Elon Musk Just Handed China and Russia a Huge Boost – Newsweek
Twitter CEO Elon Musk has sparked concern the social media platform could see an increase in misinformation and propaganda after the company stopped tagging some accounts as "government-funded" media or China or Russia "state-affiliated" media.
Last November, after acquiring Twitter, Musk tweeted that Twitter needed to become "by far the most accurate source of information about the world".
The platform soon introduced context tabs for some tweets. These tabs would give a deeper explanation of a topic related to the tweet and in some cases identify false information.
One feature that was introduced that received both condemnation and praise was the Twitter information tags on profiles. This would identify profiles that were government-funded, or considered state-affiliated so Twitter users understood the wider context of the views they expressed.
According to a Reuters report, Twitter has, in part, dropped this feature. Some profiles that previously had "government-funded", "China state-affiliated" or "Russia state-affiliated" have had the labels removed.
Social Media Lab, a research laboratory at the Ted Rogers School of Management at Toronto Metropolitan University in Canada, referred to a move by Twitter this month to label public broadcaster Canadian Broadcasting Corporation as "69% government funded media".
"After making a show of labeling @cbc as '69% government-funded media,' the label is now gone. But what's more troubling is the fact that, overnight, Twitter has also quietly deleted labels from many state-run propaganda outlets of authoritarian regimes such as RT, Sputnik & CCCTV," it said on Twitter.
Twitter user @MrSeanHaines shared screenshots of multiple Twitter profiles that previously had China state-affiliated media tags and highlighted his concerns.
He wrote sarcastically: "I'm sure none will go back to hiding their employers, pretending to be humble journalists/influencers, right. Right?
The user, describing themselves on Twitter as being "ex-China state media", also shared comments CGTN journalist Li Jingjing made about being considered China-state affiliated media.
In one of her previous tweets: Jingjing said: "I also wear [China state-affiliated media] as a badge of honor.
"Because, despite the shadowban this tag brings, people who are tired of US mainstream media propaganda want to come to my page even more to hear a Chinese perspective."
A follow-up tweet appeared to show Jingjing celebrating the label being removed, however.
MrSeanHaines showed other profiles that had previously had China state-affiliation requesting Musk remove the feature or celebrating when it was removed.
Freelance journalist Oliya Scootercaster also highlighted that profiles that previously were aligned with Russian-state media have had their tag removed.
Sharing images of the tags removed, she captioned the pictures: "TASS and RT, a Russia government-run 'news' channels had their 'state-affiliated' and 'government-funded' labels removed on Twitter. NPR and BBC newly slapped-on labels are no longer present either."
Newsweek has contacted Twitter via email for comment.
Last week, during a BBC interview, Musk said Twitter was trying to be as accurate as possible but was looking into amending the label, following complaints from some individuals and companies.
Speaking specifically about the BBC being deemed "government-funded,"a label the broadcaster objected tohe said: "Our goal is simply to be as truthful and accurate as possible. We're adjusting the label to be 'publicly funded', which I think is perhaps not too objectionable.
James Rubin, a coordinator for the Global Engagement Center, a state department body set up to identify and counter foreign propaganda and disinformation, has previously raised his concerns about Chinese and Russian propaganda spreading.
Speaking during a European tour in late February, according to a Guardian report, he said: "The well has been poisoned by Chinese and Russian disinformationit's pernicious.
"We as a nation and the West have been slow to respond and it is a fair judgment that we are facing a very, very large challenge.
"In the communication space, the alignment between China and Russia is near complete."
He also commented on how this propaganda push is seen elsewhere in the world.
He said: "For some African countries, for some Asian countries, Ukraine is a war far away. They believe that they don't get enough attention from the West, period, all of them. That makes some of them look at this war through that lens."
