States Sue TikTok Over Mental Health Harm; Is China Spreading iPhone Rumors? | China in Focus

Welcome to China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. Our top story. More legal action against TikTok. From New York to California, 13 states plus Washington DC are suing the Chinese-owned app that's over alleged harm to children's mental health. China allowing rumors to spread that iPhones could be remotely detonated. The rumors appeared to seize on rising fears after pager explosions killed over 30 in Lebanon. After Hong Kong stocks unsteady performance yesterday, Chinese stocks saw their biggest fall in four years today. We take a look at why it happened and what's next. And tensions are escalating in the South China Sea. Philippine supply boats becoming a target for China's Coast Guard again. While the U.S. and its allies are exercising their navies in the region. More than a dozen states plus Washington DC are suing Chinese-owned app TikTok. They accused the short video app of harming kids' mental health by making the platform too addictive. NTD's David Lam reports. TikTok is facing lawsuits which allege that the app is targeting kids for profits. The lawsuit stemmed from a national investigation into the popular short video app. A bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from many states including New York, California, Kentucky and New Jersey launched the investigation in March 2022. All of the complaints were filed in state courts. The way it's made it's meant to have anyone and everyone just get sucked into it. So if we have them change their algorithm so we don't do that then it's probably not going to be the product they want it to be. The lawsuits take issue with TikTok's endless content scrolling and challenge videos that sometimes encourage risky behaviors. The lawsuits also claim TikTok deceives users and parents. The complaints accuse TikTok of knowingly having an algorithm that traps young users to use it for hours and addictive features that lead to anxiety, depression, body dysmorphia and others. In response a TikTok spokesman said they disagree with the claims and believe many of them to be inaccurate and misleading. He said TikTok endeavored to work with the attorneys general for more than two years. Washington D.C. alleges that teens are frequently exploited for sexually explicit content through TikTok live. D.C. says the app is operating an unlicensed virtual economy by allowing people to gift TikTok coins to live streamers. But it sounds to me like Twitch. Twitch has something very similar where people stream and then people donate money so just depends I guess it depends how they're requesting that money. TikTok could also be banned in the U.S. in January. That's if China-based parent company ByteDance doesn't sell TikTok by then. U.S. lawmakers stated national security concerns saying that the Chinese communist regime could spy on Americans with the app. Probably should separate themselves from China entirely and then maybe have like their own subsidy in the U.S. or subsidiary in the U.S. and have them run TikTok or they should sell their business and it probably would end up working out. Honestly I haven't given it a ton of thought. All I know is that my kids can't use it. I've made my decision as a mom. Beyond that yeah I don't know we need to test out some different ways. Both TikTok and ByteDance are challenging the federal law in an appeals court. David Lam, NTD News, California. A federal law could ban TikTok from the U.S. as early as next year. That's unless its Chinese parent company sells it. TikTok is challenging the ban in court. The Middle East again made headlines when thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies exploded. Worries about those exploding devices are now spreading way beyond Lebanon. The world's largest airline has banned pagers and walkie-talkies on flights and now China appears to be taking advantage of the rising fears. And a warning the following report contains graphic material. On China's tightly controlled social media the censors have allowed this 2011 video of an exploding iPhone to go viral drawing misleading comparisons to the deadly attacks in Lebanon. Thousands of pagers and walkie-talkies rigged with explosives. Chinese social media influencers are using the 13-year-old video spreading rumors about Apple iPhones. Suggesting without evidence ordinary iPhones that haven't been tampered with can be remotely detonated making them deadly weapons. You can't just make an iPhone blow up like that without putting explosives in it. We tracked down the man behind the original viral video, American YouTuber Chris Bowden. He says this iPhone was hooked up to a high voltage machine. To make that little iPhone blow up we had to have a power supply that was bigger than a refrigerator and weighs about half a ton. Fears that iPhones could explode are spreading quickly online. It's a very real threat one user writes another says if we want to protect our lives we should use Chinese products. Some influencers are encouraging users to switch to Chinese brands. Cyber nationalism in China creates fertile ground for false attacks on foreign brands like Apple. These posts untouched by Beijing's army of online censors. If you had one of these iPhones. Former CIA operative Bob Bayer points out iPhones are primarily assembled in China. I mean if the Chinese government were involved they could rig any of these phones. Bayer says there's no evidence any phones are being weaponized. Any phone with a chip is insecure. You can blow somebody up you can put in a detonator and explosive. The U.S. stock market is holding relatively steady Wednesday after Chinese stocks saw their worst drop in four years as authorities stopped short of announcing details of boosting the economy. Chinese stocks tumbled today alongside their Hong Kong peers. Benchmark share indexes in China had their biggest daily losses since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Shanghai stocks fell more than six percent and the blue chip gauge fell more than seven percent. Investors sought to cash in before suffering a bigger loss but some are still staying optimistic after Beijing's financial body announced a press conference is scheduled for this Saturday. Turning to the market here in the U.S. U.S. listed shares of Chinese firms dropped for a second consecutive day tracking a slide in domestic stocks. Top leaders from Southeast Asian countries are meeting in Laos to address tensions in the At the same time the Philippines said China's coast guard once again directed water cannons at Filipino supply vessels in the South China