Twitter labels state media, government officials’ accounts

The social media giant Twitter said Thursday it will label the accounts of state-affiliated media outlets, their senior staff and some key government officials.

“Unlike independent media, state-affiliated media frequently use their news coverage as a means to advance a political agenda. We believe that people have the right to know when a media account is affiliated directly or indirectly with a state actor”, Twitter said in a blog post.

The company added it will stop amplifying these accounts or their tweets through its recommendation systems.

A Twitter spokesman said that the accounts of Russia’s Sputnik, RT, and China’s Xinhua News are among the media organisations that will be labeled.

In June, Facebook also said it would start labeling state-controlled media organisations. Last year, Twitter banned state-backed media advertising.