United States and Europe debate law that provides compensation for companies producing content by technology giants
The Law of Competition and Preservation of Journalism, which seeks to value the activity of the professional in that country, is pending before the US Congress. But, according to Marcelo Rech, executive president of ANJ (National Association of Newspapers), the agenda got stuck in Congress, most likely due to pressure from the so-called big techs, mainly from Meta, the group that controls Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp.
The American project foresees that journalism companies will be remunerated by technology giants, on account of the use of content produced in their newsrooms.
In Australia, the law has been in force since February 2021 and, according to Rech, the matter has already spread to the rest of the world. In France, Canada and New Zealand, for example, the subject is already being discussed. In Brazil, the executive believes that the tariff should start hot in 2023.
He is a supporter of a global deal against disinformation. In the same way that there is a global agreement around climate conditions, we need a global agreement against disinformation, as it threatens the mental health of the world’s population, he assesses.
Rech also reveals that he has already had several rounds of talks at Unesco so that there is a worldwide effort. His idea is to reinforce the truth, since the communication vehicles are fragile all over the world and democracy is at serious risk if nothing is done. Most importantly strengthen journalism, he defends it.
For him, current times are difficult and a regulation is needed that does not restrict the freedom of the press, which he calls freedom of responsible expression. The examples that the world has today give a taste of how much worse things can get in the future. According to him, part of the Brazilian population today lives in a parallel world, which ignores credible information and is restricted to Instagran. This is a risk to democracy.
Jorge Tarquini, journalist, professor and communication specialist, says that the discussion around the remuneration of companies that produce content is inevitable. For him, the big techs have created, in a way, a monopoly, and the question goes beyond economics. A certain balance of forces has to be established, to even lead to a financial equilibrium, he declares.
Tarquini believes that, more than discussing remuneration, the market has to stop the rise of technology giants to the top of the information industry.
The big techs earn a lot of money with quality information produced by the media. And regulation should help preserve democracy, which is so threatened in the United States as well as in Brazil. Social networks are great promoters of fake news, as everyone knows, and have become sources of information for many. On the other hand, the communication vehicles spend a lot on the production of content and the big techs earn by exploring the material on a daily basis. Therefore, it is past time to regulate this access and strengthen the media.