Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina made her candidacy for one of California's Senate seats official on Wednesday at an event in Orange County. Fiorina, who was an advisor to Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., during his run for the White House last year, was also the first woman to lead a Fortune 500 company. Prior to joining HP, she served as an executive vice president at AT&T and helped coordinate Lucent's spin-off. She was ousted by HP's board in 2005.
Fiorina made her announcement at Earth Friendly Products in Garden Grove, Calif., where she discussed her top priorities including job creation, economic recovery and restoring fiscal accountability in Washington. "Throughout my career I've brought people together and solved problems and that is what I plan to do in government - set aside ego and partisanship and work to develop solutions to our problems," she said in a statement.
"I believe big change is not impossible, but it does require leadership, innovative thinking, teamwork and tackling the most obvious and pressing problems first," Fiorina said. "My campaign is going to be about solutions that work for the people of California and about holding Barbara Boxer accountable for her failed record over her last 18 years in the Senate, her utter failure to lead and her track record of bitter and ineffective partisanship."
She will face off in the GOP primary against California Assemblyman Chuck DeVore. For more information visit CarlyforCalifornia.com.
Craiglist.org founder Craig Newmark has agreed to serve on a Veterans Affairs Department panel that will review ideas to improve disability claims processing times and provide greater transparency to vets, the agency announced Wednesday. Newmark told a high-tech conference in June that he was contemplating whether to "dedicate a big chunk of my life" to those who are driving change in Washington. He also said he wanted to spend more time practicing his own brand of public service.
"Transforming VA into an organization that is veteran-centric, results-oriented and forward-looking is my top priority," Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki said in a press release. "Leveraging the talent, innovation and creativity of stakeholders, like Craig Newmark, is just one of the many ways VA can think outside of the box to help deliver tangible results to our nation's veterans."
VA officials from each of the agency's 57 regional offices across the country have submitted more than 3,000 ideas, which will be reviewed by Newmark and other panel members. Newmark said he looked forward to working with VA's leadership team to "bring tangible results" to veterans. He added that he is encouraged by the fact that VA is "embracing new ways to look at old problems."
Former U.S. Assistant Trade Representative Victoria Espinel who was tapped in September by President Obama to serve as the first White House intellectual property enforcement coordinator will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. Espinel, who taught at George Mason University after leaving USTR in the Bush administration, is expected to easily win approval of the panel, which is considering an appeals court judge and several district judges the same day.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy received letters in support of Espinel's nomination from a range of stakeholders including the Copyright Alliance, National Music Publishers' Association, American Intellectual Property Law Association, International Trademark Association, Motion Picture Association of America, U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others.
The Chamber called Espinel's confirmation "an important step towards fulfilling the promise of the PRO-IP Act," an IP enforcement bill that Congress passed and Bush signed into law last year. MPAA Chairman Dan Glickman called her an "excellent choice" for the office and said his experience with her at USTR was top notch. AIPLA hailed her "impressive and substantive background."
On the eve of a Capitol Hill high-tech showcase, Intel Executive Vice President Sean Maloney and Vice President of Legal and Corporate Affairs Peter Cleveland sat down for an Oktoberfest themed dinner at Chinatown's PS7 with a handful of Washington tech reporters. The conversation, fueled by creative beer-inspired dishes, covered a range of topics from broadband deployment and network neutrality to patent reform and competition. Here are some highlights (from Maloney unless otherwise noted)
• Economic stimulus money for health IT, broadband and other tech related priorities is going out as quickly as one should expect. Intel is not applying for any stimulus funds directly but is working with groups that are trying to get money for rural broadband.
• Intel has taken a "nuanced stance" on net neutrality and supports pipeline providers "intelligently managing traffic." Grossly exaggerated worst case scenarios on either side of the debate have not helped. "This isn't impossible as long as we listen to each other."
• The two most insular places in America are Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C., which makes bridging the gap between the two locales difficult. Silicon Valley ought to be more involved in policy and politics.
It was announced last week that Motion Picture Association of America
Chairman Dan Glickman would be stepping down from his influential post as Hollywood's top lobbyist in Washington -- and now his spokeswoman says she's departing as well. Angela Martinez will be joining the Commerce Department's Economic Development Administration where she will work for senior adviser to John Fernandez, assistant secretary of commerce for economic development. In her new role, Martinez will be overseeing legislative and public affairs.
Before joining MPAA in 2007 as vice president of communications, Martinez worked with several PR firms, as the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Midwest Regional Political Director and in various roles in government and politics in her home state of Indiana. This is her encore performance working for Fernandez. She worked on the former Bloomington, Ind. mayor when he campaigned for Indiana secretary of state in 2002. Martinez's last day at MPAA is next Friday and she'll start her job at Commerce in mid-November.
Duke Law School professor Arti Rai quietly reported for work at the Patent and Trademark Office on Monday as administrator for external affairs, according to sources within the agency. Rai, an expert in patent law and legal issues facing the biopharmaceutical sector, will make her maiden speech at an award ceremony for collegiate inventors in Chicago on Tuesday. She will talk about the importance of a strong intellectual property regime, economic recovery and job growth. At PTO, Rai will oversee domestic and international policy and intergovernmental relations and will be a strong voice for the agency as Congress advances legislation to overhaul the U.S. patent system.
Rai has close ties to the administration. She was a classmate of President Obama's at Harvard Law School and served on his transition team as a member of the agency review team on science, technology, space, arts and humanities. Computing Technology Industry Association Director for Global IP Chris Katopis, who previously served as PTO deputy administrator for external affairs, said Rai is a "provocative choice" for the administrator job since she hails from academia, which is seen as "notoriously anti-patent."
Intel CEO Paul Otellini said Monday that he dislikes cap-and-trade provisions to address global warming, which are being considered as part of broad energy legislation on Capitol Hill. In an interview on Fox Business Network, the tech executive said the measure "doesn't take into account the fact that people build things for a global basis and you have global competition." "This either has to be done on a global basis; otherwise all you're doing is moving the pollution and making the U.S. less competitive," he said.
Otellini commented the controversial public option proposal that some want to ensure is part of healthcare reform legislation. "At face value, I don't think it would help our employees," he said. "They get a fairly good health package today... I would be afraid of any option that took away that choice." He also said government should take the uncertainty out of doing business in the United States. "Give businesses a clear view of taxation, healthcare costs, can you get H1B visas for employees you want to hire, those kinds of things."
Ending the recession is directly tied to the nation's confidence, Otellini added. "Rebuilding confidence, it's not about a different structure of the banks or anything. Do people have confidence that the economy is going to be better tomorrow than today. That will happen as the GDP improves and I think people will expand if you take the variability out," he said.
Greg Farmer is expected to head the D.C. office of Qualcomm, according to a K Street sources. Farmer currently works in government affairs with Nortel Networks. Earlier in his career, Farmer was chief of staff to then-Rep. Buddy MacKay, D-Fla. Farmer also worked as an undersecretary of Commerce in the Clinton Administration, and he was also secretary of Commerce for the state of Florida, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Qualcomm is a wireless technology company based in San Diego, Calif. According to CRP, Qualcomm ranks fourth in political donations for the 2010 election cycle among all telecom service and equipment companies. During the 2008 election cycle, Qualcomm gave 76 percent of its money to Democrats. In the 2010 cycle so far, the company has contributed 87 percent of its donations to Democrats, and 13 percent of donations to Republicans.
Think tankers at the Progress and Freedom Foundation will play musical chairs on Friday as the group's president, Ken Ferree, steps down to become a senior fellow and longtime senior fellow and director of PFF's Center for Digital Media Freedom Adam Thierer assumes the top job. Ferree, a former chief of the FCC Media Burea, became president of PFF in November 2007 after an executive-level exodus. Thierer formally joined PFF in 2005 but has been involved with group since its creation 16 years ago. He is an expert on content regulation and child safety, Internet governance, and intellectual property.
PFF Chairman and co-founder George "Jay" Keyworth said Thierer is "the perfect choice" to lead the group and said under Ferree's leadership, PFF has "played a leading role in the debate about technology policy issues in Washington issues." Ferree had been splitting his time between D.C. and Lake Tahoe, Calif., where he moved his family in 2007. Thierer said he looks forward to continuing the organization's vision of defending individual liberty, free markets, freedom of speech, and property rights.
The group is also working to re-launch its annual tech policy summit after PFF cancelled this year's event, which was to be held in August at Robert Redford's swanky Sundance Resort in Utah, Thierer said. Ferree cited the nation's ongoing economic woes as the rationale for pulling the plug on the popular outside the Beltway soiree. The summer retreat for lobbyists and policy experts had been held in Aspen, Colo. for 14 years before the group decided to relocate for 2009. The 2010 conference will be held in the Beehive State.
Patent and Trademark Office Director David Kappos on Thursday urged industry stakeholders and lawmakers to "move together in the spirit of compromise and get patent reform done now." Speaking at the American Intellectual Property Law Association, he pressed the group's members to "show leadership" because "50 years is long enough to wait" for meaningful overhauls to the U.S. patent system. He stressed that "not everyone is getting everything they want" from the bill that emerged from the Senate Judiciary Committee in April but the measure is a "major positive step" for the life sciences sector, small innovators and the IT industry.
Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy earlier this month said he wants to work with Majority Leader Harry Reid to schedule, before the end of the year, Senate debate his bill. His announcement came as Commerce Secretary Gary Locke indicated the Obama administration's support of the controversial measure. House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers introduced a companion bill but it remains to be seen how the bill will evolve and whether it will look similar to the compromise that Leahy brokered with Sens. Arlen Specter, D-Pa., and Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.
Duke Law School professor Arti Rai should be landing at the Patent and Trademark Office any day now to take the reins as administrator for external affairs (see original Tech Daily Dose post here) -- but in the meantime another familiar name has surfaced at PTO. Peter Pappas, who previously served in several capacities in the Clinton administration, has been brought on to head up the agency's communications and public outreach operation.
During the Clinton years, Pappas was associate chief of the FCC's international bureau, developing international telecommunications policy on a broad range of issues, including satellite regulation and licensing, international spectrum management, and third generation wireless standards and licensing, according to a bio. He also served as the State Department's director of communications for economic affairs and at one point was assistant White House counsel.
In September 2000, the Georgetown Law School graduate joined Pappas Telecasting -- which at the time was the largest privately-held, commercial television broadcast group in the United States -- where he served as executive vice president for legal and governmental affairs. He was responsible for overseeing all federal government and federal agency regulatory affairs of the company, including the supervision of all filings before the FCC and other agencies.