Follow this link:
Elon Musk Just Handed China and Russia a Huge Boost - Newsweek
- Elon Musk's life after Washington, from Tesla to robots and tunnels - Le Monde.fr - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Trump gives a status update on his relationship with Elon Musk - businessinsider.com - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Elon Musk's Daughter Vivian Wilson Responds to Critic Asking to Hear Her "Real Voice - E! News - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Mehdi Hasan trolls Elon Musk for calling Zohran Mamdani 'future of Democratic Party': Worst person you k - Times of India - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Elon Musk launches Grokipedia as an alternative to 'woke' Wikipedia - NBC News - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Elon Musk Says He Wants Strong Influence Over the Robot Army Hes Creating - VICE - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Grokipedia, the online repository Elon Musk built to try to dethrone Wikipedia, is live - businessinsider.com - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- E&E News: Elon Musk back in Trumps good graces after summer spat - POLITICO Pro - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Elon Musk stirs controversy after snapping back at former Tesla employee: 'This nonsense is exactly the problem' - Yahoo Finance - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Donald Trump's 'status update' on Elon Musk: He had a stupid moment, but I suspect that I always will ... - Times of India - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Elon Musk launched an early version of Grokipedia, an online encyclopedia written by AI that the billionaire is touting as a less biased alternative... - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- IF Metall chair to Elon Musk: Give us a chance as Tesla Sweden strike hits 2 years - Teslarati - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Elon Musk launches a Wikipedia rival that extols his own vision - The Washington Post - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Elon Musk launches Grokipedia an encyclopedia where AI gets the last word - TradingView - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Elon Musk to quit Tesla CEO role? All on Chairperson's warning to shareholders | Hindustan Times - Hindustan Times - October 28th, 2025 [October 28th, 2025]
- Meet the "Infinite Money Glitch" That Could Send Tesla Stock Soaring, According to Elon Musk - The Motley Fool - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk surprises on company-wide call by demanding control of enormous 'robot army': 'I don't feel comfortable wielding that' - The Cool Down - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk Raises the Stakes for Vote on His Pay - The Wall Street Journal - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Candace's latest conspiracy theory is Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Peter Thiel are not human; 'Something in the - Times of India - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk is taking control of space and the internet and it could end badly - the-independent.com - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- What Peter Thiel told Elon Musk when he asked him about wealth: What am I supposed to dogive it to my ch - Times of India - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Is Elon Musk "Superhuman"? Here's Why Nvidia's Jensen Huang Thinks So After the Tesla Chief's $7 Billion Feat - The Motley Fool - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk said he needs $1 trillion to stop corporate terrorists from wresting control of Tesla - CNN - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- 7 Cryptocurrency Wealth Building Tips You Can Learn From Elon Musk - Nasdaq - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk seeks $1T to retain influence over Teslas robot army - Anadolu Ajans - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk Says AI Will 'Likely' Be Good For HumanityBut Admits He'd Still Want To See It Even If It Turns Out Bad. 'I'd At Least Like To Be Alive To... - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- The Stupidest Thing Elon Musk Said This Week - CleanTechnica - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk on Grok kids mode: Has same settings that companies want for - Times of India - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk's Starbase is booming. Here's what we know - MySA - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk Wants $1 Trillion to Build a Robot Army at Tesla - Truthout - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Tesla Analyst Says Elon Musk Will 'Be Heavy On Optimism And Light On Truth' For Q3 Earnings Call - Yahoo Finance - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk Says China's Falcon 9 Rival Might Outperform In 5 Years 'If They Are Lucky,' Notes SpaceX Will Be Launching Starship By Then - Benzinga - October 26th, 2025 [October 26th, 2025]
- Elon Musk defends $1 trillion pay package: I just dont feel comfortable building a robot army here and then being ousted - Yahoo Finance - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk said Tesla's robot will be 'incredible surgeon,' left Wall Street with no guidance on EVs - CNBC - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk calls acting NASA chief Sean Dummy as SpaceX moon contract hangs in the balance - CNN - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- With $1 trillion pay package on the line, Elon Musk blasts influential firms telling shareholders to reject it: Those guys are corporate terrorists -... - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk calls out 'corporate terrorists' ahead of key Texas vote - Chron - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk spent $288M to cost Tesla $1.4B in lost revenue and more to come - Electrek - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk defends $1 trillion pay package: I just dont feel comfortable building a robot army here and then being ousted - Fortune - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk reaches settlement in $128M lawsuit filed by former Twitter execs: 'He tried to back