‘Seems accurate’: US NPR protests as Twitter calls it ‘state-affiliated media’

Twitter has designated National Public Radio as a “state-affiliated media outlet” on social media, potentially undermining public trust in the news organization.

NPR said it was upset when a description was added to all tweets it sent, and its CEO John Lansing called it “unacceptable that Twitter is labeling us this way.”

It was unclear why Twitter made the decision. Twitter owner Elon Musk cited the definition of state media in the company’s guidelines as “establishments where the state controls editorial content through financial resources, direct or indirect political pressure, and/or control of production and distribution.”

“Seems about right,” Musk tweeted in response to NPR.

NPR receives funding from the United States government with federal agencies and departments and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The company said it accounts for less than 1% of NPR’s annual operating budget. But until Wednesday, the same Twitter guidelines said that “state-funded media organizations with editorial independence, such as the BBC in the UK or NPR in the US, are not defined as state-affiliated media for the purposes of this policy.”

NPR has now removed that phrase on Twitter’s website.

Twitter’s press office responded to the request for comment with an automatic poop emoji. The move comes just days after Twitter removed The New York Times’ verification badge.

“NPR and our member stations are supported by millions of listeners who depend on us for the independent, fact-based journalism we provide,” Lansing said. “NPR stands for free speech and holding the powerful accountable.”

Literary organization PEN America, which called on Twitter to reverse the change, stressed that NPR “diligently maintains editorial independence.”

Liz Woolery, director of digital policy at PEN America, said Twitter’s decision was a “dangerous move that could further erode public trust in reliable news sources.”

Read all the Latest Tech News here.