Chinese spyware app TikTok has hired a longtime Democratic flack who served as President Joe Biden's 2020 campaign press secretary and deputy Pentagon spokesman, the Daily Mail reported Wednesday.
The news that TikTok hired former Biden spokesman Jamal Brown first appeared "in one line of a Politico newsletter on Tuesday," with TikTok not publicizing it. Brown has changed his Twitter bio to reflect his new job, at which he will "manage policy communications for the Americas, primarily focusing on the United States."
Brown's hire comes as evidence mounts that TikTok's Chinese parent company spies on American citizens. The Biden administration has allowed that company, which spends millions on lobbying, to dodge federal regulations, the Washington Free Beacon reported.
Federal Communications Commission commissioner Brendan Carr on Tuesday called for the federal government to ban TikTok.
Sen. Josh Hawley (R., Mo.) called Brown's move from the Pentagon to the social media app "alarming," saying it shows a "cozy relationship between the Biden Defense Department and TikTok."
In light of the government scrutiny, the former Biden administration spokesman is a particularly "well-connected hire" for the Chinese app, the Daily Mail noted.