Chinese-Owned TikTok Is “Digital Fentanyl” Poisoning Youth Explained

Mike Gallagher recently labeled the Chinese-owned TikTok app as “Digital Fentanyl” poisoning youth in a “Meet the Press” conference.

The politician cited the negative impacts TikTok has on youngsters in the country and called to ban the app nationwide soon.

This article will explain why Chinese-owned TikTok is “Digital Fentanyl” poisoning youth.

The post also describes upcoming social media regulations in 2023, etc.

Chinese-Owned TikTok Is “Digital Fentanyl” Poisoning Youth

The GOP Republican Mike Gallagher highlighted the adverse impact of TikTok on children’s minds and termed Chinese-owned TikTok as “Digital Fentanyl” poisoning youth.

According to him, TikTok is like an addictive drug China’s government is providing to Americans.

Since the launch of the app in 2016, TikTok users have rapidly grown in the U.S. population, reaching an estimated 755 million users. No other app was downloaded more times than TikTok last year, and America has the most active TikTok users currently.

The kind of popularity TikTok has attained in America is troubling, and it is sure why Chinese-owned TikTok is “Digital Fentanyl” poisoning youth, especially in the United States.

Gallagher listed many reasons to call TikTok a Digital Fentanyl.

He said, “The comparison is for two reasons, it is highly addictive and destructive. We can see troubling data about the corrosive effect of social media use, especially on young men and women in America.”

He added, “Chinese-owned TikTok is Digital Fentanyl in the sense that, as you imply to it, it eventually goes back to the Chinese Communist Party. ByteDance owned TikTok and CCP controls ByteDance. So, we have to ask whether CCP controls the most powerful social media company in America.”

Gallagher spoke about various troublesome issues with TikTok and how this social media is engulfing Americans, no matter what age the population is. The primary reason why Chinese-owned TikTok is “Digital Fentanyl” is its seductive consequences on young minds that make them addicted to the app.

Gallagher further explained why he is concerned about Chinese-owned TikTok. He says China could use the technology to access sensitive data about the American people.

According to him, the Chinese could use the TikTok app to filter the information they were getting from Americans who use TikTok. He said he worries about TikTok’s ability to track location, track what websites you visit, and track your keystrokes, even when you are not using the TikTok app.

He is concerned about the lack of transparency. He also stated that the China government might get the necessary information if this exposure to sensitive data continues.

Gallagher criticized Chinese-owned TikTok for exploiting Americans and especially children.

According to him, Chinese-owned TikTok is “Digital Fentanyl.” He borrowed the phrase “digital fentanyl” from Brendan Carr, a retired FCC Commissioner. Carr used the phrase “Digital Fentanyl” to describe the Chinese-owned TikTok app in an interview with Fox News.

Gallagher has constantly urged Americans to delete the TikTok app because of its security concerns. He called for a complete ban on government devices on the Chinese-owned TikTok app. He stated that the U.S. government should pass a law in the House to ban TikTok permanently and expand the ban nationally so that Chinese-owned TikTok will no longer affect young American minds.

Some 14 American states have banned the TikTik app on state-owned devices used by state contractors and employees. Last month, Congress introduced a bill to ban Chinese-owned TikTok apps on federal government devices. The U.S. House has banned the app on devices offered by the government.

Earlier, Gallagher introduced a law to ban the Chinese-owned TikTok app. He said the ban on TikTok was considered during the Trump administration. And he wishes to have a discussion regarding this with the Biden administration.

More Social Media regulation is coming in 2023

After Congress banned TikTok from government devices, legislators said they wanted to regulate more social media companies in 2023.

Chinese-owned TikTok attracts more than a billion users every month. Since FBI Director Christopher Wray and Lawmakers have raised concerns over TikTok’s ownership structure and that the app could make U.S. users’ data vulnerable, the U.S. government has become more vigilant toward passing strict regulations to control social media platforms.

Several advocates are looking for more social media restrictions to safeguard U.S. data.

Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen said that as social media like TikTok, Twitter, or Youtube operate using almost similar algorithms, controllers should focus on more transparency about these social media platform work at the first step. Haugen added that the U.S. needs to catch up in social media regulations.

She stated the country lacks safety laws and regulations to control these social media.

In 2022, Congress failed to pass many important bills targeting technology. The bills included antitrust legislation requiring Apple and Google app stores to give developers more payment options and a measure to introduce new guardrails to protect kids online. It also failed to execute a compromise bill on national privacy standards, and only state laws prevail in determining how consumer data can be protected.

However, the U.S. Government has decided to consider these bills in 2023 and make more strict provisions for social media regulations to protect America.

Senator Amy Klobuchar said bipartisan support exists for many of the bills. But she also said the technology influence is more powerful than bills with strong bipartisan support can fall apart soon.

Amy said that things would only change with social media companies when American people decide they have had enough and want a change in social media regulations.

Leader McCarthy Announces Rep. Mike Gallagher as Chairman of the China Select Committee

Leader McCarthy selected Republican Mike Gallagher as Chairman of the China Select Committee.

Gallagher has represented Wisconsin’s 8th Congressional District since 2017 and got reelected in November.

He thanked McCarthy for declaring him the Chairman of the China Select Committee.

In the statement, Gallagher stated, “I would thank Speaker McCarthy for appointing me Chairman of the Select Committee on China for his leadership on the country’s major issue. The greatest threat to the U.S. is the Chinese Communist Party.”

Mike Gallagher also serves on the House Armed Services Committee, Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and the House Committee on Road and Transportation. In addition, he is a member of the China Task Force.

As the Chairman, he worked to restore supply and chains and end critical economic dependencies on China. He also visioned ending the CCP’s theft of American data and intellectual property. It is believed that the China Select Committee’s initial target is to remove TikTok permanently.

According to Gallagher, “TikTok should be banned as Chinese-owned TikTok is Digital Fentanyl.”

He and Senator Josh Hawley introduced the bill, Dump Investments in Troublesome Communist Holdings Act, called the DITCH Act. According to the news, the bill would force non-profits, public pension plans, university endowments, and any other tax-exempt entity to divest from Chinese companies.