In related PTO personnel news, Jefferson Taylor, director of congressional relations, has moved on and a permanent replacement has not been named.
President Obama's former senior cybersecurity adviser Melissa Hathaway, who resigned effective Aug. 21 after working for months on a comprehensive review of the government's ability to identify and thwart high-tech attacks, opened up about her experience in an interview with Federal News Radio. Hathaway said her decision to leave had as much to do with fixing her work-life balance as it did with not getting the cyber coordinator role Obama began talking about early in his tenure.
"I knew when the president gave his speech I wasn't going to be named," she said of the cyber post, which was mentioned in Obama's late May speech. "I helped put names on the list and establish evaluation criteria for the person... The person needs to have a strong background in not just national security policy, but also economic security policy." She said her impact from outside government can be meaningful and she has hung her own shingle.
Hathaway plans to work with cybersecurity industry players and with Harvard University and MIT on research and writing.
The latest National Journal features a profile of former Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., the new head of the National Association of Broadcasters. Here's a snippet:
During his 12 years in the Senate, Oregon Republican Gordon Smith earned a reputation as a bridge-builder, team player, and nice guy. Now he hopes to bring that spirit of camaraderie to the National Association of Broadcasters, one of Washington's most powerful and fractious trade groups. Smith, who narrowly lost his seat to Democrat Jeff Merkley in 2008, will succeed David Rehr as president and CEO of the 8,300-member organization on November 1. Rehr resigned in May after a rocky four years in charge. "As a member of the Senate, I worked across party lines to get legislation passed," Smith said at the broadcasting guild's Radio Show last month in Philadelphia. "Now my politics are the interests of the [NAB]."
One of his biggest challenges will be in the boardroom. "NAB's governance model is badly divided," Consumer Electronics Association President Gary Shapiro said, contending that "aside from the word 'broadcasting,' radio and TV have nothing in common." He argued that the deep rift between the two sectors contributed to Rehr's demise--and the industry's estimated 30 percent loss of market share in recent decades. Smith told National Journal that the TV and radio camps "are stronger when they are together than apart, even though they have different interests." He said he will work hard to unify their message and satisfy the interests of both. Read the full story here (subscription required).
Google's Washington office is growing (again). Frannie Wellings, a top aide to Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has announced she will join the Internet giant in three to six weeks as a federal policy outreach manager. It's a new role for Google that will utilize Wellings's background in consumer protection and technology issues. She will lead the company's work with trade groups, think tanks, and advocacy groups, serving as a liaison to the community and soliciting input and advice on Google's public policy positions. Before joining Dorgan's office in 2007, Wellings was associate policy director for media watchdog Free Press. She has a master's degree in communications from the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor's degree in psychology from Arizona State University. Google also welcomed Mistique Cano as manager of global communications and public affairs. Cano previously served as vice president of communications for the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights and Pennsylvania press secretary for the presidential campaign of Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. She has a degree from the George Washington University.
Scott Corley, the director of government affairs at Microsoft, is leaving to join Monument Policy Group where he will be senior vice president of government affairs.
At Microsoft, Corley was charged with lobbying Senate Republicans. He worked with Compete America, an immigration coalition, in favor of immigration reform. Republicans will remain his focus, he said, with his issues including immigration and technology. Corley's own Hill experience includes tenures on the staffs of former Sen. George Allen, R-Va., and former Rep. Jim Rogan, R-Calif.
Before joining Microsoft, he was director of government relations for the Information Technology Industry Council. He hails from Fort Worth, Tex.
The New York judge overseeing Google's pending $125 million settlement in a copyright-related class-action lawsuit was tapped by President Obama on Tuesday for a spot on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. U.S. District Judge Denny Chin, who requires Senate confirmation, is also known for ruling that Cablevision's planned remote storage digital video recorder would violate copyright. Cablevision appealed and the Second Circuit agreed with the cable operator. Programmers petitioned the Supreme Court to take the case but they were rebuffed this summer. The high court's refusal to hear the case was considered a big win for cable industry innovation.
Meanwhile, Chin has scheduled a Wednesday status hearing on the Google case, which stems from the company's plan to create the world's largest digital library and bookstore. The effort -- and the deal Google reached with authors and publishers -- has raised eyebrows within industry, at the Justice Department and on Capitol Hill. In advance of the hearing, the Open Book Alliance, a group whose members include Amazon.com, Microsoft, the Internet Archive, Yahoo and others, called on Google and its partners to detail how they expect to remedy perceived flaws the original settlement.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue urged the Senate on Wednesday to "hurry up and confirm" former U.S. Assistant Trade Representative Victoria Espinel who was tapped last week by President Obama to serve as the first White House intellectual property enforcement coordinator. The Senate Judiciary Committee first must receive a completed questionnaire that details her background and experience and then a hearing can be scheduled. Espinel, who is highly regarded on Capitol Hill, within industry, and among international IP policy arenas, is expected to easily win confirmation.
"I'm calling on the administration to take the next logical and necessary step," Donohue said during a keynote at a Chamber-sponsored summit. "Work with the business community and Congress to create a bold IP strategy." Such a plan is required under the 2008 legislation that created the IP czar position, he said. The White House must ensure that, once confirmed, Espinel will have "the resources and authority to get things done."
Donohue also pressed the U.S. government to remain strong on protecting the IP behind green technologies as negotiators plan for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen, Denmark, in December. At that meeting, countries will try to reach agreement on how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but some governments want carve-outs that Donohue said could diminish incentives for U.S. manufacturers. "We must reject those claims that IP rights are a barrier to climate change innovation," he said, arguing that compulsory licensing could endanger a million jobs by 2020.
Kevin Martin, former Federal Communications Commission chairman, has joined Patton Boggs where he will work at the law and lobbying firm's telecommunications and technology practice. Martin starts at the firm early next month and will oversee the practice with Jennifer Richter. Richter is also slated to become co-chair Patton Boggs' public policy practice.
Martin was named to the FCC as a commissioner in 2001 and was elevated to chairman in 2005 to replace Michael Powell. He resigned from the agency in January of this year and joined the non-profit Aspen Institute. Prior to the FCC, Martin was special assistant to former President George W. Bush for economic policy and served on the White House's National Economic Council.
When President Obama tapped George Mason University professor Victoria Espinel as the first White House intellectual property enforcement coordinator Friday, lawmakers and industry stakeholders let out a collective sigh of relief. The announcement was months in the making, and Espinel, who previously served as assistant trade representative for IP, had been considered the top candidate for the job for some time.
One reason for the delay was that administration officials were conflicted over where to put the IP czar. Eventually they settled on OMB, after ruling out the Domestic Policy Council, National Economic Council, USTR and the Office of Science and Technology Policy, sources familiar with the process said. OMB oversees strategic planning, interagency coordination and budgeting, and it is seen as a successful coordinator of programs that span multiple agencies.
The fact that Espinel, who is expected to easily win Senate confirmation, would land at OMB is ironic, since that is where 2005 legislation offered by Sens. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., and George Voinovich, R-Ohio, placed the head of a proposed IP enforcement network. At the time, the idea was panned by critics, who thought OMB would be a peculiar locale for the post. Read the entire "Issue Of The Week" from CongressDaily's TechCentral here (subscription required).
[Updated 4:11 p.m.] The White House announced Friday its long-awaited intellectual property enforcement coordinator. Victoria Espinel, who previously served as assistant trade representative for IP, has been the top candidate for months, but the administration was unsure of where to put her. Officials reportedly ruled out placement within the Domestic Policy Council, the National Economic Council and National Security Council, and now the Senate-confirmed IP czar will be housed at OMB. One of the IP coordinator's first agenda items will be drafting a strategic plan to identify "structural weaknesses, systemic flaws or other unjustified impediments" to cracking down on IP crime, according to the 2008 legislation that created the job (CongressDaily / subscription required).
Here's the official White House personnel announcement:
President Obama on Thursday named the recipients of the 2009 National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the highest honors bestowed by the U.S. government on scientists, engineers and inventors. Recipients will receive their awards Oct. 7 at a White House ceremony.
"These scientists, engineers and inventors are national icons, embodying the very best of American ingenuity and inspiring a new generation of thinkers and innovators," Obama said in a statement. "Their extraordinary achievements strengthen our nation every day -- not just intellectually and technologically but also economically, by helping create new industries and opportunities that others before them could never have imagined."
Recipients of the National Medal of Science are:
Dr. Berni Alder, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Dr. Francis Collins, National Institutes of Health
Dr. Joanna Fowler, Brookhaven National Laboratory
Dr. Elaine Fuchs, The Rockefeller University
Dr. James Gunn, Princeton University
Dr. Rudolf Kalman, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
Dr. Michael Posner, University of Oregon
Dr. JoAnne Stubbe, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Dr. J. Craig Venter, J. Craig Venter Institute
Recipients of the National Medal of Technology and Innovation are:
Dr. Forrest M. Bird, Percussionaire Corp.
Dr. Esther Sans Takeuchi, University at Buffalo, SUNY
Team: Dr. John E. Warnock and Dr. Charles M. Geschke (Adobe Systems)
Company: IBM Corp.
3121, the first professional networking tool designed exclusively for congressional members and staff launches Thursday after several months of beta testing. National Journal Group's walled-off Web site offers a secure directory of contacts, communications tools and customizable news feeds so users can find and collaborate with colleagues and create personalized news filters. 3121 has been pre-populated with 9,500 user profiles, with about 56 percent belonging to Democrats and 44 percent to Republicans. Individuals with House and Senate e-mail addresses can log-on to claim and modify their listings. Learn more about 3121 here. FYI: "3121" is the extension for the Capitol Hill switchboard.
President Obama on Thursday nominated National Institute of Standards and Technology Deputy Director Patrick Gallagher to serve as the agency's top dog. In his current position, Gallagher provides high-level oversight and direction for NIST, which is a branch of the Commerce Department that develops and promotes measurement, standards, and technology. He received his Ph.D. in physics at the University of Pittsburgh in 1991 and joined NIST in 1993 as an instrument scientist at the agency's Center for Neutron Research. He later became director of the center where he served until assuming the role of NIST deputy director in 2008.
From 1999 to 2001, Gallagher was a NIST agency representative at the National Science and Technology Council and he remains active in the area of U.S. policy for scientific user facilities and has chaired the Interagency Working Groups on neutron and light source facilities under the Office of Science and Technology Policy, according to a White House personnel announcement. NIST's FY 2009 resources total $1.6 billion, including $819 million in appropriations from the omnibus bill; $610 million from the stimulus package; $48 million in service fees; and $125 million from other agencies.
