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Blaine’s Bulletin: A Chinese Company with Ties to Slave Labor Has a Super Bowl Ad

Our Chiefs are back in the big game! I’m sure you’re as excited as I am to watch the next milestone in what has become a true dynasty. The Super Bowl commercials have become a spectacle of their own— who gets featured, what it costs, which ones are the most entertaining— but there’s one ad in particular we should all heed.

The Chinese company Temu is planning to run a commercial. Now, I have no idea what they’ll claim in their 30 seconds, but there are a few facts you should know.

Temu is a popular online clothing company that offers stylish clothes at cheap prices. Sounds pretty good, right? Well, as is normally the case, the devil is in the details. The key to Temu’s success is as troubling as it gets. The products Temu offers are tied to slave labor in the Xinjiang region of China. A forensic test proved materials from certain clothing items came from the region, and even after the investigation results became public, Temu didn’t remove products.

Company officials lazily point to boilerplate terms and conditions asking suppliers not to use forced labor, but Temu does not conduct audits and has no compliance system to prevent supporting atrocities. The company even admitted it “does not expressly prohibit third-party sellers from selling products based on their origin in the Xinjiang Autonomous Region” and completely disregards the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA).

Temu is the “sister-company” of Pinduoduo, which operates in China and is known for facilitating trademark counterfeiting and copyright piracy. In 2021, two Pinduoduo employees died due to the company’s working conditions. Additionally, cybersecurity researchers and former Pinduoduo employees say the company spies on customers.

Pinduoduo’s retail apps have malware to bypass users’ cell phone security and monitor activities on other apps, check notifications, read private messages, and change settings. Again, Temu is simply a version of Pinduoduo aimed at you.

As I say repeatedly, nothing the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) does is a coincidence. Pinduoduo shows unwavering loyalty to the CCP and its leader, Xi Jinping. At the urging of Xi, the company promised to donate its profits— much of which came from Americans— to government initiatives. In return, Pinduoduo’s shares jumped 22%. In its statement announcing the donation, Pinduoduo publicized its ongoing support of the government’s agenda, and the CCP has praised the company for its loyalty.

Amid the fanfare of the Super Bowl and other trending issues, a quick advertisement can slip through and send a gross misinterpretation of the company. Unfortunately, I’m sure plenty of Americans across the country will watch it and never consider the company’s sinister background. They may even go on their phones, download the app, and, by making a purchase, send money straight to the CCP.

Given our shared values as Missourians and Americans, I thought you’d want to know about this company’s egregiousness before it reaches the national spotlight. If and when you see the commercial, I hope you’ll remember this information I’ve shared and perhaps even pass it along to your fellow fans.

Enjoy your weekend and the game, and GO CHIEFS!

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