The Global Task Force for Public Media is urging social network Twitter to correct the “government-funded media” labeling it recently imposed on the accounts of four of its members, including CBC/Radio-Canada.
“The current wording misleads the public about the editorial and operational independence of these broadcasters from governments,” the Global Task Force, whose mission is to promote and to defend the values of the public media, which are “the basis of an enlightened and healthy democracy”.
In recent weeks, four public broadcasters who are members of the group have been affected by this measure by the social network Twitter, “without notice or consultation”. These are the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), CBC/Radio-Canada, Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) and Radio New Zealand (RNZ).
According to the policy of the social network owned by billionaire Elon Musk, a so-called “government-funded” media is one where the government “may intervene to varying degrees in editorial content”. However, this is not the case for the public broadcasters concerned, whose “editorial independence is protected by law and framed by their editorial policies”.
This approach by Twitter therefore ignores a fundamental principle of public service media: “It is publicly funded media and independent by law”, insists the Global Task Force.
Current wording misleads the public
If Twitter absolutely wants to attach a label to them, it should rather be “publicly funded media”, it adds. This is also the label that was given to the accounts of the BBC – also a member of the grouping – after the latter had strongly criticized the initial labeling which it had also inherited.
Departures
In recent weeks, several public media around the world have decided to cease their activities on the social network, in reaction to the appearance of the said label. It was the American radio station NPR which launched the movement on April 12. In the process, other media followed suit, including the American television network PBS, the Swedish radio SR as well as the broadcaster CBC / Radio-Canada.
For comparison, Russia’s state media Russia Today (RT) and Sputnik, as well as China’s state news agency Xinhua, are branded as “government-affiliated media.”
In interview with The duty last week, UQAM journalism professor Patrick White shared his fear that several media outlets would follow in NPR’s footsteps. “It’s important to have reliable sources on social networks, otherwise it will leave room for misinformation,” he said.
“Social networks have enormous power, they are the ones who dictate the rules of the game, but at the same time, the media have the right not to play this game”, indicated for his part the president of the Federation. professional journalist of Quebec, Michaël Nguyen, Tuesday in an official position, after the announcement of CBC / Radio-Canada. “We must not forget that the popularity of Twitter depends on its users. People use it to get informed, if the media pulls out they will go to another platform,” he added.