Susan Crawford, President Obama's special assistant for science, technology, and innovation policy, selected Wednesday evening -- as her boss began the most important speech to date of his presidency -- to return to the micro-blogging platform Twitter. While Crawford's message (see above) simply noted she was watching Obama's health care address to a joint session of Congress from a couch in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building it's worth noting that it was her first tweet in 71 weeks.
Other White House high-tech gurus who used to use Twitter -- like Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra -- have not resumed tweeting since joining the Obama administration. Crawford's message is also significant because One Web Day, an annual event she founded in 2006 to encourage Internet users to show how the medium impacts their lives, is right around the corner. The Sept. 22 celebration has attracted a global network of partner organizations and individual activists. In 2008, One Web Day organizers documented volunteer-driven events 34 cities around the world.
White House Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra told reporters at a high-tech summit Wednesday that the Obama administration will announce its long anticipated cybersecurity coordinator "in the not-too-distant future." "I've had the pleasure of interviewing a number of candidates that I think are top notch," he said. "I don't think we're in a position to say that we have a candidate picked yet but I'm hopeful." President Obama in late May pledged to handpick his cyber czar -- a position recommended by recent legislation and an administration report.
House Cybersecurity Caucus co-chairs Jim Langevin, D-R.I., and Michael McCaul, R-Texas, pressed the administration before August recess to move quickly in appointing a high-level official to coordinate agencies' efforts to identify and guard against attacks on public and private sector IT networks. Their statements came on the heels of the news that Melissa Hathaway, acting senior director for cyberspace for the National Security and Homeland Security Councils, was resigning effective Aug. 21.
Christopher Painter, the National Security Council's cyber chief, has been helping Chopra and Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra with cyber planning since Hathaway's departure. Chopra called Painter, a former leader of the Justice Department's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, "an incredibly talented guy." For his part, Kundra has held recent meetings with industry stakeholders -- particularly from the financial services sector -- on strategies to bridge the gap between government and private sector IT security efforts.
Duke Law School professor Arti Rai -- an expert in patent law, administrative law and legal issues facing the biopharmaceutical industry -- is expected to be named administrator for external affairs at the Patent and Trademark Office, sources close to the issue told Tech Daily Dose on Tuesday. The position, which has been vacant for some time, oversees domestic and international policy and intergovernmental relations for the agency. Officials at the PTO, Commerce Department and White House officials would not confirm or deny the report.
Rai was a classmate of President Obama's at Harvard Law School and she served as a member of the agency review team on science, technology, space, arts and humanities as part of administration's transition project. Her current research on innovation policy in areas such as green technology, drug development, and software is funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Kauffman Foundation, and Chatham House, according to her Duke bio. Rai has testified in the Senate on innovation policy and, before entering academia, clerked for U.S. District Court Judge Marilyn Hall Patel of California and was a litigation associate at Jenner & Block.
The Patent and Trademark Office will undergo a significant change in senior management next month when Commissioner for Patents John Doll retires after 35 years at the agency. Doll, who is responsible for all aspects of the patent granting process, will depart Oct. 2, the agency said Thursday. He previously served as deputy commissioner for patent resources and planning and earlier led a group of examiners who studied organic chemistry, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology patent applications.
New PTO Director David Kappos has nominated longtime agency executive Bob Stoll to become commissioner for patents and has named Peggy Focarino as his deputy. Stoll has spent 27 years at the PTO and Focarino has been with the agency for more than 32 years. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, who is responsible for appointing Doll's replacement for a five-year term, expressed support for Stoll's nomination. His deep knowledge of the PTO will make him an important addition to the senior management team, Locke said.
"Working hand-in-hand with Peggy, who has shown incredible skill in patents management and operations, I know they will meet the formidable challenges facing the patent organization, including the need to drastically reduce pendency, improve quality and boost efficiency, all while managing costs in a tough budgetary environment," Kappos said. Early in his tenure, Locke asked the PTO to be aggressive in reducing the time it takes to process patent applications and Kappos has made it a priority.
An Internet tribute to Sen. Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., launched Wednesday hours after the legendary lawmaker's death at age 77 on Tuesday night. TedKennedy.org allows the public to share thoughts and memories about the senator who had been battling brain cancer since a May 2008 diagnosis. A schedule of memorial events and media logistics will be released as soon as they are available on the site. In the meantime, tribute areas honoring Kennedy are being set up at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library & Museum in Boston, the JFK Museum in Hyannis, Mass. and Kennedy's Washington Office in the Russell Senate Building in Washington. Read complete Kennedy coverage at NationalJournal.com and CongressDaily.com.
John Miller, a broadcast journalist who parlayed his expertise on terrorism into a career with local law enforcement and later the FBI, plans to leave the bureau to help lead reform efforts for the intelligence community. According to sources familiar with Miller's plans, he would move to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, where he'd head up a team devoted to "analytic transformation." It was established in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks to improve the ability of analysts to share information across bureaucratic boundaries and to encourage them to use new technologies, such as social networking. Since 2005, Miller has been the FBI's assistant director for public affairs, the bureau's top spokesman. Miller did not respond to e-mails or messages left with his office seeking comment. A spokesman for the Director of National Intelligence said the office had "no personnel announcements to make at this time."
Over the course of his career, Miller has alternated between covering terrorism as a reporter and joining ranks to fight it as a law enforcement official. In the early 1990s, he was one of a few reporters closely following the then nascent Al Qaeda network and its ties to the first World Trade Center attack in 1993. Miller became friends with agents in the FBI's New York field office, particularly John O'Neill, whose career in the bureau was the subject of a PBS Frontline documentary titled "The Man Who Knew," a reference to O'Neill's dogged pursuit of Al Qaeda and its shadowy leader, Osama bin Laden. In 1998, Miller became one of the few western journalists to interview bin Laden in person when he and a cameraman sat down with the terrorist leader in Afghanistan.
The full Senate late today confirmed IBM Assistant General Counsel David Kappos as the next director of the Patent and Trademark Office, following Kappos' approval Thursday by the Senate Judiciary Committee on a voice vote. The Senate's action came as it wrapped up business prior to a month-long August recess. Kappos will also hold the title of undersecretary for intellectual property at the Commerce Department. In a written statement following the Judiciary Committee's action, Chairman Patrick Leahy emphasized the importance of getting a PTO director in place quickly. "The PTO needs strong and accountable leadership," he said, pointing to the agency's growing backlog of patent applications and economic woes - which required recent passage of emergency legislation, due to a drop in user fees that fund PTO operations. Leahy said he also looked forward to working with Kappos on a bill the senator introduced that would overhaul the U.S. patent system.
President Obama's pick to head the Patent and Trademark Office could be confirmed before the August recess, CongressDaily's AM Edition reported on Tuesday. Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy has scheduled a Thursday morning business meeting for his panel to vote on IBM Assistant General Counsel David Kappos, tapped by Obama in June to become PTO director and undersecretary for intellectual property at the Commerce Department. The committee, which held Kappos' confirmation hearing Wednesday, is also scheduled to consider three other nominees. If the nomination is approved by the Judiciary Committee, Leahy would have to work with Senate leaders to find time for a floor vote before they leave town Friday.
Melissa Hathaway, top cybersecurity adviser to the director of national intelligence and the principal author of the Obama administration's 60-day review of the U.S. government's cybersecurity posture has resigned, a National Security Council spokesman told Tech Daily Dose late Monday. Hathaway, who was senior adviser to former Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell in the Bush administration and held the same post under Dennis Blair in the current White House, will depart effective Aug. 21. "We are grateful for her dedicated service and for the significant progress she and her team have made on our national cyber security strategy," the NSC official said.
Cybersecurity has been touted as a major priority for President Obama, which is why shortly after taking office he directed the NSC and Homeland Security Council to conduct the top-to-bottom review of federal cyber efforts and to recommend the best way to secure critical networks. In late May, the White House released the report and announced the creation of a cyber security coordinator who will have direct access to the president. "The president is personally committed to finding the right person for this job, and a rigorous selection process is well underway," the NSC spokesman said. Hathaway was initially thought to be a top contender for the job.
CongressDaily recently reported that two frontrunners to become cyber czar are Howard Schmidt, former White House special adviser for cyberspace security, and Frank Kramer, an assistant Defense secretary under President Bill Clinton. Other names floated included Microsoft Vice President Scott Charney; Obama transition team technology adviser Paul Kurtz; and former Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va. Davis said in June he was neither interested in returning to government nor being a candidate for the position. Read more here (subscription required).
Two Friday staffing announcements from the Business Software Alliance and The Telecommunications Industry Association:
• BSA has hired Washington attorney Jodie Kelley as general counsel and vice president of anti-piracy. Kelley, who served for six years as vice president and deputy general counsel at Fannie Mae, will lead the high-tech trade group's domestic and international intellectual property enforcement programs, its efforts against Internet crime, and its educational programs to promote software license compliance and respect for IP.
• The standards development organization TIA is bringing on Cheryl Blum as vice president for standards and business development. Blum will be leaving Alcatel-Lucent, where she is a senior manager. She has extensive experience with almost every aspect of telecom systems, including software development, systems engineering, network architecture and standards development.
The outgoing chief of the federal government's intelligence-information sharing efforts told a House panel Thursday that his successor should report directly to Congress and the president without interference from any agency. Thomas McNamara, who has coordinated information sharing at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence since 2006, appeared before the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing and Terrorism Risk Assessment before leaving office Friday. At the hearing, he detailed the challenges ahead and laid out a roadmap for his replacement who has not been named. Read more in CongressDaily's PM Edition (subscription required).
Lawmakers who were instrumental in creating McNamara's job as part of 2004 intelligence reform legislation lauded the progress that has been made on his watch but said more must be done. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Chairman Chairman Joseph Lieberman and ranking member Susan Collins told Tech Daily Dose that McNamara's was a Herculean task of creating a culture of sharing among previously siloed intelligence agencies. Collins urged President Obama to quickly appoint a replacement so the momentum will not be lost. Lieberman said state-run "fusion centers" must be improved and the problem of over-classification of data must be addressed.
"In an intelligence culture that for years has been plagued by turf protection, [McNamara] is a brave voice in the wilderness," added House Homeland Security Intelligence Subcommittee Chairwoman Jane Harman, D-Calif. "His efforts over the years to elevate information sharing in our nation's counterterrorism toolbox have truly made us stronger and our intelligence capabilities more robust." House Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson also issued a statement acknowledging progress made during McNamara's tenure but said he was concerned many enduring challenges are not new.
