Zuck's pivot from backing politics to giving AI control

Seven years after lauding civic engagement and local news in politics, he's veered in a new direction, putting democracy at the mercy of data...

Welcome from New York where I’m on a two-week speaking tour meeting publishers in Canada and the US, from local mom-n-pop shops to globally renowned news giants.

The message is surprisingly similar. We’ve survived the worst years in our industry’s existence but there’s change afoot with a Google break-up.

What’s been less talked about has been the impact of Meta, which is pivoting its mission from connecting communities to silencing news for a synthetic, AI future.

As Google fades, Meta will come into more focus, and that’s why I’m devoting so much time and research to Zuck’s meandering musings, and evolving strategy.

It’s going to hit every publisher, everywhere.

Canada’s been on the frontline. It was the first country to feel the impact of Meta’s changing attitude, when Zuck pulled out of news.

For almost a year now, when Meta users try to embed a news link in a post on Facebook or Instagram, that link is blocked and replaced with a denial notice.

Meta took action after the Canadian Gov…