How Narcity Is Navigating Meta & Google's Response To Bill C-18
A note on how to support us as Meta & Google start to block news for Canadians.
Illustration of phone being blocked.
When I ask people I meet if they know Narcity, they’ll often say our posts are prominently featured in their Instagram feeds, or that they recently clicked on one of our articles on Facebook.
We’ve always been a socially-driven company, and have loved bringing the audiences on these platforms stories that connect them to the cities they live in and love.
However, our ability to do this is changing.
Last month, Meta (the owner of Facebook and Instagram) and Google confirmed their plans to end the availability of news for Canadians in response to the Online News Act (Bill C-18) coming into effect.
Unfortunately, Narcity readers are already seeing the impact of these decisions, as some of our Instagram pages have been blocked for a selection of users who are no longer able to access our content on the platform.
It is unclear if, when, or how this will roll out to our other Instagram, Threads, and Facebook pages, or to Google Search results.
We remain hopeful that Meta and Google will work to find common ground with the government in order to not only allow publishers like us — who constantly ride waves of change — to continue doing what we do, but also to champion what local news means to our democratic society.
As we navigate the ever-changing landscape of digital media, we implore all parties to recognize the vital role publishers play in disseminating valuable information and engaging the public.
Meanwhile, our commitment to delivering accurate and captivating content to our audience remains unchanged.
We don’t just love what we do — we live and breathe it, and to say we couldn’t do it without you is an understatement.
In these uncertain times, we’re asking you to stay engaged and to continue being the central part of our story.
How to find Narcity content
You can continue to find our stories and videos through Narcity.com or by signing up to our Hot Headlines newsletter.
You can also find our content via our TikTok, Twitter, YouTube, Apple News & Flipboard pages:
- Narcity Canada: Twitter, YouTube, Apple News & Flipboard
- Narcity Toronto: TikTok, Apple News & Flipboard
- Narcity Vancouver: TikTok
- Narcity Edmonton: TikTok
- Narcity Calgary: TikTok
- Narcity Ottawa: TikTok
- Entertainment Content: TikTok
Finally, you can follow your favourite creators directly as they continue to connect you to the stories you love.
If you’d like to reach out, I always love hearing from you at alison@narcity.com.
We are doing everything we can to ride the wave, and we’re so grateful to have you on our side.
Thank you!
Alison Millington
Editor-in-Chief, Narcity Media Group