Now a half-year into the Obama administration, two White House posts viewed as critical to the high-tech and intellectual property sectors remain vacant -- and lawmakers and industry stakeholders are getting antsy, CongressDaily's TechCentral "Issue Of The Week" reports. President Obama's picks for the cybersecurity and IP coordinator jobs have all but been finalized; individuals familiar with situation said, yet no personnel announcements have been made. "A lot of people are frustrated about this because there was so much pomp and circumstance around it," said one high-tech watchdog. A White House spokesman declined to comment on either post.
In May, Obama was joined by members of Congress, Cabinet secretaries and technology executives when he announced the cyber czar position in conjunction with the release of a 60-day review of the nation's cybersecurity posture. He pledged to handpick his cyber chief, but since then, little has been said about the post. Getting the IP enforcement coordinator in place has proven difficult despite the fact that the top candidate has been known to insiders for months. Unlike the cyber czar, the IP official is a Senate-confirmed post and the White House isn't sure where to house the individual. Read the full story here (subscription required).
The American Civil Liberties Union has tapped Michael Macleod-Ball as acting director of its Washington office, which has been on the front lines of the battle against government warrantless wiretapping, Internet free speech fights and a range of other issues. The group is searching for a new legislative director because its top lobbyist Caroline Fredrickson left to become executive director of the American Constitution Society -- a center-left rival of the conservative Federalist Society. That was the ACLU's second recent high profile loss. Earlier this year, Tim Sparapani, who was the group's senior legislative counsel, became public policy director for social networking site Facebook.
"Michael's wide range of legal, civil liberties and legislative experience in both the public and private sectors makes him a well-suited candidate to lead our outstanding legislative staff during this transition period," ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero said in a Friday press release. Macleod-Ball joined the ACLU's DC office in September 2007 as chief legislative and policy counsel, where he managed a team of policy counsels and lobbyists who work with Congress and the White House. He previously served the organization for 25 years in New England and Alaska.
President Obama on Wednesday nominated Dennis Hightower, an entertainment industry veteran, to become deputy secretary at the Commerce Department. Hightower has more than 30 years of experience in global marketing, strategic planning, operations and international general management, according to the White House personnel announcement. Most recently, he served as CEO of Europe Online Networks S.A., a privately held broadband interactive entertainment company based in Luxembourg.
From 1987 to 1996, Hightower led multi-billion dollar enterprises as president of the Walt Disney Company's television and communications operation and president of consumer products for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Hightower also recently served on the boards of directors for Accenture, Domino's Pizza, Lightfleet (a start-up high-tech firm), and Brown Capital Management. He formerly served on the boards of the Gillette Company, Northwest Airlines, PanAmSat Corp., Phillip-Van Heusen Corp., TJX, and as a member of the Price Waterhouse Chairman's Advisory Council.
Additionally, Hightower taught at Harvard Business School, where he focused on leadership, building emerging markets and global general management. He is a decorated Vietnam veteran and was a member of the Defense Business Board. Hightower was an Army officer for eight years, rising to the rank of Major by age 27, according to his bio.
TechNet's search for a new president and CEO has turned up a number of qualified candidates but the high-tech group's board has apparently not yet settled on one. The bipartisan political network of Silicon Valley CEOs and senior executives enlisted professional search firm Korn/Ferry International after its former chief, Lezlee Westine, announced her departure in April. She became CEO of the Personal Care Products Council and took TechNet's Washington-based fundraiser Meredith Simpson with her.
TechNet Senior Vice President/General Counsel Jim Hawley has been serving as acting CEO and is among those interested in the top spot, sources told Tech Daily Dose. But Hawley, who lives in Sacramento, Calif., may have to be willing to move to the nation's capital if he truly wants a shot at the CEO job. Korn/Ferry's confidential eight-page description of the position clearly states that TechNet's president and CEO must be located in Washington and would make frequent trips to Silicon Valley.
According to the Korn/Ferry document, TechNet's CEO "will be the industry's advocate before all levels of government and in all public venues." "He/she must be proactive and focused on advancing the organization with a strong commitment to serving, increasing, and developing its membership." The document goes on to state that: "In conjunction with the leaders of TechNet's member companies and the board of directors, the CEO will develop and be personally engaged in implementing a strategic plan achieving specific results in Washington and around the nation."
Some exciting news so please forgive the shameless self promotion... National Journal Group, the parent company of Tech Daily Dose, will soon unveil 3121, a new feature on NationalJournal.com that will become available exclusively to Capitol Hill staffers in September. 3121, now in beta, will be the first professional networking tool designed exclusively for congressional members and staff. The site will offer an online directory of contacts, communications tools and customizable news feeds and users will be able to find and collaborate with colleagues and create personalized news filters. Hill staffers can visit 3121launch.nationaljournal.com to request to participate in the beta and read the latest updates about the project from the 3121 development team, which has collaborated with New Media Strategies, Jive and JESS3 on the project. *FYI* "3121" is the extension for the Capitol Hill switchboard.
Follow the jump for screenshots of 3121...
After leaving Microsoft in December, Jack Krumholtz is joining the Glover Park Group as a managing director of its government relations practice. Krumholtz opened the Microsoft federal government affairs office in Washington, D.C., in 1995 and acted as a one-man shop for a year working out of the company's Chevy Chase sales office. Given the distance from Capitol Hill, Krumholtz spent most of his time in his Jeep on conference calls and writing and checking emails on the side of the road, said the company at the time. See Tech Daily Dose entries here for more on Krumholtz and here for details on his replacement at Microsoft, Fred Humphries.
Elsewhere in the tech policy world, David Washington, who has been serving as the associate director of the White House Office of Public Engagement, has joined the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation as a senior fellow. At ITIF, Washington will work on building private and public partnerships. Washington has a PhD in forensic clinical psychology from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree in legal studies from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Law School. -- Winter Casey
After a 15 year public policy career in Washington, Center for National Security Studies Deputy Director Lisa Graves is leaving the Beltway for Madison, Wis., where she will head up the Center for Media and Democracy, a government and media watchdog group. Graves was on the front lines on a range of high-tech and privacy issues at CNSS and at the American Civil Liberties Union, where she served as senior counsel for legislative strategy. She testified on Capitol Hill against the Bush administration's illegal warrantless wiretapping program; collection of personal financial records and other sensitive information; and military satellite spying as well as on Patriot Act and Freedom of Information Act issues. Prior to the ACLU, Graves worked as chief nominations counsel for Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy when he was ranking member of the committee. CMD's search committee heard from more than 60 applicants and conducted numerous interviews before selecting Graves unanimously. She will replace John Stauber, who founded the nonprofit and its newsmagazine PR Watch in 1993.
More than a month after rumors started swirling, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy confirmed Tuesday that former Google Head of Global Public Policy and Government Affairs Andrew McLaughlin has begun working for the Obama administration as a deputy chief technology officer. CTO Aneesh Chopra already had one deputy, Beth Noveck, who focuses on open government issues. In June, Consumer Watchdog and the Center for Digital Democracy criticized McLaughlin's selection, claiming it would violate the intent of President Obama's ethics rules.
McLaughlin, who served on Obama's transition team as a member of the Technology, Innovation and Government Reform Policy Working Group, is not the only new addition to the OSTP team. Deborah Stine, who previously worked as a science and technology policy specialist at the Congressional Research Service has been hired as executive director of the Council of Advisors on Science and Technology Policy. She previously served as associate director of the Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy at the National Academy of Sciences and before that was director of a graduate fellowship program at the National Academies.
PCAST is co-chaired by Obama's science adviser and OSTP Director John Holdren; Eric Lander, director of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard; and Harold Varmus, president of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Microsoft's chief research and strategy officer Craig Mundie are also on the panel.
After searching for more than five months for the right person, Hewlett-Packard has settled on Larry Irving to serve as vice president of global government affairs and effectively act as the new leader of the company's public policy efforts around the world. Irving will report to Michael Holston, HP executive vice president and general counsel.
Irving has been the president and CEO of the Irving Information Group, a consulting firm focused on international telecommunications and technology companies. He served for almost seven years as assistant secretary of Commerce for communications and information and administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration under former President Bill Clinton. Irving was part of the U.S. team that negotiated the World Trade Organization agreement on basic telecommunication services.
When asked if he will be registering as a lobbyist, Irving said: "I will comply with the law."
-- Winter Casey
Telecom analyst Jessica Zufolo has left Medley Global Advisors to join the Obama administration as deputy administrator for the Agriculture Department's Rural Utilities Service, which will be run by Jonathan Adelstein, a Democratic member of the FCC for seven years. Under Obama's economic recovery plan, the service will distribute $2.5 billion in loans and grants to spur the deployment of broadband to mostly rural areas. Adelstein, a South Dakota native and former senior aide to former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., was warmly received by the Senate Agriculture Committee during his nomination hearing last Tuesday. Read more in CongressDaily here (subscription required).
Before Medley, Zufolo was legislative director for the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners where she was responsible for developing and executing national legislative strategy and policy on Capitol Hill. Earlier, she worked for the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, D-N.Y.; then-Rep. Charles Schumer of New York and Rep. Peter Defazio, D-Ore. In a Sunday e-mail, Zufolo said her first day at USDA is Monday and noted that Medley would fill her position soon to maintain its presence in the telecom sector.
Gary Fazzino, Hewlett Packard's vice president for government and public affairs since 2000, has left the computer company to become vice president of government affairs for Applied Materials, a capital equipment manufacturer for the semiconductor, display and solar industries. He will be headquartered at Applied's Santa Clara, Calif., complex. Fazzino said his new firm has "has shown strong government policy leadership for many years, especially in the areas of clean, renewable energy and solar power."
"Energy and the environment are top policy priorities for governments around the world, and Applied Materials' technology... will be an important part of the solution," Applied CEO Mike Splinter said in a press release. "Expanding relationships and engaging in dialogue with government are important to the long-term success of Applied Materials, and Gary's proven ability to help shape public policy will be invaluable as we explore new markets and new lines of business." Prior to joining HP, Fazzino was mayor of Palo Alto from 1992-93 and again from 1999-2000.
Applied spent $130,000 on internal lobbying in the first quarter of 2009, according to disclosure forms. The company also worked with Franklin Square Group, Elmwood Strategies, McAllister & Quinn, and the Washington Tax Group on a range of issues including solar manufacturing incentives, climate change legislation, and the economic stimulus bill. HP's lobbying budget for the first quarter of 2009 was quite a bit bigger. The company spent $840,000 and brought in McDermott Will & Emery, Palmetto Group, Mehlman Vogel Castagnetti.