Sea on Tuesday although the water failed to reach the boats. According to the Philippines, China targeted Manila's government ships that were delivering supplies to fishermen near the Scarborough Shoal. While Beijing accused the Philippines of entering waters, China claims as its own. The shoal is part of a fishing ground within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone but China considers it Chinese territory as well as nearly the entire South China Sea. That's despite a 2016 international arbitration that ruled China's claims invalid. Vessels owned by the Philippines and neighboring countries face frequent harassment from Chinese coast guard ships there. The U.S. and other western countries have condemned China for its aggression in the region. At the same time the U.S. and its allies has joined the naval drills organized by the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries earlier this week. Naval troops from Japan, France, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom are among the fleets participating in the nine-day training. It's part of the U.S. alliance's efforts to support those countries and deterring China's aggression and promoting an open free South China Sea. The Chinese and Russian navies have been running joint patrols in the northwest Pacific Ocean since last month. The area includes waters near the U.S. state of Alaska and in the Arctic. What does the presence mean for the U.S. and how should the soon-to-be U.S. president-elect handle it? We spoke to Rick Fisher, senior fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Center for Insight. Rick Fisher, thank you so much for joining us. Great to have you back on the show. Thank you Tiffany for having me back. Russia could fire ballistic missiles over Greenland with the low visibility in the Arctic hindering a U.S. response. From that perspective, what can or should the U.S. do to counter that? The United States has had the opportunity for a long time to build a national missile defense system. A national missile defense system that would probably not protect all Americans as the Iron Dome system works in Israel, but it would degrade any attack from China or Russia to the point where they would likely not try to attack the United States. Once the United States is secure, at least to a much greater degree, from Chinese and Russian nuclear missile attack, the relevance of the Arctic declines. During the Cold War, the United States had a very large air force defending the continental United States, defending Alaska, and we've let that winnow after the conclusion of the Cold War. Unfortunately, we have to build back that capability. On that note, Rick, we've been hearing from a lot of people, including Speaker Mike Johnson and former chairman of the House Select Committee on the CCP, Mike Gallagher, saying this is a new Cold War between the U.S. and China. Could we see a return to that defense that you're just talking about? I think we must. China and Russia are creating a new axis of dictatorships. They are cooperating increasingly with North Korea, with Iran. They're exchanging weapons, technologies going to North Korea and Iran. China and Russia are going to be military partners in any war over Taiwan, any attack against Japan or South Korea. We are in a Cold War, and we have to act like it. We have to act like we value our freedom and the freedom of our allies, and we have to invest in the defenses that prove our commitment to our freedom. I've seen China calling itself, quote, a near-Arctic state, who have been expanding their icebreakers and research capabilities there. What has the U.S. been doing in terms of boosting our presence there? The United States has always had a robust presence in Alaska. It's a very strategic territory for the United States, one that we have to defend. The former Soviet Union and now Russia is very close to Alaska. So maintaining the forces necessary to defend Alaska is a top priority. But the United States has also cooperated with Canada. During the Cold War, we maintained a string of radar stations across northern Canada, a very difficult enterprise, expensive enterprise. We may not need to do that to the same degree, but we do need to invest in better joint air and missile defenses with Canada. And Rick, with this being an election year, what would you like to see from either Harris or Trump, whoever ends up in the White House, when it comes to the Arctic? Cooperation with our allies in the Arctic should proceed along with cooperation in many other spheres. It shouldn't be a singular focus, but it should definitely be part of a broader allied effort, a broader list of investments necessary to deter a stronger Russia, a stronger China that are bent on aggression and territorial conquest. Rick Fisher, thank you so much for your time. Tiffany, thank you. Coming up, a top European Union commissioner taking aim at Hungary, accusing the nation of putting the bloc's security at risk with its China policy. And how can it be that the Hungarian government would allow Chinese police to operate within its territory? Beijing upping its tracking tactics to keep an eye on its citizens. The state now directing the hundreds of millions of e-bike riders to install a tracking device. And a growing scandal in Germany. Authorities there are cracking down on fraud tied to China-based projects that aim to cut carbon emissions. More on that after the break, here on China In Focus. Welcome back to China In Focus, I'm Tiffany Meyer. The head of the European Commission blasting Hungary's China policy on Wednesday, saying the nation's close links with China and Russia are putting European security at risk. Hungary holds the EU presidency until the end of this year. How can it be that a Hungarian government invites Russian nationals into our union without additional security checks? This makes the new Hungarian visa scheme a security risk not only for Hungary, but for all member states. And how can it be that the Hungarian government would allow Chinese police to operate within its territory? This is not defending Europe's sovereignty. This is a backdoor for foreign interference. Wanderlion's criticism came after Hungary eased visa restrictions for Russians and Belarusians. She also mentioned the agreement that allows Chinese police officers to patrol in Hungary together with their Hungarian counterparts. Three months ago, Orbán traveled on to Moscow and Beijing without coordinating with its EU partners. The trip sparked controversy within the bloc. Hungary's prime minister called Wanderlion's remarks surprising, saying he called for