Twitter Owner Elon Musk said the social media site would update the BBC’s “government-funded media” label after the broadcaster objected to the label.
The BBC contacted Twitter last week after the designation was attached to the main BBC account.
In an interview with the BBC On Tuesday, Musk said he had the “utmost respect” for the organization, adding: “We want [the tag] as truthful and accurate as possible – we adjust the label to [the BBC being] publicly funded – we’ll try to be specific.
He previously described the BBC as “among the least biased” News organizations.
In a statement released following the designation as a “government funded media”, the broadcaster said: “The BBC is, and always has been, independent. We are funded by the UK public through licensing fees.
The government-funded label links to a Twitter Help Center page stating that “state-affiliated media” are outlets where the government “exercises control over editorial content through financial resources , direct or indirect political pressure and/or control over production and distribution”. ”.
This label was applied to The Twitter account of the American broadcaster NPRbut it has been replaced by government-funded media – the same as the BBC account.
The BBC has always maintained its impartiality and operates through a royal charter agreed with the government, which states that it must be independent.
The British pay a royalty of £159 each year to fund the company’s production, which is set by the government but paid for by individual households.
While the BBC account, which has 2.2 million subscribers, received the label, much larger accounts associated with the company’s breaking news and sports production are not described in the same way.
The account mainly tweets about TV programs, radio shows, podcasts and other non-news content produced by the BBC.