US public radio NPR became the first major media outlet to leave Twitter to protest the network's new policies. Twitter's decision last week to label NPR as a "media affiliated with the US state" put it on the same level as Russian outlets such as Russia Today (RT) or Sputnik.
NPR says less than 1% of its operating budget comes from federal sources, its funds coming mainly from advertising, patronage, and financial participation of its member radios. The American radio, whose main account on Twitter posted Wednesday 8.8 million subscribers, encouraged its listeners to follow it on other social networks.