Subsidy-Loving Elon Musk Roasted Over Call to ‘Defund NPR’: ‘Tesla Gets More Funding and Grants from the Government’

By Alex GriffingApr 12th, 2023, 

JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images

Elon Musk, yet again, sparked a backlash over one of his online hot takes on Wednesday. Musk tweeted an email from NPR’s tech reporter Bobby Allyn asking for comment on NPR’s decision to abandon Twitter. The Twitter CEO then replied to his own tweet, “Defund @NPR.” Critics were quick to seize on both the fact that NPR’s government funding is already at very low levels and Musk himself built his businesses on billions in government subsidies.

Musk’s call to “Defund NPR” came just hours after the GOP-led House Judiciary Committee tweeted the same call – fresh off its infamous “Kayne. Elon. Trump.” tweet, which was eventually deleted.

Allyn’s email read, “Because of the label, NPR is quitting Twitter across all of our 50+ accounts. Our executives say the government-funded media label calls into question our editorial independence and undermines our credibility.”

Allyn was referring to Musk’s Twitter labeling NPR “state-affiliated” media earlier in the week, which Musk later noted wasn’t quite accurate and the label was changed to “government-funded.” Musk kicked up a similar controversy by labeling the publicly funded BBC as “government funded.” The BBC label now says “publicly funded.”

“Some wonder if this will cause a chain reaction among news orgs. What’s your reaction?” Allyn’s email asked.

While Musk made his reaction clear, he sparked a bevy of quick and angry reactions. Musk has become an ever-increasingly polarizing figure since he bought Twitter for a highly overinflated price, promising to be a “free speech absolutist” searching for truth.

He sparked angry condemnation for sharing — and later deleting — a loathsome conspiracy theory about the brutal attack on Paul Pelosi, which was later completely debunked.  Musk has since managed to stay in the headlines with stunts like changing Twitter’s logo to the Dogecoin dog and removing the “W” in the headquarter’s sign so that it reads “T–itter.”

Critics pulled no punches in going after the eccentric billionaire.

“Our government already defunded NPR which is only one of several reasons why this whole plutocratic news cycle is so stupid,” wrote LA Times reporter Matt Pearce who also shared an article detailing the funding cuts for public radio dating back decades.

“NPR gets >1% of its funds from federal grants, grants which other non-profit newsrooms could apply for,” wrote Mother Jones’s Clara Jeffery, adding, “Neither Tesla or SpaceX would exist without MASSIVE government subsidies. Should they be defunded?”

“You seem to be a bit busy defunding Twitter,” jested podcaster Tommy Vietor.

“Tesla gets more funding and grants from the government than NPR does,” wrote tech journalist Zach Nelson, aka ‘JerryRigEverything.’ “And Tesla gets hardly any. So that’s saying something.”

Below are more reactions roasting Musk:

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