Russia blocks Facebook, passes 'fake news' law; LVMH, Microsoft ...

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationMarch 4 (Reuters) - Russia said it would block Facebook for excluding state media and CNN said it would stop broadcasting in Russia after a new law punishing "fake news" raised the stakes in Moscow's fight with foreign corporation.Friday marked an escalation in the dispute that began after the invasion of Ukraine. read more Twitter (TWTR.N) will also be blocked, Russian media said.The BBC said it would temporarily suspend its work in Russia after introduction of a new law that could jail anyone found to be intentionally spreading "fake" news. read more AT&T Inc's (T.N) CNN is stopping broadcasts to "evaluate the situation and our next steps moving forward," a spokesperson said.Meta's head of global affairs, Nick Clegg, said the company would continue to do everything possible to restore its services."Soon millions of ordinary Russians will find themselves cut off from reliable information, deprived of their everyday ways of connecting with family and friends and silenced from speaking out," he said, in a statement posted on Twitter.Many Russians have downloaded VPN software to avoid state restrictions, but internet provider Cogent (CCOI.O), which said it was the second-largest carrier out of Russia, disclosed plans to cut service, partly to avoid being used for cyberattacks.