OTTAWA (Reuters) – Twitter owner Elon Musk on Monday responded to Canadian Public Broadcasting Corp. saying it would temporarily halt activities on the social media site, a row that has also sparked between Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his conservative rival Pierre Poiliver.
On Sunday, some of CBC’s Twitter feeds began carrying the label “government-funded media.” The CBC responded that it is not government funded, but is “publicly funded through parliamentary appropriations which are voted on by all members of Parliament.”
“Our journalism is impartial and independent. To suggest otherwise is false. That is why we have temporarily suspended our activities on Twitter,” the CBC said on Monday.
The broadcaster also said that advertising helps cover its costs across all platforms.
“Just trying to be precise. Would they be okay if we said it was 70% government funded?” Musk tweeted.
Earlier on Monday, Trudeau accused Poulliver of recruiting American billionaires to attack the Canadian Public Broadcasting Corporation, after Poulliver urged Musk to describe CBC as “government-funded.”
Poiliver said on Twitter last week that he had written to Musk to request that the CBC be “accurately” rated.
Poilifry, who took over as party chairman last year and is campaigning to defund the CBC, celebrated the decision, saying on Twitter that “people now know it’s Trudeau’s propaganda, not news.”
Speaking to reporters, Trudeau said: “Attacking this Canadian institution, attacking the local culture and content that is so important to so many Canadians, really speaks to the values and approach that Mr Poiliver is putting forth.
“In order to attack this important institution to so many Canadians, he turns to the American billionaires, the tech giants who continue to defend them.”
Trudeau’s minority government has the support of the left-leaning New Democrats and the election will not be officially scheduled until 2025.
Last week, National Public Radio said it would no longer post any content to 52’s official Twitter feed in protest of a label by the social media platform implying government involvement in its content.
(Reporting by Steve Shearer) Editing by Peter Graf
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