out' - Yahoo Finance - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk Finds That Breaking Up With California Is Hard to Do - PCMag - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk presses for $1 trillion pay plan because he needs to influence Tesla's future 'robot army' - Yahoo Finance - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk says self-driving is Tesla's future. It's struggling to get owners to pay for it. - businessinsider.com - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk really deserves that $1tn bonus package - Financial Times - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk Says Optimus Will Be an 'Incredible Surgeon' - businessinsider.com - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- What is Macrohard and why does Elon Musk have it on this Memphis building? - WREG.com - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk claims Tesla robot will be 'incredible surgeon' despite previous failed predictions: 'A world where there is no poverty' - The Cool Down - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk claims Tesla's new AI5 chip is 40x more performant than previous-gen AI5 Next-gen custom silicon for vehicle AI to now be built by Samsung... - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Can 54-year-old Elon Musk compete with the 39-year-old rising star in the robotics field? - 36Kr - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk says self-driving is Tesla's future. It's struggling to get owners to pay for it. - AOL.com - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Why 'angry' Elon Musk slammed advisory firms and called their past advice extremely destructive - Times of India - October 24th, 2025 [October 24th, 2025]
- Elon Musk got feisty about his $1 trillion pay package in the final minutes of Tesla's earnings call - businessinsider.com - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk goes on tirade after NASA said it will seek moon landers from SpaceX rivals - NBC News - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Tesla's Elon Musk lobbies support for $1 trillion pay package in Q3 earnings call - as it happened - Reuters - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk Accuses Head of NASA of Being "Gay" - Futurism - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk Wants Strong Influence Over the Robot Army Hes Building - WIRED - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk Slams Trump Cabinet Member with '2-Digit IQ' for 'Trying to Kill NASA' - People.com - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk: Tesla is increasing EV production based on anticipated demand for self-driving - Electrek - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk frets over controlling Teslas robot army as car biz rebounds slightly - TechCrunch - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk Threatens To Leave Tesla Over $1 Trillion Payday - Yahoo Finance - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Tesla's $1 Trillion Illusion: Elon Musk's Pay Package And The Robotaxi Myth - Yahoo Finance - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk says Tesla will operate robotaxis in Arizona by end of the year' - azcentral.com and The Arizona Republic - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Why Are You Gay? Elon Musk Rages at Top Trump Official Over Loss of Government Contract - Yahoo - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk has a taste for my pizza ovens - The Times - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk Says Tesla Robotaxi Could Go Driverless In Austin By Year-End, Walks Back Major Promise - Benzinga - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- CEO has a harsh response to Elon Musk's gold thesis - Yahoo Finance - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- In a blow for Elon Musk, Tesla's profit dips in third quarter despite rise in sales; heres why and what i - The Economic Times - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk responds to report that Amazon will replace 600,000 jobs with robots; says: AI and robots will - Times of India - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- A 3rd proxy firm broke ranks on Elon Musk's $1 trillion Tesla pay plan giving it a partial thumbs-up, with a catch - businessinsider.com - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Elon Musk warns Working may soon become optional: Robots and AI may replace jobs, giving people time to - Times of India - October 23rd, 2025 [October 23rd, 2025]
- Cards Against Humanity and Elon Musk's SpaceX reach settlement over alleged trespassing in Texas - Yahoo - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- Elon Musk makes fun of Amazon after AWS outage, says: Even if someone put a gun to ... - Times of India - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- The founder of the world's top LiDAR maker says there's one problem with Elon Musk's approach to self-driving - Yahoo Finance - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- Elon Musk now controls two thirds of satellites as 10,000th Starlink launches - The Independent - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- The founder of the world's top LiDAR maker says there's one problem with Elon Musk's approach to self-driving - businessinsider.com - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- How Elon Musk redefines advertising: Inside Xs shift from brand safety battles to AI-driven performance ads - Storyboard18 - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- Elon Musk pushed Twitter users to stop using links. Now it looks like he's changed his mind. Why? - businessinsider.com - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- Elon Musk Brings Floki Crypto Back to the Spotlight: FLOKI Price Prediction - 99Bitcoins - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- Elon Musk Threatens to Leave Tesla if Shareholders Dont Approve His Trillion-Dollar Pay Package Warns, Which Other Automotive CEO Would You Like to... - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]
- Cards Against Humanity and Elon Musk's SpaceX reach settlement over alleged trespassing in Texas - nwitimes.com - October 21st, 2025 [October 21st, 2025]