CanadianSME Small Business Magazine recently had an enlightening session with Janessa Bishop, Vice President, Digital Communications Practice Lead, at Kaiser & Partners. Janessa delved into the transformative impact of Bill C-18’s passing and Meta’s consequential actions on Canada’s digital communication scene. Noting a considerable shift among communication professionals as they recalibrate their traditional strategies and metrics, Janessa pinpointed the undue burden Meta’s news ban has placed on independent and community news outlets. With the world keenly observing Canada’s negotiations and the tech giants’ responses, she discussed the potential global implications and the lessons for international businesses. Janessa further spotlighted salient strategies for businesses navigating Canada’s ever-changing digital realm and underscored the imminent challenges and prospects awaiting the nation’s marketing and communications sectors, offering insights on gearing up for this new era.
Janessa is a seasoned communications professional with experience developing and executing communications programs for a variety of industries, including healthcare, non-profit, technology, government, and professional services. She has executed and managed strategic programs for national, regional and local clients, which improved their position in the market and differentiated them from competitors. At Kaiser & Partners (K&P), Janessa serves as senior lead on accounts across multiple industries and leads the firm’s Digital Communications practice. She brings extensive experience in digital and social media, including strategic content development, channel and community management, social listening, influencer relations and digital marketing.
To kick things off, could you provide us with an overview of how the passing of Bill C-18 and Meta’s response have changed the landscape of digital communications in Canada?
Bill C-18, also known as Canada’s Online News Act, was developed to level the playing field between Canadian news outlets and big tech by requiring companies like Meta and Google to pay media outlets for news content hosted on their platforms. The bill was passed on June 21 and is set to take effect in December of this year. Developed to help strengthen Canada’s media industry, Bill C-18 has received significant backlash from both Meta and Google. In response to the bill, Meta banned news across its platforms (Facebook and Instagram) on August 1.
The impact of Meta’s news ban was felt almost immediately when forest fires raged across the Northwest Territories and British Columbia in mid-August. As many community and local news outlets rely on channels like Facebook to distribute breaking news, Meta’s ban hindered the ability to share critical updates about the fires. Those affected by the fires also said that the ban made it more challenging to share articles and news with their networks. Many government officials, including Prime Minister Trudeau, criticized Meta and claimed the tech giant was prioritizing profits over the safety of Canadians. As social media remains a key communications channel, Meta’s response to Bill C-18 is forcing Canadian news outlets and businesses to rethink their digital strategies.
As the Vice-President of the Digital Communications Practice at Kaiser & Partners, Inc., what are some key observations you’ve made regarding how communications professionals and their teams are adapting to this new framework, especially in terms of revising traditional measurements and strategies?
Millions of Canadians choose to access news through social media, and public relations and communications professionals rely on the additional impressions or views generated through platforms like Facebook and Instagram to measure the success of their campaigns. Both media impressions (number of people who viewed/read the story) and social media impressions and engagements (number of people who viewed/read a post and content interactions such as likes and shares) are key measurements in public relations. The current news ban provides an opportunity to rethink how we traditionally evaluate and measure the success of campaigns, and shift focus from relying solely on vanity metrics, such as views, impressions and likes, to determine success. There are many other ways to show the value of public relations:
- Measure your key message pull-through and the percentage of news articles that include brand key messages.
- Focus on both reactive and proactive media outreach – such as how many journalists contact you for stories.
- Evaluate the variety and diversity of your media sources – such as number of articles secured in more niche publications, such as blogs or independent or diverse news sources.
When it comes to strategy, communications professionals need to remain nimble and adapt to the current landscape. From developments in AI/ChatGPT to Twitter’s rebrand as X, changes to communication channels are inevitable. Relying too heavily on one channel or platform can be detrimental – as clearly demonstrated by Meta’s news ban.
To combat this, communications professionals can implement the following:
- Use social media channels outside the Meta ecosystem, such as LinkedIn, X, BeReal or Mastodon to share news.
- Keep websites up to date, by posting the latest news, press releases and organizational updates.
- Maintain news access by going directly to the source. Consider paid news subscriptions (e.g., The Globe and Mail, Toronto Star or The Logic), listening to news over the radio or on TV.
- Sign up for free e-newsletters (e.g., the CanadianSME Small Business Magazine). Broadcast outlets like CTV and CBC offer free e-newsletters that disseminate breaking local, regional and national news, and online outlets like The Peak and The Skimm provide free daily top news summaries via email.
