On Monday, the social media platform Twitter labeled the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's (CBC) Twitter account as "69% Government-funded Media," down from its previous label of "70% Government-funded Media."
Twitter CEO Elon Musk stated that the change was made in response to CBC's claim that it is "less than 70% government-funded." The labeling has sparked a dispute between Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Conservative rival Pierre Poilievre. In response, CBC has announced that it will pause its Twitter activities.
CBC's Twitter handle, "@CBC," now shows the "69% Government-funded Media" label, although the meaning of this label is not yet explained on Twitter's help center page. CBC has responded to the labeling by asserting that it is publicly funded through a parliamentary appropriation that is voted upon by all Members of Parliament. The broadcaster has also stated that its journalism is impartial and independent and that advertising revenue covers its costs across all platforms.
Canadian conservative rival Pierre Poilievre has been campaigning to defund the CBC and requested that Musk label the broadcaster as "government-funded." Poilievre celebrated the decision and claimed that the labeling shows that the CBC is "Trudeau propaganda, not news." However, Trudeau accused Poilievre of attacking a crucial Canadian institution and of enlisting American billionaires to do so. The CBC's pause in its Twitter activities results from the ongoing dispute.
It is worth noting that labeling news organizations as "government-funded" or "state-funded" has become a contentious issue in recent years. In protest against a similar label by Twitter, the U.S. broadcaster National Public Radio announced last week that it would no longer post content to its 52 official Twitter feeds. As social media platforms continue to grapple with issues of credibility and misinformation, it remains to be seen how the public will receive this labeling and how it will affect the reputations of news organizations.
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