Trudeau government ends Meta ad ban, launches campaign to promote GST break

A smartphone showing Meta's blocking of Canadian news content on their Instagram social media app is shown in a photo illustration, in Toronto, Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Giordano Ciampini) (Giordano Ciampini/THE CANADIAN PRESS)

OTTAWA — The Canadian government has ended its ban on advertising on Meta platforms and allocated up to $100,000 for a campaign to promote the GST rebate, CTV News has learned.

The Privy Council Office (PCO) said the government deemed it “essential that Canadians receive credible information about government programs designed to support them,” when asked what informed the decision to reverse the policy of not spending taxpayer money to advertise on Facebook and Instagram.

According to the PCO, “up to $100,000” has been allocated for the GST holiday campaign advertising on Meta platforms. This ad buy began on Jan. 23.

Late last year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau rolled out a two-month tax break on certain grocery items, children’s clothing and diapers, restaurant and pre-prepared meals, and other consumer goods.

Noting that social media “remains a primary source of information for many,” PCO spokesperson Daniel Savoie said in an email that the government has decided, going forward: “if Meta platforms align with campaign parameters, government departments may opt to advertise on them.”

“Departments choose social media platforms that effectively reach Canadians and stakeholders, continuously evaluating their performance and adjusting strategies as necessary,” he said.

The temporary break on the Goods and Services Tax/Harmonized Sales Tax (GST/HST) is set to remain in effect until Feb. 15 and is estimated to cost $1.6 billion.

Meta news ban still in effect

Canada’s advertising suspension on Facebook and Instagram dates back to July 2023, after Meta decided to pull Canadian news from its platforms.

Meta did so in response to the Online News Act, which sought to force digital giants to pay media outlets for content that is shared, previewed or otherwise repurposed on their platforms.

Then-Canadian Heritage minister Pablo Rodriguez announced, in a press conference accompanied by the Bloc Quebecois and NDP heritage critics, that the government was halting advertising on Meta, but the return to these platforms has happened quietly.

Meta’s news ban – making it so that people in Canada can no longer view or share news on Facebook or Instagram and prohibiting the ability for users in this country to see links or content from news outlet accounts – remains in effect.

Last month, Meta chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg announced changes to content moderation on Facebook and Instagram, moving to replace third-party fact-checking with “community notes” that are user-generated. The move mirrors the approach taken by U.S. President Donald Trump’s close ally Elon Musk on “X.”

In a video explaining the pivot, Zuckerberg — who was a guest at Trump’s inauguration — said the time had come to prioritize “free expression,” and that the fact-checkers were “politically biased.”

Responding to the development, News Media Canada’s President Paul Deegan said he was “shocked” as his organization had “no advanced warning” of the shift.

“From our perspective, it’s dumb as a bag of hammers. It just makes absolutely no sense,” Deegan said.

“At a time where Canadians are rightly patriotic and they’re supporting the home team… the government of Canada should be advertising in Canada… rather than sending the dollars south to the U.S.,” Deegan said. “Meta foments misinformation and disinformation, and the government should be advertising with trusted sources of news.”

Echoing this, Canadian Association of Broadcasters President Kevin Desjardins said his organization thinks it’s the “wrong time for the government to soften its stand on advertising with Meta.”

“There are an abundance of Canadian media companies who can help the government get its message to Canadians, and this public service advertising would help greatly to keep professional journalists in Canadian newsrooms,” Desjardins said.

Advertising ‘does not imply endorsement’

CTV News asked the Canadian government if it was concerned about supporting a tech giant it has sought to regulate over harmful content.

As part of the PCO’s response, Savoie said “advertising on a social media platform does not imply endorsement of a platform’s actions or decisions.”

“Our approach strikes a careful balance: combating disinformation while ensuring Canadians receive accurate, essential information directly from the government,” Savoie said. “That is why we have taken strong action — and will continue to do so — to hold social media companies accountable, ensuring they operate responsibly and contribute fairly to Canada’s economy and culture.”

Stating the government “has made it a priority to help equip citizens with the tools and skills needed to critically assess online information,” Savoie pointed to the federal Digital Citizen Initiative. That effort received an additional $27.5 million in funding last week for “projects that build citizen resilience against online disinformation.”

The money was announced as part of the government’s response to the public inquiry into foreign interference in federal electoral processes and democratic institutions, issued the same day as that extensive inquiry concluded.

In her final report, commissioner Marie-Josée Hogue called disinformation an “existential threat” facing Canadian institutions.