Adm. Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, launched his Facebook page on July 2 and has already managed to more than 300 fans, NextGov.com's Bob Brewin writes. Mullen's Facebook page shows he's a wired guy, with links to podcasts, videos and Twitter feeds, although the last Tweet - on July 5 -- is a bit dated: "Off to Moscow for the Summit. Looking forward to signing the workplan for better cooperation with the Russian military."
A day after announcing she would resign, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin staked out national goals for herself in a 465-word missive on Facebook. "I am now looking ahead and how we can advance this country together with our values of less government intervention, greater energy independence, stronger national security and much-needed fiscal restraint," she wrote on the popular social networking site. "I hope you will join me. Now is the time to rebuild and help our nation achieve greatness!" She repeated in the posting what she said in her Friday speech that she does not need a formal title to "forge progress in America." She has been considered a likely candidate for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination. As former White House adviser Karl Rove and other pundits assessed her move on the Sunday talk shows, Palin bit back with a post on the micro-blogging Web site Twitter. "Critics are spinning, so hang in there as they feed false info on the right decision made as I enter last yr in office to not run again," she wrote. Read more weekend coverage from CongressDaily here.
Daniel Weitzner will be the next chief of the policy office at the Department of Commerce's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, according to government sources. Weitzner served as a technology advisor to President Obama's campaign for president. He has been involved in the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-directs MIT's Decentralized Information Group with Internet expert Tim Berners-Lee. Weitzner was a founder and deputy director for the Center for Democracy and Technology and has also been a senior staff counsel at the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
Weitzner was among the first to advocate user control technologies such as content filtering and rating to protect children and avoid government censorship of the Internet, according to his bio on W3.org, the World Wide Web Consortium. His arguments played a critical role in the 1997 Supreme Court case Reno v. ACLU, awarding strong free speech protections to the Internet. Weitzner successfully advocated for adoption of amendments to the Electronic Communications Privacy Act creating new privacy protections for online transactional information such as Web site access logs. -- Winter Casey
Regina Dugan will soon return to the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency at the Pentagon but this time she'll be in the driver's seat. Dugan, whose first tour at DARPA lasted from January 1996 until May 2000, will be the agency's 19th director and the first woman to hold the job. Her start date has not yet been announced. Prior to the appointment, she held several key positions in industry, most recently as president and CEO of RedXDefense -- a company she founded in 2005 that specializes in technologies to defend against explosive threats. She has also served in senior positions for several firms with roles ranging from global sales to research and product development.
At DARPA in the late 1990s, Dugan won an agency award for her leadership of the "Dog's Nose Program," which led to the development of a field-portable system for detecting the explosive content of land mines. She is also the recipient of the deFleury Medal, the office of the secretary of defense award for exceptional service, and the award for outstanding achievement. She has participated in wide-ranging studies for the Defense Science Board, the Army Science Board, the National Research Council and Science Foundation, and sits on the Naval Research Advisory Committee and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency Science and Technology Panel, according to a press release.
"Regina Dugan is precisely the dynamic leader DARPA needs to open new technology frontiers and transition revolutionary technologies to serve our nation's interests," said Zachary Lemnios, director of Defense Research and Engineering. "I am delighted she will be leading this agency and look forward to working closely with her." Lemnios, who was sworn in Thursday, joined the Obama administration after serving as chief technology officer of the Lincoln Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He previously served as head of DARPA's Microsystems Technology Office, which is responsible for setting the agency's strategic vision and technical plans.
Former Sen. Mike Gravel, D-Alaska, a charismatic former candidate in the 2008 presidential election whose bizarre YouTube "Rock" video became an Internet phenomenon, chatted with Tech Daily Dose at the Personal Democracy Forum's annual conference Tuesday about President Obama's high-tech and cybersecurity agenda. As expected, Gravel has a lot on his mind. Enjoy!
One day after officially assuming the top post at FCC, Chairman Julius Genachowski delivered a Tuesday speech to staff during which he stressed that the Commission's "potential as a force for good remains constant." "With each passing day, communications devices and networks become more essential to the fabric of the daily lives of all Americans," he said. "Our communications infrastructure is the foundation upon which our economy and our society rest. And it has never been more important that we unleash its potential." Genachowski, a Harvard Law School classmate of President Obama's and former chief of staff to Clinton-era FCC Chairman Reed Hundt, said the nation is at a crossroads. "We face a number of tremendous challenges: our economy, education, healthcare, and energy, to name a few. If we do our jobs right and harness the power of communications to confront these challenges, we will have chosen the right course, and we will make a real positive difference," he said.
Read the full text of his remarks after the jump.
It's official! Former Homeland Security Department National Cybersecurity Center Director Rod Beckstrom will become the new president and CEO of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, a nonprofit group that oversees the Internet address system. ICANN's board approved him for the job moments ago at a meeting in Sydney, Australia. Paul Twomey, who has held the top ICANN spot for six years, announced his departure in March. Beckstrom brings a unique background to the post. In his role at DHS, he cooperated directly with high-level officials at the Justice and Defense Departments, the National Security Council, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
Beckstrom left DHS abruptly earlier this year and his resignation letter was published by the Wall Street Journal. In it, he said it was a "bad strategy" to have the National Security Agency play a major role in cybersecurity. Prior to his stint in federal government, he founded and sold two tech companies and helped start a global CEO peace network that initiated diplomatic efforts between India and Pakistan. He also co-authored four books including The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations, which offers advice on analyzing organizations and competitive strategy.
In an exclusive interview with Tech Daily Dose, Beckstrom said his appointment symbolizes a "fresh start" for ICANN's relationship with Congress and the Obama administration. ICANN has faced scrutiny on Capitol Hill in the run up to September's expiration of a formal oversight relationship with the Commerce Department. Lawmakers worry about the group's transparency, accountability and budget processes.Read more about Beckstrom, his outlook for ICANN and the challenges he will face in CongressDaily's latest "Issue Of The Week" feature, which is published every Monday on the TechCentral page.
The Senate on Thursday confirmed two FCC commissioners and a Commerce assistant secretary. Julius Genachowski, a Democrat, will be the chairman of the FCC, replacing Republican Kevin Martin, who resigned this year. Genachowski is a Harvard Law School classmate of President Obama's and was chief counsel to Clinton-era FCC chief Reed Hundt. Republican Robert McDowell was confirmed as an FCC commissioner. Lawrence Strickling was confirmed as assistant secretary of Commerce for Communications, and will head the National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
Acting FCC Chairman Michael Copps congratulated Genachowski, saying he "brings just the right blend of talent, experience and dedication to lead the FCC toward the more active role it must play if all our citizens are to enjoy the blessings and bounties of 21st century communications." He also lauded McDowell's confirmation, saying he values his
"friendship, his collegiality, and the dedicated way he goes about his work." Senate Commerce ranking member Kay Bailey Hutchison said she was pleased "we are two steps closer toward a complete FCC panel."
Obama also nominated Meredith Attwell Baker to fill a Republican slot on the FCC on Thursday. The daughter-in-law of former Secretary of State James Baker is the former acting assistant secretary of the NTIA in the Bush administration. Obama previously nominated Mignon Clyburn, the daughter of House Majority Whip James Clyburn, to fill a Democratic FCC commissioner slot. The younger Clyburn, a member of the South Carolina Public Utilities Commission, is an expert on energy issues.
National Journal's latest issue is a bit bigger than normal. That's because it's devoted to profiles of 366 of the top officials in the Obama administration -- from high profile personalities like Rahm Emanuel, David Axelrod and Hillary Rodham Clinton to deputy secretaries, assistant secretaries, and chiefs of staff at various Cabinet agencies. Here's a sampling of tech and telecommunications dossiers in Decision Makers 2009:
• John Holdren / White House
• Aneesh Chopra / White House
• Vivek Kundra / White House
• Macon Phillips / White House
• Jesse Lee / White House
• Gary Locke / Commerce
• Larry Strickling / Commerce
• Julius Genachowski / FCC
• Michael Copps / FCC
• Robert McDowell / FCC
• Mignon Clyburn / FCC
• Jon Leibowitz / FTC
• Roger Baker / VA
• Arden Bement / NSF
• Tara O'Toole / DHS
President Obama on Thursday nominated IBM Assistant General Counsel David Kappos to become director of the Patent and Trademark Office. As reported in CongressDaily's AM Edition, the news was uniformly welcomed by lawmakers, industry leaders and members of the legal community. Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy said Kappos is "exceptionally qualified" to lead the PTO, which faces serious challenges in the recession and a spokesman for Judiciary ranking member Jeff Sessions said his boss believes Kappos' credentials and experience are impressive and looks forward to evaluating him. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke issued a statement saying Kappos "will be a strong voice for patent reform" and will be charged with making a big dent in the growing application backlog, which now exceeds 750,000.
Foley & Lardner attorney Jon Dudas, who served as PTO director in the Bush administration, said Kappos is an excellent choice. "He is deeply respected in the intellectual property community, the U.S. government and internationally," Dudas said. "Dave also has the leadership and management skills to inspire the thousands of incredibly professional colleagues he will soon lead." American Intellectual Property Law Association Executive Director Todd Dickinson, who served as head of the PTO under former President Bill Clinton, said Kappos "has a genuine appreciation for the tough issues facing intellectual property policy and administration today." His nomination offers an opportunity for a fresh start, Dickinson said.
Groups involved in the ongoing congressional battle over patent reform also hailed Obama's pick. The Coalition for Patent Fairness and Innovation Alliance, which have been at odds over pending legislation, both backed Kappos. CPF said he has the experience needed to lead the PTO "at a time when it faces significant operational challenges in an ever-evolving competitive global marketplace." The Alliance said its members "look forward to working with him in what will be a very difficult, but important effort to revitalize the PTO, which all agree is under funded and overburdened." Congress should provide PTO the funds it needs to upgrade its technology, improve the patent application process, and attract and retain professional talent, the group said.
Although the White House personnel announcement has yet to emerge, Google executive Andrew McLaughlin's alma mater is reporting his appointment as deputy chief technology officer for the Obama administration. CTO Aneesh Chopra already has one deputy, Beth Noveck, who focuses on open government issues. Harvard Law School posted the news about the Internet giant's former head of global public policy on its Web site Thursday. "As Google's first public policy executive, McLaughlin built the company's presence in Washington, helping to promote its position on topics such as online privacy, net neutrality and copyright," the memo said.
