Re: Copying snippets of news articles ...
Exactly. And in addition freely publishing "snippets" of someone else's work is misrepresentation and can be - and is widely - used to tarnish the original author or publisher's reputation and spread falsehoods.
Sorry FB et al: you claim to be unable to control the content on your platforms as you are not "publishers", but you specifically allow "moderation" of chosen "closed groups", which is a contradiction - you are ceding editorial control of some content to third parties, while denying that you have any editorial control over anything.
I am no fan of most of the "traditional" media, but they are at least controlled to some extent by legal and regulatory limits.
What is also needed is a row-back on the attacks on "journalistic neutrality and balance". The US removed these controls over 30 years ago, and the rise of Fox, Breitbart et al are the direct result. The current UK government is proposing something similar. This is not about government control of what gets printed: it is about ensuring that what gets printed is not significantly biased in any direction.
These controls are relatively light (in the UK) but still have teeth. Ask the Sun, Elton John, the BBC, Cliff Richard and of course the entire tabloid industry and the Sussexes. This is not about who is right or wrong, but all about what is true and reasonable to report.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
