National Public Radio (NPR) announced on Wednesday, April 12, it would no longer post to its 52 official Twitter feeds, protesting the decision by Twitter to label the network “state-affiliated media” – or a term analogous to being a propaganda arm of a country.

Twitter later relabeled NPR as “government-funded media” instead. This, however, does not reflect how it actually works.

NPR has stated it is an independent, non-profit media organization getting “the bulk of its direct financial support from two sources: sponsorships and fees paid by hundreds of member stations.” It receives less than 1% of its annual operating budget on grants from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and federal agencies and departments.

NPR CEO John Lansing, speaking about the move, says the aim of this is to protect the credibility of NPR and its ability to produce journalism without “a shadow of negativity.”

“The downside, whatever the downside, doesn’t change that fact,” Lansing added. “I would never have our content go anywhere that would risk our credibility.”

NPR said it would stay on other social media platforms. It is also giving a “two-week grace period” so its staff who run the Twitter accounts can revise social media strategies. NPR journalists and staff can also decide for themselves if they want to keep using Twitter.

Lansing added in an email to NPR staff that it “would be a disservice to the serious work you all do here to continue to share it on a platform that is associating the federal charter for public media with an abandoning of editorial independence or standards.”

The news follows word that Twitter has lifted limits on Russian government accounts and has labeled other news outlets, such as the BBC, PBS, and Voice of America, as government-funded.

Elon Musk, in an interview with the BBC on Twitter Spaces, said the company is “roughly breaking even” and has about 1,500 employees, though Musk is currently dealing with lawsuits over nonpayment of rent on Twitter’s properties. – Rappler.com