McLaughlin is an emeritus fellow of Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society, joining in 1998 as an associate director and fellow. He taught "The Law of Cyberspace" with Internet visionary Jonathan Zittrain, "Digital Democracy" with Berkman founder Charles Nesson, and led the Center's initiatives in developing countries. During that time, he was also vice president and chief policy officer at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, a nonprofit group that helps coordinate the Internet's address system. McLaughlin served on Obama's transition team as a member of the Technology, Innovation and Government Reform Policy Working Group.
Tech Daily Dose previously reported that a pair of high-tech watchdogs had urged the White House to halt the pending appointment. Consumer Watchdog's John Simpson and the Center for Digital Democracy's Jeff Chester claimed it would violate the intent of President Obama's ethics rules. Both are vocal Google critics and wrote that the company's Washington influence is not the primary reason for the objection. "We believe no special-interest connected person should assume a position of vital importance to the country's future," they said. Read more about their complaint here.
Computer security expert Rod Beckstrom, who served as director of the Homeland Security Department's National Cybersecurity Center in the Bush administration, could become the new president and CEO of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, sources close to the California-based nonprofit tell Tech Daily Dose. Paul Twomey, who has held the position for six years, announced his departure in March. Since that time the group has faced intense scrutiny on Capitol Hill in the run up to September's expiration of a formal oversight relationship between ICANN and the Commerce Department. At a hearing earlier this month, members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee called for an extension of the arrangement amid concerns about the 11-year-old organization's transparency, accountability, budget processes, and stakeholder relationships.
If approved by the ICANN board, Beckstrom would bring a unique background to the post. In his role at DHS, Beckstrom reported to the DHS Secretary and was charged with cooperating directly with high-level officials at the Justice and Defense Departments, the National Security Council, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. At age 24, Beckstrom launched his first company, CATS Software, and grew it into a global enterprise. He sold the business and later cofounded Mergent Systems, a database firm that was acquired for $200 million. The Stanford University graduate also cofounded a global CEO peace network that initiated diplomatic efforts between India and Pakistan.
Additionally, Beckstrom co-authored four books including The Starfish and the Spider: The Unstoppable Power of Leaderless Organizations, which offers advice on analyzing organizations and competitive strategy. ICANN Vice President Paul Levins would not confirm Beckstrom's selection but said a "leading candidate" had been chosen and initial contract discussions were underway. The candidate will attend a major ICANN meeting slated to begin in Sydney on Sunday. There he will meet with the board face-to-face and will be introduced to members of the ICANN community, Levins said. The board expects to be in a position to approve the new CEO when it convenes next Friday, he added. Read more about ICANN's Sydney meeting here.
This just in... President Obama has announced his intention to nominate IBM Assistant General Counsel David Kappos to become director of the Patent and Trademark Office. His bio, included in the White House announcement, is pasted after the jump. Kappos, who joined the company as a development engineer in 1983, was among several rumored top contenders for the job. Others included American Intellectual Property Law Association Executive Director Q. Todd Dickinson, who was PTO director under former President Bill Clinton, and Jim Pooley, a Silicon Valley attorney who was installed earlier this week as the World Intellectual Property Organization's deputy director general for patents. Look for more in CongressDaily's AM Edition on Friday.
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Jessica Rich, who has served since 1998 as an assistant director in the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, has been promoted to acting associate director for the division of privacy and identity protection. She previously worked in the division of financial practices. During her tenure at the agency, she has worked on a variety of matters related to consumer privacy and data security, including investigations, enforcement, rulemakings, workshops, reports, and testimony to Congress. Prior to her appointment as assistant director, Rich served as a legal advisor in the bureau and before that was an attorney in private practice in New York City.
The Center for Digital Democracy's Jeff Chester said Rich is "deeply interested" in privacy and her promotion is a sign that new Consumer Protection Bureau Director David Vladeck, who started this week, "takes privacy and online marketing issues seriously." Chester said the appointment of both officials "means this issue is awakened after a long digital Rip Van Winkle-like slumber." CDD has repeatedly urged the FTC to bolster its activity in the privacy arena. Online and mobile commerce represents a new and expanding marketplace for which the ground rules of competition and marketing are still being formulated, Chester and other watchdogs said in a recent letter to President Obama.
Former American Library Association legislative counsel Miriam Nisbet has been tapped to become director of a new office within the National Archives and Records Administration that will mediate disputes under the Freedom of Information Act. Congress created the Office of Government Information Services in 2007. Nisbet most recently served as the director of the information society division at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), where she worked on issues of global access to information and digital libraries. She also served as secretary of the Intergovernmental Council for the Information for All Programme. Nisbet previously worked at NARA from 1993 to 1999 where she first occupied the post of special assistant to the Archivist of the United States and then special counsel for information policy.
She was staff attorney at the National Association of Attorneys General in the late 1970s before joining the Department of Justice from 1978 to 1994 where her past position was deputy director of the Office of Information and Privacy. "While the federal FOIA mediator's office is still a long way from mediating its first FOIA dispute, it took a strong step forward today with the naming of its new director," said Sunshine in Government Initiative coordinator Rick Blum whose group represents nine associations that work for openness and transparency in government. "She's a long-time advocate for open government, and this is a promising start for those who want the FOIA to work better."
High-tech lobbyists Sharon Ringley and Elizabeth Frazee announced the creation of TwinLogic Strategies, a government relations firm leveraging their combined expertise in a range of business related issues. The pair, who are each mothers of twins and have had parallel careers (hence the firm name), bring extensive experience to the new venture, including work with senior members of the House, Fortune 100 corporations, and managing independent lobbying practices. Ringley served as deputy chief of staff for Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Va.; director of federal affairs for Internet auction site Amazon.com and was a vice president at the Bockorny Group in addition to running her own independent firm. Frazee was formerly legislative director and counsel for Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va.; director of government relations for the Walt Disney Company and vice president for America Online and AOL-Time Warner, as well as operating her own shop since 2003.
In other lobbying news, Randy Dove is heading the federal government affairs shop for Hewlett-Packard, according to a source speaking on background. Dove previously worked for former Sen. Charles McC. Mathias, Jr., R-Md. The technology giant has not yet announced who it will hire to serve as vice president for global government affairs and lead the company's government relations and public policy initiatives. In addition, the government affairs teams of both HP and EDS have begun operating out of the same office space on Pennsylvania Avenue. HP has been working on integrating the lobby shop of EDS with its Washington team since HP's acquisition of EDS closed in August 2008. In the meantime, HP has had some departures, including David Isaacs of HP and Bill Sweeney, the former head of EDS's global government affairs office. (Hat tip, Winter Casey).
NationalJournal.com's David Herbert writes that Silicon Valley's entrepreneurial spirit has given us personal computers, iPods and Google. What the sun-drenched tech capital hasn't produced is a political heavyweight -- a fact that California gubernatorial hopefuls Meg Whitman (R) and Steve Poizner (R) are hoping to change next year. Before Whitman, former eBay CEO, and Poizner, a former tech executive turned state insurance commissioner, the only tech whizzes to jump into statewide politics were engineer and former Rep. Ed Zschau (R), who lost his bid for Senate in 1986, and former eBay executive Steve Westly (D), who served as state controller for four years but lost his 2006 bid for governor. Whitman and Poizner are treading on unfamiliar ground, to be sure. But are they blazing a trail for more Valley crossovers or are they merely two more footnotes in the Valley's thin political history? One thing is for certain: Silicon Valley has begun to throw its immense wealth around. Read the full story here.
A pair of watchdogs on Wednesday urged the White House to halt the pending appointment of Google's top global public policy executive to the position of deputy chief technology officer under CTO Aneesh Chopra, saying it would violate the intent of President Obama's ethics rules. Although the choice of Google's Andrew McLaughlin for the position has been widely reported, it has yet to be announced. Consumer Watchdog's John Simpson and the Center for Digital Democracy's Jeff Chester, both vocal critics of the Internet giant, wrote that Google's Washington influence is not the primary reason for the objection. "We believe no special-interest connected person should assume a position of vital importance to the country's future," they wrote, noting it would be just as inappropriate for a Microsoft or Yahoo lobbyist to take the job.
"Appointing someone from a [sic] lobbying shop to this position sends the wrong message - that the well-connected can still make a quick trip to the White House through a special interest revolving door," they said in the letter. "The goal of the Obama administration to use new technology to improve how the government works requires someone whose background ensures they can make independent decisions that will benefit all Americans." The pair note that McLaughlin is "very good at what he does -- lobbying around the world for Google's interests" but that's not what the deputy CTO gig requires. "It should not go to any person whose most recent position has been advocating policy for a technology company," they said.
Before joining Google, McLaughlin worked at the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard Law School, where his studies focused on the law and regulation of Internet and telecommunications networks. He also helped to launch and manage the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, serving as vice president, chief policy officer, and chief financial officer. In the late 1990s, he served as counsel to Rep. Henry Waxman, now chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. A Google spokesman would not comment on the letter but confirmed McLaughlin is departing. Rachel Whetstone, who has led Google's communications and public affairs efforts, will take his job (Hat tip, Winter Casey).
Craig Newmark, the founder of popular online community Craigslist.org, said Tuesday he is considering whether to "dedicate a big chunk of my life" to those who are driving change in Washington and wants to spend more time practicing his own brand of public service. Was his comment during a keynote at the annual Computers Freedom & Privacy conference a hint he is considering joining President Obama's stable of tech-savvy advisers or running for Congress? Probably not (although he was involved in Obama's campaign). But the Web freedom advocate is eager to get more engaged in the policy debate in the nation's capital. As the government tries to figure out how to effectively use consumer products like micro-blogging site Twitter and photo-sharing site Flickr, Newmark wants to weigh in. "Things are changing in ways we've never seen before in human history," Newmark said, noting that agency Web managers and IT experts may feel "as if the darkness suddenly lifted."
The Internet entrepreneur said he wants to "find the people who are doing the real work" and act as their cheerleader and champion. "As a nerd and former engineer I'm used to being the person who does stuff. Now they tell me my great value is primarily being a person who talks about the good work other people do," Newmark said. He lauded the Obama administration's recently launched open government initiative and Data.gov, a site intended to "democratize data" by offering raw feeds of government information, but warned their ambitious efforts will take time. "When you have a large organization... you have a lot of people with a lot of entrenched power and lot of stakeholders whose buy-in you need," Newmark said. At the same time, the administration will have to routinely analyze the effects of its tech-related projects.
President Obama hopes he can utilize the Internet as successfully to build support for his pick for the Supreme Court as he did during his campaign for the White House. The Democratic National Committee's "Organizing For America" initiative has launched an online action center at MyBarackObama.com to generate favorable buzz around 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Sonia Sotomayor amid criticism from conservatives. On the site, citizens can add their names to a public list of supporters; write a letter to newspaper editors; look up numbers for senators; download posters and more.
