Bill C-18: changes to news access in Canada 2023

After Canada's Bill C-18, also known as the Online News Act, led to news content being blocked on Meta platforms Facebook and Instagram, 22 percent of Canadian adults said that they turned more to radio and television instead of the aforementioned social platforms. A further 20 percent subscribed to free news outlets, however just six percent paid for a subscription. Whilst support for Bill C-18 varies, the law has arguably impacted the Canadian news landscape. So, who is impacted the most?

Local publications most at risk

Bill C-18 will likely hit community publications the hardest. Locally focused content can be particularly useful to audiences, and the vast majority of Canadian readers named local information as the reason for reading community newspapers. However, circulation data shows that most community newspapers are available for free, and successfully signing up readers to a paper’s paid online counterparts has proven to be challenging even for larger publications. Most Canadians do not pay for news, and the Online News Act is unlikely to change this. Meanwhile, content remains blocked on Meta platforms, meaning that publishers are not generating revenue in this way either.

Impact on consumption

Over 40 percent of adults under 55 years old access online news via clicking through a link on social media every day, and as smaller outlets often also grow their networks and engage with their readers on social media, their disappearance from key platforms is set to be detrimental. Before content was blocked, younger Canadians said they would most likely turn to other social media sites, and around a fifth of adults said they would go to other free sources.