Facebook owner Meta Platforms said on Wednesday it would remove news content in its home state of California if the state government passed legislation forcing tech companies to pay publishers for shared links to content.
Assembly Bill 886, the so-called California Journalism Preservation Act, would require online platform companies to pay a “journalism usage fee” to news providers whose linked work appears on their websites, aimed at propping up local newspapers.
In a tweeted statement, Meta spokesman Andy Stone called the payment structure a “slush fund” and said the bill would primarily benefit “big, out-of-state media companies under the guise of aiding California publishers.”
The statement was Meta’s first on the California bill specifically, although the company has been waging similar battles over compensation for news publishers at the federal level and in countries outside the United States.
The California bill is supported by many legacy print publishers and newspaper unions, but opposed by most online news publications. It was introduced by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks of Berkeley who has argued that it will support a free press in the state.
“A free press is vital to our democracy, and that’s at risk as local newsrooms shrink or are forced to close,” she said. “AB 886 will help preserve California’s news ecosystem by driving more digital ad revenue to local outlets.”
The bill was approved in the Assembly’s Judiciary Committee on May 2 and is expected to come before the full chamber this week.
Times of San Diego has taken an editorial stand against the bill.
Reuters contributed to this article.
