Twitter Labels BBC as Government Funded Media, British Company Opposes
BBC said that Twitter should remove the label immediately
LONDON: Micro-blogging platform Twitter has sparked a fresh controversy by labeling the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) as 'government funded media'. Twitter has placed a tag (gold tick) of 'Government Funded Media' on the BBC's verified account, following which the BBC has objected to the Twitter management and claimed to resolve the matter soon.
According to a report, the BBC said that Twitter should remove this label immediately. The BBC said, "We are independent and always have been. We are funded solely by the British public through license fees."
Other BCC accounts, including BBC News (World) and BBC Breaking News, have reportedly not been labelled. Twitter has given no reason for labeling the BBC as government-funded media.
Twitter owner Elon Musk tweeted on Monday, 'What's the meaning of the BBC? I keep forgetting.'
Notably, 'Government Funded Media' means that the government is supporting that news channel or media organization and they can influence the policy of that organization at any time. Twitter's gold tick appears on government-funded outlets, including PBS, NPR, Voice of America and the BBC. However, such a label does not appear on other government-backed outlets such as Canada's CBC or Qatar's Al Jazeera.