Home » Twitter/X News • US business news » NPR pauses Twitter use over the ‘state-affiliated media’ label
NPR pauses Twitter use over the ‘state-affiliated media’ label
https://www.whatjobs.com/news/usa/us-business-news/npr-pauses-twitter-use-over-the-state-affiliated-media-label
By Nithya Bose in Twitter/X News, posted April 13, 2023
NPR is the first major US media outlet to quit Twitter after it was labelled “state-affiliated media” label - a term used for propaganda channels in Russia and China.
The broadcaster has 52 Twitter feeds and will now stop posting new content.
Twitter owner Elon Musk has acknowledged that the tag might have been inaccurate and switched it to “government-funded media.”
Read More: BBC objects to Twitter’s ‘government-funded media’ label
But NPR said the designation is still “inaccurate and misleading” as it is an editorially autonomous non-profit organization.
NPR said it “receives less than one percent of its $300 million annual budget from the federally funded Corporation for Public Broadcasting.”
CEO John Lansing told staff NPR “will not immediately return to the platform” even if Twitter removes the tag.
“I would never have our content go anywhere that would risk our credibility.
“At this point, I have lost my faith in the decision-making at Twitter.”
Read More: Twitter recovers from debts as advertisers return after Elon Musk takeover
On Wednesday, April 12, Musk tweeted what seemed to be a screenshot of an email from an NPR reporter asking for his response to the firm’s decision.
He replied: “Defund NPR.”
The British news agency BBC was also briefly tagged with "government-funded media" on Twitter.
But BBC said Musk agreed to alter the designation to “publicly funded,” and since Wednesday, there is no label on any of its Twitter accounts.
Need Career Advice? Get employment skills advice at all levels of your career
The new labels are the most recent policy changes Musk has adopted since his chaotic $44 billion takeover of the social media platform.
During a Twitter Spaces interview, Musk said the Twitter purchase was fraught with an "extremely high" pain level.
On April 2, Musk, an outspoken media critic, dubbed The New York Times' coverage "propaganda" and compared its Twitter feed to "diarrhea" in a tweet.
Soon after, he pulled the news company's verification checkmark, blaming its reluctance to pay for the platform's modified Twitter Blue subscription service.
Source: CNBC
Follow us on YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.
