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Elon Musk has been raising eyebrows since he took over Twitter last fall. From the Twitter Files to Community Notes, he’s been raising the ire of many people on the Left.
Last week, “Twitter designated NPR’s main account as ‘state-affiliated media” though the reason for the new designation is unclear.
A spokesperson for NPR, Isabel Lara, said that the company had no warning and that it happened abruptly last Tuesday night.
John Lansing, the company’s CEO, responded to the move by Twitter calling it unacceptable. He maintains that NPR “operates independently of the U.S. government.”
“NPR stands for freedom of speech and holding the powerful accountable. It is unacceptable for Twitter to label us this way. A vigorous, vibrant free press is essential to the health of our democracy,” Lansing said.
“We were disturbed to see last night that Twitter has labeled NPR as ‘state-affiliated media,’ a description that, per Twitter’s own guidelines, does not apply to NPR,” Lansing wrote in a statement released on Wednesday.
“NPR and our member stations are supported by millions of listeners who depend on us for the independent, fact-based journalism we provide. It is unacceptable for Twitter to label us this way. A vigorous, vibrant free press is essential to the health of our democracy.”
To fight back, NPR updated its Twitter bio adding that it’s an independent news organization and reminding people can find their media company anywhere they find news.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also defended NPR against Twitter’s designation after a reporter asked her about it in the briefing room on Wednesday.
A reporter asked White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre about the move by Twitter. She defended NPR.
She said, “Social media companies make their own independent decisions about content rules, so I won’t comment on Twitter’s rules, but what I will say, more broadly, I’ll say there’s no doubt of the independence of NPR’s journalists.”
“If you’ve ever been on the receiving end of their questions you know that they have their independence in journalism. NPR journalists work digitally to hold public officials accountable and inform the American people,” she continued.
“The hard-hitting independence nature of their coverage speaks for itself. And so, I’ll leave it there.”
Somehow “hard-hitting” doesn’t seem to be a phrase many of us would associate with NPR, but Jean-Pierre knows that if she says it, a lot of Americans will believe it.
According to NPR, Musk sent an email to the media company. He wrote, “The operating principle at new Twitter is simply fair and equal treatment, so if we label non-US accounts as govt, then we should do the same for US, but it sounds like that might not be accurate here.”
The NPR account is now labeled “government-funded media.” The “government-funded media” label now also appears on PBS” Twitter account.
According to an article in USA Today, “NPR receives government funding through grants from federal agencies and departments. But it accounts for less than 1% of NPR’s annual operating budget.”
The bottom line is that the media company receives tax-payer money and should do a better job of remaining neutral.
