of Melbourne has been extended by two weeks, with officials saying new Covid-19 cases had not dropped enough. Victoria State Premier Daniel Andrews said the restrictions would be in place until 28 September, with a slight relaxation. A gradual easing of the measures will be implemented from October.”
Coronavirus: Arrests at Australia anti-lockdown protests (BBC)
BBC: Coronavirus: Arrests at Australia anti-lockdown protests. “Australian police have made dozens of arrests amid anti-lockdown protests attended by hundreds nationwide. In Melbourne, the centre of Australia’s outbreak, about 300 people marched in defiance of tough measures that have been in place for a month. Smaller protests took place in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.”
National Indigenous Times: New online resources help Indigenous people trace ancestors
National Indigenous Times: New online resources help Indigenous people trace ancestors. “A series of introductory videos and virtual seminars, Finding Your Ancestors was created in collaboration with members of the NSW Aboriginal community and historians, Paul Irish and Michael Bennett. The resources aim to assist Aboriginal people in New South Wales with tracing their bloodlines to learn about their family and ancestors. The resources were developed to address the concern that whilst there is a wealth of online information for non-Indigenous people to track their family history, there is little support and guidance for Aboriginal people.”
Mashable: Facebook and Google probably won’t like this new antitrust agreement
Mashable: Facebook and Google probably won’t like this new antitrust agreement. “The U.S., Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the U.K. have signed an agreement to share information about competition laws and policies, with a focus on coordinating cases and investigations spanning international borders. Google and Facebook aren’t going to like this.”
Techdirt: Australian Court Says Zipper Mouth Emoji Might Be Defamatory
Techdirt: Australian Court Says Zipper Mouth Emoji Might Be Defamatory. “The question before the judge is whether or not the zipper faced emoji by itself might be considered defamatory. To be clear, under American law, I don’t see how it possibly could be, because it’s not stating anything that can be proven false. However, Australian law has the concept of ‘imputation,’ in which if there is ‘insult or innuendo’ implied by a message, that perceived interpretation can be defamatory.”
‘Heavy-handed threats’: ‘Scare campaign’ could backfire on Facebook and Google in Australia (New Daily)
New Daily: ‘Heavy-handed threats’: ‘Scare campaign’ could backfire on Facebook and Google in Australia. “Facebook has threatened to pull the plug on Australian news if forced to pay for it, in what experts say is a ‘desperate’ attempt to avoid setting a global precedent. Australians could be barred from sharing local news content on Facebook and Instagram, the firm said, with the threat representing an escalation in Facebook and Google‘s campaign against proposed regulation forcing them to pay for news.”
Reuters: Facebook, Google battle Australia over proposed revenue-share law
Reuters: Facebook, Google battle Australia over proposed revenue-share law. “Facebook Inc said it will block news sharing on its platforms in Australia if the government goes ahead with a law to force it, and Alphabet Inc’s Google, to pay local media outlets for featuring their content on its platforms.”
The Sector: NCACL makes free database for educators to help find First Nations children’s books
The Sector: NCACL makes free database for educators to help find First Nations children’s books. “The National Centre for Australian Children’s Literature (NCACL) has produced a free database for educators to help them discover children’s books by and about Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.”
