The American public radio NPR leaves Twitter, which “undermines its credibility”

(Washington) National Public Radio is quitting Twitter over the social media platform’s recent decision, under new owner Elon Musk, to label media.

US public radio explained in a statement on Wednesday that the company’s accounts will no longer be active on Twitter, because this platform takes measures that undermine its credibility by “wrongly” implying that it is not independent on the editorial plan.

Last week, Twitter tagged NPR’s main account as “state-affiliated media,” a qualifier also used to identify media outlets controlled or heavily influenced by authoritarian regimes.

Twitter then changed the label to “government-funded media”, a label the platform has also attached to at least one other public media outlet: the BBC, the UK’s public broadcaster.

NPR communications director Isabel Lara said in an email Wednesday that NPR journalists and employees can decide for themselves whether to remain on the Twitter platform, as can NPR member stations, “who are independently owned and operated”.

NPR receives funding from the U.S. government through grants from federal agencies and departments, as well as the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. This organization said it accounts for less than 1% of NPR’s annual operating budget.