One of the notable consequences of Meta’s news ban is its impact on independent and community news outlets. Could you elaborate on how these entities are being disproportionately harmed, and what implications this has for the broader media landscape in Canada?
While Meta’s news ban has impacted all Canadian media outlets, it has arguably had a more severe impact on independent and community news. These outlets help deliver credible and localized information in Canada, amplify diverse voices and foster connection within communities. However, they often don’t have the resources to maintain a web presence, and use Meta as their primary digital channel for live and breaking news coverage. For example, Turtle Island News based out of Ohsweken, Ontario relies on Facebook as its primary digital channel to share information with Indigenous communities and has struggled to find new ways to reach these communities during the ban. And although Bill C-18 was amended to increase support for independent news outlets, Indigenous news and non-profit journalism, critics of the bill have shared that it stands to primarily benefit larger media outlets and will not help level the playing field for independent and community news.
Canada’s negotiations around Bill C-18 and the subsequent actions of tech giants like Meta are being closely watched around the world. How do you believe this situation is setting a precedent for what could happen in other countries, and what should global businesses and communication professionals be learning from this?
Canada’s negotiations have big implications globally because it would set a precedent for how other countries could take on big tech. If the Canadian government can force Meta and Google to strike deals with news outlets, it could open the door for other countries to implement similar regulations. This is about more than just the money – Meta and Google do not want to be controlled and are taking a strong stance against Canadian legislation as a result.
Interestingly, a nearly identical situation played out in Australia in 2021 when the government implemented a similar law. However, Australia’s legislation imposed a threat of designation – meaning that the government could designate digital platforms like Meta and Google to negotiate deals with news outlets – but never acted on this designation. Under the threat of designation, the tech companies negotiated voluntary, private deals with news outlets without government involvement. Canada’s law cites that the CRTC will be involved in all negotiations between Meta/Google and news outlets – a key difference from what transpired in Australia – which is why Meta and Google strongly oppose the bill.
With Google threatening to ban access to Canadian news once the Online News Act comes into effect in December, communications professionals should continue to follow these negotiations and start to plan now. To mitigate impacts of the news ban, it’s important to understand where key audiences consume information and review current strategies and channels. This will provide insight into whether you should invest more money in current channels or seek out new or emerging channels. In short, organizations that relies too heavily on one source need to pivot and diversify their communications sources to effectively reach Canadians.
Given your extensive experience across various industries, including healthcare, non-profit, technology, government, and professional services, can you share any specific insights or strategies that you believe are particularly relevant for businesses trying to navigate this evolving digital communications landscape in Canada?
Businesses should keep an eye on the developments around Bill C-18 and prepare for what could transpire if Google implements a news ban at the end of the year. Google’s ban will impact how people search for Canadian news, and now is the time to take a critical look at communications plans, key channels and stakeholders and find other ways to reach them. If you remove Google and Meta from the equation, what other channels does your business use to communicate effectively? Are there any new or more impactful channels you should consider? Then, focus on optimizing what you can control – your owned content, such as blogs and websites. If you want to engage audiences on social media, influencer marketing is another viable way to get your brand in front of the right people. This isn’t a reason to move away from traditional media relations strategies either – we need to trust that our news organizations will adapt their distribution strategies to continue to inform Canadians. Maintaining access to current news, whether that’s through a paid subscription or an e-newsletter, is also imperative. And finally, consult your communications professionals – they can help advise, adapt and adjust strategy as the situation evolves.
Looking ahead, what do you see as the most significant challenges and opportunities for the Canadian marketing and communications industries in light of these developments, and how should professionals prepare for them?
A key challenge will be the shift in behaviour that the average consumer will need to make to get their news. News will still be available to Canadians, but consumers will need to go directly to the source to seek unbiased, fair reporting. This may sound simple but think of how many times we use Google every day to look for news. People have become used to having information at their fingertips, and we should assume that some won’t put in the additional effort to access credible media sources. As such, communications professionals must understand the consumer journey and meet consumers where they are, but also seek out new channels and tell consumers where to go. As we continue to adapt to this new landscape, it’s an opportunity to influence this new world of information sharing in Canada, as well as rethink how we evaluate and measure public relations in the future.
