New Delhi: Twitter CEO Elon Musk has labeled the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) as a “government funded media” organization as the broadcaster reached out to the micro-blogging platform for clarification.
After labeling the @BBC account – which has 2.2 million followers – Musk tweeted on Monday: “What does BBC mean again? I keep forgetting.”
“We need to add more granularity to editorial influence, as it varies greatly. I really don’t think the BBC is as biased as some other government-funded media, but claiming zero influence is stupid of the BBC,” Twitter CEO posted.
“In his case minor government influence would be accurate,” he said.
However, Twitter has not labeled other BBC accounts such as BBC News (World) and BBC Breaking News.
In a statement, the BBC said: “We are talking to Twitter to resolve this issue as quickly as possible. The BBC is independent and always has been. We are funded by the British public through the license fee. “
According to Musk, “I really follow the BBC” because “they have some great content.”
Musk had previously labeled the American NPR network as “state-affiliated media”, sparking a controversy.
After a backlash from NPR, it was changed to “government-funded media”, CNN reported.
NPR receives some funding from public institutions, but the vast majority comes from sources such as corporate sponsorship and NPR subscription fees.