NASHVILLE, Tenn. – U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) sent a letter to TikTok Chief Executive Officer Shou Zi Chew regarding the platform’s decision to ban and label pro-women’s sports advertisements as “hate speech” while simultaneously allowing graphic advertisements promoting transgender surgery for minors on the platform. 

TikTok’s Ban of Pro-Women Sports Ads Is Only Latest Example of Attempt to Indoctrinate Users

“We write to you today regarding TikTok’s decision to ban pro-women’s sports advertisements as ‘hate speech,’ while allowing ads promoting transgender surgery for minors on the platform. This is yet another example of TikTok’s attempted indoctrination of its users, in addition to instances where TikTok has deplatformed notable female athletes—like Bethany Hamilton and Riley Gaines—simply for advocating for fair play. These blatant examples of bias further call into question the extent to which TikTok levies its influence over Americans for nefarious purposes.”

TikTok Labeled Small Business Advertisement Celebrating Female Achievement in Sports as “Offensive” and “Hate Speech”

“Reporting from June indicates that TikTok banned XX-XY Athletics—an American owned small business that supports biological women in sports—from advertising on the platform… TikTok labeled the content offensive and, later, hate speech. The advertisement deemed hateful by TikTok was simply a celebration of female achievement—using a real life example—and encouraged young women to ‘be honest and be brave.’ Supporting young women should never be offensive, and it is telling that TikTok would consider a celebration of our girls in sports as worthy of being banned.”

Meanwhile, TikTok Allows Graphic Ads Promoting Transgender Surgery for Minors

“Even more troubling are the advertisements that TikTok does permit on its platform. TikTok allows woke advertisements in an attempt to mold Americans’ minds on a litany of issues. One of the most concerning advertisements that TikTok allows, though, is an advertisement promoting transgender surgery for minors. The sponsored content shows a teenage girl who recently had a double mastectomy, exposing her surgery in graphic detail. TikTok allowing this advertisement to run on minors’ feeds is the height of hypocrisy from a platform that suppresses conservative speech while profiting from leftist propaganda.”

Protecting Female Athletes Is Not Controversial – Nearly 70% of Americans Agree Athletes Should Only Be Allowed to Compete Against Their Own Biological Sex

“Almost 70% of Americans agree that athletes should only be allowed to compete on sports teams that correspond with their sex at birth. There is nothing controversial or hateful about the fact that men and women have biological differences, and any argument to the contrary is simply an attack on our nation’s women and girls. Not only is TikTok a threat to every American’s privacy and our national security, but it also threatens free speech and the rights of parents to rear their children in the way they see fit—rights fundamental to who we are as Americans. TikTok should immediately stop their assault on America’s young women and small businesses and allow companies that promote biological women in sports to advertise on the platform.”

Click here for the full text of the letter.