a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. Beijing upgrading its surveillance inside its borders. A new directive will now require e-bikes to be equipped with a Beidou navigation system, the Chinese version of GPS. The move has raised concerns about the regime's growing surveillance capabilities. Chinese officials claim it's for consumer convenience. But Zhang, a Chinese software engineer who wishes to remain anonymous, tells NTD that there's more to the story. He's concerned that the Chinese Communist Party is using the devices and data to closely monitor the public. It's quite easy to keep tabs on e-bikers, to track where they go every day, the routes they take, and how long they hang out in certain areas, all of which raise serious privacy concerns. There are over 350 million e-bikes on the road in China and could prove a vast data source for the Chinese regime. China's Beidou satellite navigation system was primarily developed for military use and designed to compete with the United States' GPS system. Reportedly, Beidou's most important use in the Xinjiang region is to uphold Beijing's rule and social stability by surveilling citizens. Germany's Environment Agency is revoking certificates for 45 Chinese climate emission reduction projects, all due to alleged fraud. The decision leading to an estimated loss of more than $1 billion through carbon credits. That's because carbon credits function as financial benefits for project applicants, given by the European Union. But there's a problem. According to German media, some of these clean energy projects didn't actually exist or fake documents and exaggerated their emissions cuts. The report says a market for buying and selling these carbon credits has emerged inside China. And the lack of independent review allowed these fraud activities to grow. That's because emissions reduction projects are often created, verified and certified by the same people. The fraud practices have led to an estimated loss of $1.6 billion, financial damages that cannot be reversed. Next, a closer look at supply chains, what causes the biggest impacts and what are the risks of relying on foreign goods. NTD's Capital Reports sat down with Sharam Narayanan, professor of supply chain management at Michigan State University, to help break it down. Now, I want to reflect on the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID, which originated from China, international supply chains were put under significant pressure. What are the risks of relying on foreign imports? And do we have backups in place if another global pandemic occurs? Well, that's a great question. I think a lot of companies are already thinking about this. So there is this idea like China plus one policy that many companies are following for their supply chains. Many of these companies are looking at areas like Asian countries. And I think so, for example, Apple is already in India and Vietnam, you know, post-COVID. So you are going to find that these trends accelerate. So there are two big areas that I see in this space. One is geopolitical risks, you know, the trade wars and everything else that you see. And then climate change is also a big risk, frankly. I think you see what happened with Hurricane Helen in North Carolina just a week ago. You know, there are companies like Baxter, where sort of the hurricane took out their IV fluid plant. And, you know, there is a very small town called Spruce Pine that sort of is at the heart of, you know, fine, high quality quartz mining that goes into the semiconductor industry. And, you know, the whole town has been impacted. And the companies that make these quartz are impacted, right? So I think the post-COVID environment, to your point, are driven mostly by both geopolitical risks and climate change related challenges. My sense is that irrespective of what happens, companies need to have transparent supply chains. That's really a big part. And the second part is resilient supply chains, because you're going to find that these risks are not going to go away. You mentioned China's semiconductors. China recently imposed unexpected restrictions on exports of gallium and germanium, products used in the semiconductor industry, which allows it to dominate the clean tech supply chain, particularly solar equipment, EVs, manufacturing. How might that impact us? Should we be wary of China's reliability for importing important supplies? So I think what is really important for large companies is to sort of think about what are alternative areas for sourcing, right? And as long as you have alternative sourcing layers, then I think the risks of some of these are much less salient, I would say. I want our audience to take away the bigger picture here. So if we could take a step back and just tell us what are the most pressing concerns for our supply chains right now and what steps are needed to steer it to a better path? I think one of the most pressing concerns for supply chains is the need for greater visibility. Because we are so globalized and we are making products that are so complex, where products are coming from several tiers downstream and they become extremely important in many ways and can be choke points. It's extremely important to think about how to plan for these risks, right? And if you are planning for these risks, I think that's probably half the solution. But you can never eliminate all the risks and you have to be able to respond to some of these quickly enough. That's why I said earlier that scenario planning is a big deal. I do think companies need to think about different scenarios through which they could stress test their supply chains. Sriram Narayanan, thank you very much for your insight here today. Thank you very much. That's all for today's China In Focus. I'm Tiffany Meyer. If you have any feedback on the show or have something you'd like to see us cover, send us an email at chinainfocusntd.com. We'd love to hear from you. For around the clock original news coverage, visit us at ntd.com or download our NTD app. Thanks for watching. See you tomorrow. Coming up on NTD, stay tuned for America's Hope with Kelly Wright. New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Kahn discusses his latest bestseller, The Dragon's Prophecy. This current novel focuses on Israel and the end of days. The conversation highlights the significance of Kahn's work in understanding current events through a biblical worldview, particularly in the context of Israel and its challenges. Kahn emphasizes that despite the dark times, he provides a message of hope and faith. That's tonight at 10 p.m. after China In Focus. Thanks for watching. See you tomorrow.