Elon Musk lists NPR as State-affiliated media

Elon Musk’s Twitter abruptly labeled National Public Radio (NPR) as “U.S. State-affiliated media,” provoking protest and debate.

Published

3 years ago

April 6, 2023

Terry A. Hurlbut

Yesterday Elon Musk, CEO of Twitter, changed the labeling on the National Public Radio Twitter account. It now appears as “US State-affiliated Media.”

NPR labeling change

Among the first to note the change was the conservative account ALX. Here is how NPR now appears:

https://twitter.com/NPR

ALX took note of the change:

https://twitter.com/alx/status/1643448451592597505

He then noted that this change “went viral” on the rival social medium Reddit. One user there said he was “very close to deleting Twitter.”

Naturally NPR has protested.

https://twitter.com/axios/status/1643655976401109005

So did Derek Thompson, who made much of NPR receiving only 1 percent of its budget from government programs. True or not, others pointed out this is irrelevant:

https://twitter.com/DKThomp/status/1643594456967282688

https://twitter.com/primalpoly/status/1643632435953909762

https://twitter.com/primalpoly/status/1643638911959441410

https://twitter.com/TwoZer00s/status/1643715236791214080

https://twitter.com/primalpoly/status/1643717538298339344

That wasn’t the only debate:

https://twitter.com/DKThomp/status/1643596514126708736

https://twitter.com/DKThomp/status/1643600403710214144

These and other challengers are pointing out that NPR acts like a government media arm, and in fact always has been a government institution.

In any case, Elon Musk refuses to take down the label.

Terry A. Hurlbut has been a student of politics, philosophy, and science for more than 35 years. He is a graduate of Yale College and has served as a physician-level laboratory administrator in a 250-bed community hospital. He also is a serious student of the Bible, is conversant in its two primary original languages, and has followed the creation-science movement closely since 1993.