Brendan Carr, a commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission, stated that the U.S. government should prohibit TikTok according to Axios.
Carr stated that he doesn’t believe there is any other way forward than a ban. According to the report, Carr later stated that “[t]here simply aren’t any world in which you could create sufficient protection on data that you could have sufficient assurance that it’sn’t finding its way back into [Chinese Communist Party ].'”].”
As the Department of Justice (DOJ), works to reach a deal with TikTok regarding how to resolve national security concerns, his comments are timely. Axios stated that the platform is currently in negotiations with CFIUS [the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S], an interagency panel that conducts national security reviews on foreign companies’ deals to determine if it can be divested to a American company by ByteDance, the parent company of China.
Axios cited The New York Times’ September report that stated Lisa Monaco, a DOJ official, “has concerns that terms are not tough enough for China.” The Times cited two unnamed sources. According to a statement TikTok sent to Axios, the company is still “confident”.
According to a TikTok spokesperson, “We are confident that our path is on a path towards reaching an agreement with U.S. Government which will satisfy all reasonable national security concerns.”
Carr has made comments about the dangers of the most downloaded app in the world before.
Carr called TikTok’s user data collection “a possible digital weapon of war” last week on The Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts’s podcast. “The whole dancing, memes, and all that is, is just the sheep’s clothes and underneath the application, it operates as a highly sophisticated surveillance instrument.”
Carr also cited recent events as a cause for concern. He cited BuzzFeed’s report that China has access to non-public American data, and a recent hearing in which TikTok Chief Operating Officer Vanessa Pappas stated she didn’t know if TikTok had employed members of China’s Communist Party.
Carr is joined by a growing number of politicians who have tried to ban the app in different capacities. In 2020, former President Donald Trump attempted to ban the app by executive order. The following year, Sen. Marco Rubio (R.FL) called for the U.S. to ban the app completely. A bill was also introduced by Sen. Josh Hawley(R.MO), which would ban TikTok on government devices.
Data security is not the only anti-American operation of the platform. A MRC Free Speech America analysis revealed that 11 pro-free speech organizations were permanently banned by the platform. Pro-life groups like Live Action and Students for Life of America and commentators like Tom Fitton, Michael Knowles, and retired Lt. Col, Allen West are included among the 11 banned groups and individuals.Conservatives are under attack. You can contact TikTok by email at [email protected], or by mail at 10010 Venice Boulevard #301, Culver city, CA 90232 to demand that Big Tech be held accountable to the First Amendment. Contact us at the Media Research Center contact page if you feel your voice has been blocked.
