Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Subcommittee on Innovation, Data and Commerce Chair Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Subcommittee on Communications and Technology Chair Bob Latta (R-OH), and Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chair Morgan Griffith (R-VA) today sent a letter to Matthew Axelrod, the Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement at the Department of Commerce, informing him of recent testimony provided by TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew and imploring him to speak out at the upcoming Global Ethics Summit in Atlanta, Georgia. The letter comes as Catherine Razzano, Head of Global Legal Compliance for TikTok ByteDance, is also expected to attend the conference, which runs from April 17 – 19. 

Below are key excerpts from the letter: 

On Responsibility to Tell the Truth: 

“You have an ethical responsibility to tell the audience of this summit and the American people of TikTok’s threats to our national security and privacy, and to further expose how Mr. Chew failed to be completely transparent to Congress.” 

On China’s Human Rights Violations: 

“In light of your participation in a multi-day ethics seminar, beside a senior manager of Mr. Chew’s company, we write to apprise you of our concerns with TikTok’s Mr. Chew’s recent testimony before our committee.   

“As you are aware, it is well documented the Chinese government is committing grave human rights abuses against its own Uyghur and other Muslim populations, with governmental panels concluding ‘there was an intent to commit genocide.’ The United Nations stated the Chinese government’s barbarism ‘may constitute international crimes, in particular crimes against humanity.’ Despite the obvious evidence, the Chief Executive Officer of TikTok took great pains to avoid acknowledging the atrocities committed by the Chinese government […]” 

On Violent and Harmful Context Housed on the App: 

“In another moment during the hearing, Mr. Chew was shown an explicitly violent TikTok video threatening the lives of everyone who attended our hearing, including members of Congress, the media, TikTok employees, and the general public. This was posted and remained online for more than 40 days despite TikTok’s apparent community guidelines against violence and violent incitements towards others. It was only because a member of this Committee made Mr. Chew aware of the violent content that TikTok removed it mid-way through the public hearing. We also played for Mr. Chew the disturbing suicide-themed TikTok videos a teenager, just prior to tragically taking his own life, was inundated with because of the platform’s algorithm amplifying features.” 

On Chinese Espionage: 

“Our hearing put front and center TikTok’s glaring national security vulnerabilities. Throughout the hearing, Mr. Chew failed to guarantee American user data can be safeguarded from Chinese government predation. Despite multiple attempts at wordsmithing, Mr. Chew could not disclaim that the Chinese government nor ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company subject to Chinese governmental laws, has the capacity to spy on American data […]” 

Key Background Facts: 

• Mr. Chew’s testimony starkly contrasts with the March 2023 Senate testimonies of the directors of both the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).  
• A few weeks ago, NSA Director Nakasone testified he was “concern[ed]” by TikTok’s “algorithm and the control of who has the algorithm.”  
• Similarly before the Senate Intelligence Committee, FBI Director Wray testified “[TikTok] is a tool that is ultimately within the control of the Chinese government - and it, to me, it screams out with national security concerns.”  
• The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CIFIUS) has been reviewing national security concerns posed by TikTok and ByteDance for nearly three and half years.  
• CIFIUS has yet to even tentatively approve its safe operation within the United States.  

CLICK HERE to read the letter. 

CLICK HERE to see top moments from E&C’s hearing with the TikTok’s CEO.