Twitter removed its controversial “government-funded media” labels from NPR and the CBC, after the two taxpayer-funded media outlets took a break from the platform in protest. State-affiliated tags were also removed from other state-run media outlets in foreign autocracies, like Russia’s RT and China’s Xinhua.
NPR became the first major news organization to quit the platform on April 12 after Twitter temporarily designated it as “state-affiliated media” before changing the label to “government-funded media.” NPR put out a statement slamming the decision.
“NPR’s organizational accounts will no longer be active on Twitter because the platform is taking actions that undermine our credibility by falsely implying that we are not editorially independent,” NPR said in a statement.
NPR QUITTING TWITTER IN ANGER OVER HAVING ITS ‘CREDIBILITY’ UNDERMINED BY ELON MUSK’S PLATFORM
On Friday, eagle-eyed Twitter users noticed the label had been dropped from NPR and other media accounts, but wondered it was an accidental consequence of the social media platform’s blue check purge.
“Actually, looks like when removing legacy verified blue checkmarks…Twitter accidentally removed *all* state-affiliated, government-funded, & public-funded media tags on every account not just RT…NPR, PBS, BBC, CBC…none of them have it anymore lol,” journalist Matt Binder noticed, tweeting a screenshot of their bios without the label.
Twitter did not respond to Fox News Digital’s inquiry into whether this move was intentional.
SCOTUSBlog, a website which reports exclusively on U.S. Supreme Court cases, also announced it was quitting Twitter this week in solidarity with NPR.
“Bye, Twitter,” the legal blog’s account wrote with a tearful emoji. “The tipping point was having to pay for verification, when we feel we add a lot of value. We also feel solidarity with NPR, and share concerns about Twitter’s direction. You can find us on the blog and TikTok. If we join another platform, we’ll send word here.”
BETTE MIDLER WHINES AFTER LOSING COVETED TWITTER VERIFICATION: ‘ELON TOOK MY BLUE CHECK AWAY!’
Elon Musk’s policy changes surrounding censorship and blue check verification on the social media platform have angered liberal celebrities and journalists.
On Thursday, Twitter removed blue checkmarks from legacy verified accounts, though some celebrities who refused to pay for the verification kept their blue checks.
Notable figures like former President Trump and A-List actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson lost their blue checkmarks.
Actress and “Hocus Pocus” star Bette Midler called the Twitter CEO a “worm” after she lost her verification.
“Elon took my blue check away! I’m unverified! After all these years and thousands of tweets and free content, this worm has the nerve to de-certify me!” she whined.
Fox News’ Brian Flood and Jeffrey Clark contributed to this report.
