Tom Cotton Faces Backlash for Repeatedly Grilling TikTok CEO About Citizenship
At a Senate hearing on online child safety, Cotton repeatedly asked TikTok's Singaporean CEO Shou Zi Chew about his citizenship, sparking accusations of xenophobia.
Chew, who is a naturalized U.S. citizen, repeatedly answered that he is a "proud American" and that TikTok is "committed to protecting children."
Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas, has been a vocal critic of TikTok, which is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. He has accused the app of being a national security threat and has called for it to be banned in the United States.
At the hearing, Cotton repeatedly pressed Chew about his citizenship, asking him if he was "a citizen of Singapore" or "a citizen of the United States." Chew repeatedly answered that he is a "proud American" and that TikTok is "committed to protecting children."
Cotton's questioning was met with backlash from some Democrats and Asian American groups, who accused him of xenophobia. Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) called Cotton's questions "outrageous" and said they were "designed to intimidate and silence" Chew.
The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) also condemned Cotton's questioning, saying it was "part of a disturbing pattern of anti-Asian rhetoric and discrimination."
Cotton has defended his questioning, saying that he was simply trying to get answers about TikTok's commitment to protecting children. He has also said that he is not anti-Asian and that he has "great respect" for the Asian American community.
Komentar