U.S. Representatives Mike Gallagher (R-WI-8) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL-8) sent a letter this week to the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) opposing its decision to let TikTok run commercials during recent college football halftime shows.
The two congressmen are sponsors of a measure to ban the video-sharing application from all Americans’ computing devices. Gallagher and other Republican members of Wisconsin’s U.S. House delegation this month successfully encouraged Democratic Governor Tony Evers to prohibit the app’s download or use on any state-owned computers or phones. Numerous other state governments and the federal government no longer permit the program’s download or use by public entities.
In their letter to ESPN chief executive officer James Pitaro, Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi asserted that TikTok software compromises the privacy of its users and, therefore, a large U.S. broadcast entity should not run advertisements encouraging its download. They noted that the program is owned by the Beijing, China-based corporation ByteDance, which requires the app to make users’ information available to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Various reports have come out concerning ByteDance’s use of the program to monitor some Americans’ locations.
“As recognized by numerous members of the Biden Administration, including CIA Director William Burns, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines, TikTok poses a significant threat to U.S. national security,” the congressmen wrote. “Because of this threat, TikTok is now banned on federal government devices, including in Congress. ESPN’s decision to allow TikTok to sponsor halftime shows watched by millions of Americans raises serious questions about ESPN[’s] corporate decision-making and the risk analysis it conducts when soliciting sponsorships.”
Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi’s message to ESPN asks the company to describe the vetting process the broadcaster conducts when considering applications to advertise on its halftime shows and other programs. The lawmakers also want to know the extent of the network’s awareness of CCP involvement with TikTok and ByteDance before the advertising contracts were activated. Finally, the congressmen seek to persuade ESPN to cancel all agreements whereby TikTok will advertise on the network.
In a statement, TikTok spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter characterized the congressmen’s concerns as ill-founded.
“We’re disappointed that Reps. Gallagher and Krishnamoorthi decided to send this letter — which has many inaccuracies in it — without having had a briefing on our comprehensive plans to address their national security concerns,” she said. “We would welcome the opportunity to share how we are addressing their concerns and familiarize them with the basics of our corporate structure and our policies.”
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Bradley Vasoli is managing editor of The Wisconsin Daily Star. Follow Brad on Twitter at @BVasoli. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Mike Gallagher” by U.S. House Office of Photography. Photo “Raja Krishnamoorthi” by United States Congress. Background Photo “TikTok” by Solen Feyissa. CC BY-SA 2.0.
