Twitter Labels NPR As 'US State-Affiliated Media'

National Public Radio (NPR) had its Twitter account labeled as "US state-affiliated media" on Tuesday, following apparent approval by the social media platform's CEO Elon Musk

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 05th April, 2023) National Public Radio (NPR) had its Twitter account labeled as "US state-affiliated media" on Tuesday, following apparent approval by the social media platform's CEO Elon Musk.

"Seems accurate," Musk tweeted in response to a user pointing out the label, along with a screenshot of Twitter Help Center's definition of state-affiliated media, which read: "outlets where the state exercises control over editorial content through financial resources, direct or indirect political pressures, and/or control over production and distribution."

The label has typically been applied to Twitter accounts of state media outlets in non-Western countries such as China and Russia that were seen as allegedly lacking editorial independence.

Forbes reported that Twitter's Help Center previously specified that "state-financed media organizations with editorial independence, like the BBC in the UK or NPR in the US for example, are not defined as state-affiliated media for the purposes of this policy.

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The Help Center now only lists the BBC as an example. State-affiliated media accounts are not recommended or amplified by the platform, according to the site.

NPR is "disturbed" by Twitter's decision and finds it an unacceptable label, NPR President John Lansing said on Wednesday in a statement.

The label should not be applied to NPR based on Twitter's guidelines, Lansing added.

NPR was founded following passage of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, which issued the congressional corporate charter for NPR's parent organization, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).

CPB grants help fund NPR, as well as its television counterpart, the Public Broadcasting Service.