American football, brought to you by Chinese spyware
Zachary Faria
Before we return you to our regularly scheduled, all-American sport of college football, let’s take a moment to thank our sponsors: a telephone company, a fast-food restaurant, and Chinese spyware.
Yes, at a time when there is a bipartisan agreement from governors to ban TikTok from state devices, and even agreement from Democratic members of Congress that the app should be banned in the United States, TikTok remains a beloved tool by media outlets for getting content to users. And so ESPN’s halftime shows for college football games at the end of the season were sponsored by TikTok.
This is a problem because TikTok is Chinese spyware thinly disguised as an app for dance trends, funny videos, and weird psychics that accuse random people of quadruple homicides. The app reaches its tendrils into your phone far beyond other social media companies, even copying your keyboard strokes.
TikTok may steal your information (and your exact location) by circumventing Apple or Google protections and feeding it directly to the Chinese Communist Party, but try not to think about that. Just enjoy the highlights from this weekend’s bowl games, and the CCP members who may have access to your phone’s microphone can enjoy them too.
Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) sent a letter to ESPN to ask why it would let a national security risk sponsor its halftime shows, saying that “raises serious questions about ESPN corporate decision-making.” But ESPN also employs Stephen A. Smith. There are already no doubts about the quality of its corporate decisions.
Perhaps it is fortunate that the college football season is now over, as that will give ESPN more time to find sponsors that aren’t targeting journalists or cheerleading a genocidal regime. We’ll see you again at the halftime of tonight’s NBA game, sponsored by soda, a sportswear store, and the Taliban.