TikTok, NetChoice Call Mont. Ban Unconstitutional

Montana banned TikTok for everyone in the state. Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte said Wednesday he signed a bill to ban the social media platform from operating in the state and ban mobile app stores from allowing TikTok downloads. Also, Gianforte directed the Montana chief information officer and agency directors to prohibit any social media app tied to a foreign adversary on state equipment. Some Republican U.S. senators supported the state ban last month after it passed the legislature, despite questions about how it would be enforced (see 2304210024). “Montana takes the most decisive action of any state to protect … private data and sensitive personal information from being harvested by the Chinese Communist Party,” said Gianforte. A TikTok spokesperson said the law violates users’ First Amendment rights. “We want to reassure Montanans that they can continue using TikTok to express themselves, earn a living, and find community as we continue working to defend the rights of our users inside and outside of Montana. ... The Chinese Communist Party has neither direct nor indirect control of ByteDance or TikTok.” NetChoice General Counsel Carl Szabo said, “Montana ignores the U.S. Constitution, due process and free speech by denying access to a website and apps their citizens want to use.” The American Civil Liberties Union also condemned the ban. Gianforte and the legislature "trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans ... in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment,” said Keegan Medrano, ACLU-Montana policy director. “We will never trade our First Amendment rights for cheap political points.”