National Public Radio (NPR) announced on Wednesday that it will stop using Twitter, and will “no longer post fresh content to its 52 official Twitter feeds,” as the first major news organization to go quiet on the social media platform.
The move comes after Twitter CEO Elon Musk labeled NPR “state-affiliated media,” and then changed it to “government funded” over the weekend after widespread pushback.
“We are not putting our journalism on platforms that have demonstrated an interest in undermining our credibility and the public’s understanding of our editorial independence,” NPR told The Hill. “We are turning away from Twitter but not from our audiences and communities,” the outlet added.
News: NPR becomes first major news org to stop using Twitter, saying that the Elon Musk-owned platform “is taking actions that undermine our credibility.”
“We are not putting our journalism on platforms that have demonstrated an interest in undermining our credibility…” pic.twitter.com/mtgprKRRfI
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) April 12, 2023
Of course, NPR doesn’t have the balls to actually nuke their account – which will still allow people to click all of their existing content. Instead, they will cease tweets from their various accounts – the primary one of which has over 8 million followers.
Last week, Twitter slapped ‘state affiliated media’ (or similar) labels on several outlets, including the BBC.
In perhaps their last series of tweets, NPR claims to produce “consequential, independent journalism every day in service to the public.” (except for when it comes to things like influencing elections by protecting the Biden family from credible reporting on crackhead Hunter’s laptop, of course).
— NPR (@NPR) April 12, 2023
#BREAKING: NPR quits Twitter after @elonmusk labelled it ‘state-affiliated media’
They claim to be “the first major news organization to go silent” 🙄😂
Every news organization is releasing this story at once, many using the same language, making it seem like a coordinated… pic.twitter.com/60XzOT2Vf3
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) April 12, 2023
As Summit News noted last week… In 2020, Twitter made the move to label many accounts, including Russian media outlets RT and Sputnik, as well as reporters working for them as ‘state-affiliated media’, and said it would prevent tweets from those accounts appearing on the home screen, in notifications, or in searches.
However, NPR was left alone.
Twitter Labels RT As ‘State Affiliated Media’, But Ignores BBC, NPR
Twitter claimed it was doing this “to make the experience more transparent,” adding that “we don’t let state-affiliated media accounts advertise on Twitter. We’ll also no longer include them or their Tweets in recommendations, as we continue to support a free and independent press.”
So the question is, does NPR push an agenda and ideology influenced by the state, including woke narratives?
The following examples would suggest yes, it certainly does.
NPR Denigrates Slain Shinzo Abe as “Divisive Arch Conservative”
NPR Slams Biden For Meeting With Historians Because They Were All “White”
* * *
For more on that…
NPR is US state-affiliated media. pic.twitter.com/WGMrybcO5W
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) April 7, 2023
Some, such as former ProPublica president Dick Tofel, agreed with the move by NPR:
Have lots of sympathy for this move, and would have done the same in their place.
Thinking about what the rest of us should do.
But let’s be clear: the credibly being undermined (actually destroyed) is Twitter’s. https://t.co/kSla1GWGwr— Richard Tofel (@dicktofel) April 12, 2023
Others mocked it:
NPR — a news organization that refused to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story — is blaming Twitter for undermining their credibility. pic.twitter.com/pBdfyiH5m2
— Seth Dillon (@SethDillon) April 12, 2023
Can we get a community note going on this? Consequential Independent Journalism is verifiably false. https://t.co/Ei4yks037g
— Carpe Donktum🔹 (@CarpeDonktum) April 12, 2023
NPR is state funded left wing propaganda and should be shut down entirely.
Government media has no place in a free society. https://t.co/wjJ8kgHCsL
— Swig 🇺🇸 (@OldRowSwig) April 12, 2023
Tyler Durden
Wed, 04/12/2023 – 12:05