Read more here.
The Obama administration is bringing out the big guns to unveil the results of its 60-day cyberspace policy review. Expected attendees at Friday morning's event in the East Room of the White House include:
Energy Secretary Steven Chu
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano
National Security Advisor General James L. Jones
Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn
Deputy Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin
National Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers
Federal Aviation Administration Acting Administrator Lynne Osmus
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chairman Jon Wellinghoff
Federal Communications Commission Acting Chairman Michael Copps
Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz
Joint Chiefs of Staff Vice Chairman James Cartwright
Federal Bureau of Investigation Director Robert Mueller
White House Office of Science and Technology Director John Holdren
Director of National Intelligence Office Lieutenant-Gen. John Kimmons
Assistant to the President for Homeland Security John Brennan
Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley
House Science Committee Chairman Bart Gordon
House Homeland Security Committee ranking member Peter King
William Pelgrin, Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center
National Governors Association Public Safety Director Heather Hogsett
The intellectual property policy parlor game of guessing who the next Patent and Trademark Office director will be has zeroed in on several names in recent months -- Q. Todd Dickinson, who already ran the agency under former President Bill Clinton; David Kappos, who is vice president and assistant general counsel for IP at IBM; and Jim Pooley, a Silicon Valley lawyer who was recently nominated to become deputy director of the World Intellectual Property Organization. But with Pooley effectively out of the mix, another name has bubbled to the surface: Doug Luftman, associate general counsel for Sunnyvale, Calif. smartphone manufacturer Palm.
Luftman has at least one cheerleader in Congress, Rep. Michael Honda, D-Calif, vice-chair of the House Appropriations Legislative Branch Subcommittee, who wrote to the White House director of presidential personnel recommending him for the job. Although the letter was not made public, a spokesman for Honda said his boss believes Luftman's key asset "is his knowledge of the patent process from idea to product." Luftman has followed the product development process from the industry viewpoint at Palm and before that as general counsel of Caspian Networks; at CIENA Corp., and at Intel. He also worked for Fenwick & West's Silicon Valley office. Honda's aide said Luftman "recognizes the disarray" of the PTO and has management experience that could help.
U.S. Appeals Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor, whom President Obama named as his nominee for the Supreme Court on Tuesday morning, has a background in intellectual property litigation -- as an associate and partner at the Manhattan law firm Pavia & Harcourt and as a judge on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. As a district court judge in 1997, Sotomayor heard a case brought by a group of freelance journalists who claimed various news outlets including the New York Times and Time Inc. violated copyright laws by reproducing their work on electronic databases and archives such as Lexis-Nexis without first obtaining their permission. Sotomayor ruled against the freelancers, arguing that the publishers were within their rights under the Copyright Act.
The appeals court reversed Sotomayor's decision, siding with the freelancers, and the Supreme Court upheld the appellate ruling 7-2. Justices John Paul Stevens and Stephen Breyer dissented, siding with Sotomayor's position. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote the majority's opinion, saying: "If there is demand for a freelance article standing alone or in a new collection, the Copyright Act allows the freelancer to benefit from that demand; after authorizing initial publication, the freelancer may also sell the article to others. It would scarcely "preserve the author's copyright in a contribution" as contemplated by Congress... if a newspaper or magazine publisher were permitted to reproduce or distribute copies of the author's contribution in isolation or within new collective works."
The top executive at Bonneville International, which owns WTOP in Washington and a number of radio stations in other markets, will chair the search committee to find the National Association of Broadcasters' new leader. Other members of the NAB's executive committee will join Bonneville's Bruce Reese on the panel. It is unknown whether NAB will employ assistance from outside the organization. They hired search firm Spencer Stewart to find former NAB chief David Rehr, who stepped down earlier this month after three years on the job. Rehr joined the NAB in December 2005 from the National Beer Wholesalers Association, where he had been CEO. While the search committee does its magic, NAB Chief Operating Officer Janet McGregor has assumed day-to-day duties. The trade group is searching for its next captain amid choppy seas. The industry faces a number of critical and thorny public policy issues, including the digital television transition (slated for June 12) and a feud with the music industry over royalty fees for AM and FM radio.
The Senate late Thursday confirmed President Obama's choice to become the nation's first chief technology officer. Aneesh Chopra sailed through the Senate Commerce Committee a day earlier. National Telecommunications and Information Administration administrator-designate Larry Strickling did not advance on the Senate floor. At his hearing, Chopra said he would help "harness the power and potential of technology and innovation to advance our nation's goals" in the 21st century. Read more about the Tuesday confirmation hearing here (subscription required).
Since his appointment in March as federal chief information officer, Vivek Kundra has had a full plate. Also the e-government administrator at the Office of Management and Budget, Kundra has taken on the formidable task of increasing the transparency of government data and oversight of information technology investments. In addition, he's faced personal scrutiny when the FBI launched an investigation into bribery charges at his former office with the District of Columbia government, where he was chief technology officer. Nextgov's Gautham Nagesh spoke with Kundra this week about the challenges of his new position and what he hopes to accomplish in this administration's era of open government.
In the interview, he talks with Nagesh about his vision for Data.gov, which a senior official recently revealed could go live by the end of the week: "We recognize the power of tapping into the ingenuity of the American people and recognize that government doesn't have a monopoly on the best ideas or always have the best idea on finding an innovative path to solving the toughest problems the country faces. By democratizing data and making it available to the public and private sector ... we can tap into that ingenuity. Data on Data.gov will be available in multiple machine-readable formats, including XML, that will allow people to slice, dice and cube data sets. [Users can] visualize information, create applications and find value at the intersection of multiple data sets."
Read edited excerpts of the Q&A here.
Larry Strickling, President Obama's pick to head the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, said his agency should develop metrics "to accurately and demonstrably" show whether the $7.2 billion in broadband funds contained in the economic stimulus package are being used appropriately and whether the program is achieving the goals established under the statute. His comments on the program were part of written responses to questions asked by Senate Commerce ranking member Kay Bailey Hutchison after his confirmation hearing Tuesday. The committee approved his nomination and that of Aneesh Chopra, Obama's choice to become the government's first chief technology officer, on Wednesday afternoon.
"There are a number of outcomes that could be used to show that unserved communities benefit from this program, including households passed with broadband service, speed of Internet service, jobs created, affordability of broadband offerings, and adoption of broadband service," Strickling wrote, noting NTIA will require grant recipients to regularly report their progress. In addition to transferring $10 million to the inspector general for oversight, NTIA has pursued transparency through public meetings and by soliciting public comment, he said. If confirmed, Strickling said he would ensure a "robust program of inspection and audits" is implemented and as the program expands, will provide information about applicants and recipients as well as quarterly reports.
Strickling also pledged to work with the committee to "find the most appropriate way to prevent copyright piracy and other illegal activities" in connection with the stimulus mandate that funded networks adhere to yet-to-be-determined "openness" requirements. "Although the Internet has, of course, fundamentally altered our lives for the better, as you know, every year billions of dollars in stolen copyrighted works are exchanged over the Internet," Hutchison warned.
During his Senate confirmation hearing Tuesday, federal chief technology officer-designate Aneesh Chopra gave a shout-out to his wife and daughters; his parents; and a woman named Linda Bruschi. He explained that shortly after President Obama announced his nomination, Bruschi -- Chopra's third grade teacher -- "friended" her former student on Facebook. "Because of her efforts, she helped me see the future and opened up a door for an exciting new world of opportunity," Chopra said in his testimony. "In the way she opened a door for me, I want to open a door for others. It's this wondrous idea of extending personal opportunity, fueled by new technologies, which especially excites me."
Tech Daily Dose reached out to Bruschi (on Facebook) to ask a few questions about what she remembers of little Aneesh Chopra. Here are some of her responses:
Q: Did Aneesh have an early interest in technology? If so, what specifically do you remember?
A: When Aneesh was in second grade, we were only beginning to hear about computers being used in elementary schools. It wasn't until a few years later that the school system provided computers for all the classrooms.
Q: What were the subjects in which he excelled and which were the subjects that challenged him most?
A: Aneesh excelled in all areas, but in particular, in math. I needed to provide him with more advanced math work to challenge him and develop higher levels of thinking. I was not surprised to learn that he was invited into the district's math gifted and talented program when he moved to grades 4 to 6.
Caroline Fredrickson, the woman who shepherded the American Civil Liberties Union through a number of prominent battles in the nation's capital ranging from the U.S. government's warrantless wiretapping program to Internet free speech challenges, is leaving to become executive director of the American Constitution Society -- a center-left rival of the conservative Federalist Society. This is the second high-profile loss for the ACLU in recent months. Tim Sparapani, who was the group's senior legislative counsel, became public policy director for social networking site Facebook.
"Caroline will provide us with the vision and energy to deepen ACS's influence on legal and policy issues and to strengthen a diverse and dynamic progressive legal network," Goodwin Liu, chair of the ACS board and associate dean and professor of law at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, said in a statement. Frederickson is replacing Lisa Brown, who joined the Obama administration as White House staff secretary. Before the ACLU, Frederickson was general counsel for NARAL-Pro Choice America, and prior to that worked for Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D.
(Hat tip, Under The Influence)
The Senate Commerce Committee on Tuesday heard from two of President Obama's key tech-related nominees: Larry Strickling, who would head the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and Aneesh Chopra, who would serve as the nation's first chief technology officer. If confirmed, Strickling said NTIA would perform its duties with "clarity, commonsense and creativity." Chopra said he would help "harness the power and potential of technology and innovation to advance our nation's goals." Read more in CongressDaily.
A trade group representing Dell, Cisco Systems, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Microsoft and other high-tech titans lauded President Obama's decision over the weekend to nominate Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman to serve as the country's next ambassador to China. Information Technology Industry Council President Dean Garfield said the Republican whose name has appeared on some lists of potential nominees for the 2012 presidential election, is a "smart choice and a good friend of the tech industry." During his tenure as governor, Utah has become a magnet for high-tech businesses and employment, Garfield said. ITI Vice President of Global Policy John Neuffer, a former colleague of Huntsman's while at the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, said he "knows the importance of trade to American competitiveness, is cool under fire, and is a seasoned China-hand, which will serve the United States well at a time when U.S. trade relations with China are a complex mix of opportunities and challenges." Huntsman served terms as deputy USTR, deputy assistant secretary of Commerce for East Asia, and U.S. ambassador to Singapore. He has held positions in the private sector, including as president of Huntsman Cancer Foundation and CEO of Huntsman Corporation. In November 2008, Huntsman was elected to a second term as governor of Utah. A bonus for his potential new gig: He speaks fluent Mandarin Chinese and has one adopted daughter from China.
