来源：《每日电讯报》
原文刊登日期：2021年2月19日
It might come as a surprise to anyone under 40, but it is possible to live an informed life without access to Facebook, which is, after all, just 17 years old. But millions of people around the world rely so heavily on the social media platform to direct their attention to particular news items that when this facility is withdrawn the roof caves in.
这可能会让40岁以下的人感到惊讶，但在没有Facebook的情况下，也可以过着消息来源可靠的生活，毕竟Facebook只有17年的历史。但世界各地有数亿人严重依赖社交媒体平台，将他们的注意力转移到特定的新闻条目上，以至于当Facebook这个设施撤离时，屋顶塌了下来。
The Australian government has introduced a new law requiring Facebook to pay for the news content on its site. The social media giant has responded by imposing a news blackout. Users found all their links to news sites, and a few others besides, removed. Unlike Google, which has instead struck a number of financial deals with Australian media companies, Facebook says it won't pay and has, therefore, undertaken to conform to the law by no longer hosting the sites.
澳大利亚政府出台了一项新法律，要求Facebook为其网站上的新闻内容付费。这家社交媒体巨头的回应是封锁新闻。用户发现他们所有的新闻网站链接都被删除了。与谷歌不同的是，谷歌已经与澳大利亚的媒体公司达成了许多金融交易，Facebook表示它不会支付，因此，它已承诺遵守法律，不再提供给这些网站的链接。
The behemoth has been denounced for its arrogant petulance by Australian ministers who have nonetheless been confronted with the consequences of their own policy. Facebook had said for months that it would not agree to the levy but the government in Canberra evidently thought the firm should do as it was told and went ahead anyway.
这家巨头因其傲慢任性而受到澳大利亚部长们的谴责，尽管如此，他们仍然面临着自己政策的后果。Facebook几个月来一直表示不会同意付费，但澳大利亚政府显然认为Facebook应该按照要求行事，无论如何都要将新法律执行下去。
This episode raises a host of questions about the way the new media giants avoid the regulatory frameworks that apply to others in the same field. It also highlights the vulnerability of people and even entire countries to excessive dependency on what are information distribution networks.
这一事件引发了关于新媒体巨头规避适用于同一领域其他公司的监管框架等一系列问题。它还突出了人们甚至所有国家过度依赖信息分发网络的脆弱性。
It is not healthy for so much power and revenue to be in the hands of just a few giant players. More news organisations need to cultivate direct relationships with their audiences rather than be in thrall to such unreliable bedfellows.
这么多的权力和收入掌握在少数几家巨头手中是不健康的。更多的新闻机构需要培养与受众的直接关系，而不是受制于这种不可靠的伙伴。