TechNet's Washington-based fundraiser Meredith Simpson is leaving the association of CEOs of high-tech companies to join Lezlee Westine, who recently resigned as CEO at TechNet to take over as president and CEO of the Personal Care Products Council. TechNet is currently searching for its next leader and expects to hire additional staff in its Washington office this year, according to a source familiar with the organization. TechNet Senior Vice President Jim Hawley is serving as acting CEO. TechNet's Washington office is now down to Betsy Mullins, who serves as vice president of government and political affairs, and Nicole Dorris, who serves as director of political outreach, according to the source. A tech industry official also said that despite rumors that Information Technology Industry Council and TechNet could merge, such a union is not likely. The source added that TechNet is not financially unstable. TechNet, which was founded in 1997, is focused on attempting to shape the public policies that impact the technology industries. The association seeks to achieve it goals through political advocacy directed at both Democratic and Republican candidates and elected officials, meeting with government officials, and financial support of political candidates. -- Winter Casey
Update: A spokesman for TechNet said the group is "in strong financial position and has added a number of new members to its roster in the last few months." TechNet also had its largest fundraising cycle in the organization's history, its largest CEO fly-in ever, and celebrated a big win on economic stimulus provisions for green IT and broadband, he said.
Daniel Caprio, a former chief privacy officer and acting assistant secretary for technology policy at the Commerce Department, has joined the government affairs practice at McKenna Long & Aldridge LLP as managing director. Caprio, who has been consulting on various technology projects since serving as an unofficial adviser to Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign, will provide guidance to clients, particularly in the areas of radio frequency identification, data and information privacy, and cybersecurity. Caprio left his Bush administration post for the job of executive vice president and senior fellow at the Progress and Freedom Foundation, a free market think tank. Prior to working at Commerce, Caprio served for six years as chief of staff to FTC Commissioner Orson Swindle, where he worked as principal technology policy advisor with specific emphasis on IT security, privacy, and global electronic commerce. Caprio will join a number of notables on MLA's government affairs team including former U.S. Ambassador to Canada Gordon Giffin; former Democratic presidential candidate Gov. Howard Dean; and others.
Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, was tapped by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday, to lead the Senate Republican High Tech Task Force, a group aimed at ensuring the nation's technology firms remain at the forefront of the world economy. The news came on the heels of Virginia Republican Bob Goodlatte's appointment to lead a similar organization in the House. Hatch said in an interview with Tech Daily Dose that he will work closely with Goodlatte as both chambers examine issues critical to U.S. competitiveness. Some of Hatch's priorities include promoting private sector innovation; creating a business environment that attracts the leading tech firms; spurring investment through incentives and tax reforms; encouraging fair industry standard development processes; enhancing the nation's workforce; improving antitrust review; and eliminating barriers to trade.
"Even in the midst of the worst recession in decades, the nation's tech industry as a whole was able to add 77,000 jobs last year," Hatch said. "Given the current economic climate, it is critically important for lawmakers to enact legislation that will spur innovation, create jobs and maintain our nation's technological edge. I am confident this task force can do that and will do everything in my power to ensure that it does." He added that Utah is fast emerging as a major player in the IT industry. Inc. magazine reported there are more than 5,200 IT and life-science firms in the Beehive State that create nearly 66,000 high-paying jobs. The growth of IT firms in Utah in 2004 and 2005 outpaced the growth rates in Arizona, California, Colorado and Washington.
Joining Hatch on the GOP task force are: Jim Bunning of Kentucky; Richard Burr of North Carolina; John Cornyn of Texas; Mike Crapo of Idaho; John Ensign of Nevada; Mike Enzi of Wyoming; Judd Gregg of New Hampshire; Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas; Pat Roberts of Kansas; John Thune of South Dakota; and David Vitter of Louisiana. The group's Democratic counterpart, led by Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., last Congress, has not been officially formed this year but sources said an ad hoc group of members have held briefings on a range of issues.
President Obama's pick to run the Office of Management and Budget's administrator for the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs told the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Tuesday that Regulations.gov, the government's e-rulemaking hub, requires a major redesign. "It just isn't as accessible as it ought to be to citizens. That's where I would start," Harvard Law School professor Cass Sunstein said at his confirmation hearing. Obama's CIO Vivek Kundra told an audience recently that his team is working with OIRA and the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy to retool the Web site after a high-level American Bar Association task force slammed the site. In soliciting public comment on potential regulations, Sunstein said, "simplicity, clarity, and publicity should be watchwords." He also told the committee that OIRA is looking to hire a person whose full-time responsibility at the agency would be ensuring privacy protections. -- Carrie Dann
David Rehr, president and CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters, is stepping down after three years on the job, a source confirmed. Other news outlets are also reporting on his departure. NAB spokesman Dennis Wharton declined to comment. Rehr joined the NAB in December 2005 from the National Beer Wholesalers Association, where he had been CEO. He is departing as the industry faces a number of critical and thorny public policy issues, including the digital television transition and a battle with the music industry over royalty fees. We'll update this story as we have more information.
Update: "I have enjoyed leading America's broadcasters through this time of change and challenge," Rehr said in a press release. "Our efforts to educate America about the digital television transition have been enormously successful, and our effort to reinvigorate radio through the Radio Heard Here campaign is positioning radio broadcasters well for the future." "I am looking forward to building on these experiences and working with the broader Washington community to further advocacy efforts through marketing, communications and education," he continued. Rehr will continue in his role during a transition phase and during the interim period, NAB Chief Operating Officer Janet McGregor will work closely with Rehr and assume day-to-day duties.
Update: The MusicFirst Coalition, which has been battling with NAB over AM and FM copyright royalty legislation issued a statement saying: "While we wish Mr. Rehr well, we look forward to working with new leadership at the NAB -- one that is more responsive to the bipartisan request from Congress to create a Performance Rights Act that is fair to artists, musicians and labels, and one that is fair to other radio platforms and to radio."
High-tech attorney Jim Pooley, one of several top contenders for the job of Patent and Trademark Office director, has confirmed to Tech Daily Dose his nomination to become deputy director of the World Intellectual Property Organization. Pooley is a partner in the litigation department of the Palo Alto office of Morrison & Forrester and has practiced in Silicon Valley since 1973. He is immediate past president of the American Intellectual Property Law Association and president of the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Foley & Lardner IP attorney Hal Wegner noted in an email that when an American is sent to WIPO, the final decision rests with the State Department and that is usually based upon the recommendation of the PTO. It would go against tradition to name this spot without the input of the new PTO chief, he said. Pooley is part of a slate of WIPO nominees that are subject to election. The list of candidates should be announced soon, Wegner said. Other names in the mix for the PTO job include Q. Todd Dickinson, who already ran the agency under former President Bill Clinton, and David Kappos, who is vice president and assistant general counsel for IP at IBM.
Tim Sparapani has joined social networking Web site Facebook as its new director of public policy. Sparapani is a former senior legislative counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union and associate at Dickstein Shapiro Morin & Oshinsky. He has also served as a legal intern for the Senate Judiciary Constitution Subcommittee, where he assisted Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and volunteered for the ill-fated presidential campaigns of Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., and former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C. Sparapani has degrees from the University of Michigan Law School and Georgetown University. Meanwhile, Facebook Chief Privacy Officer Chris Kelly is reportedly considering a run for California attorney general. Kelly, a Democrat, touted his work across the country to make the Internet safer for youth. -- Winter Casey
From CongressDaily's AM Edition...
President Obama announced Wednesday he is nominating Mignon Clyburn, a state regulator in South Carolina and daughter of House Majority Whip James Clyburn for a Democratic seat on the five-member FCC. The younger Clyburn, whose nomination has been anticipated for weeks, has been a member of the South Carolina Public Service Commission since 1998 and its chairwoman from 2002-2004. The PSC "regulates South Carolina's investor owned public utilities, including providers of telecommunications services," according to a White House statement. She would replace Jonathan Adelstein, who was nominated to head the Rural Utilities Service, an Agriculture Department division that issues loans and grants for telecom, energy and water treatment projects.
Former Homeland Security Department chief privacy officer Hugo Teufel has joined
PricewaterhouseCoopers as a director in the consulting firm's U.S. advisory practice. Teufel will focus on helping Fortune 500 organizations with issues involving the privacy and security of data, cyber crime and corruption and will be based in PwC's McLean, Va. office. While serving as Homeland Security's privacy czar, Teufel testified regularly before various House and Senate committees and reported annually to Congress on the activities of the department that affect privacy. He was also a principal of the High Level Contact Group, a joint United States-European Union effort on transatlantic exchanges of data. Before assuming that role Teufel served as associate general counsel for general law within the DHS Office of General Counsel. Before that, he served as associate solicitor for general law at the Interior Department. "We are extremely pleased to have Hugo Teufel join our team," PwC's Erik Skramstad said in a press release. "His in-depth experience with government and privacy policies, along with his extensive knowledge of privacy issues and compliance -- as well as identity theft and data loss prevention -- will enhance the value and fact-based counsel we provide to our clients on a daily basis."
The White House on Monday announced the full membership of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, an advisory group of the nation's leading scientists and engineers who will advise President Obama and formulate policies pertaining to science, technology, and innovation. PCAST will be co-chaired by Obama's science adviser John Holdren; Eric Lander, director of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard; and Harold Varmus, president of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Microsoft's chief research and strategy officer Craig Mundie will serve on the panel.
Other members include:
• Rosina Bierbaum, an expert in climate-change science and ecology and dean of the School of Natural Resources and Environment at the University of Michigan.
• Christine Cassel, president of the American Board of Internal Medicine and an expert in geriatric medicine and quality of care.
• Christopher Chyba, an astrophysical sciences professor at Princeton University who has focused on solar system exploration and nuclear and biological weapons policy.
• S. James Gates Jr., director of the Center for String and Particle Theory at the University of Maryland, College Park.
• Shirley Ann Jackson, president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and former chair of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
• Richard Levin, president of Yale University and an expert in industrial organization, the patent system, and U.S. competitiveness.
From Gautham Nagesh at Nextgov.com...
Following reports that surfaced last week, a White House spokesman has confirmed to Nextgov that Google executive Sonal Shah will be joining the Obama administration as director of the Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation. Formerly the head of Google's philanthropic arm, Shah is slated to lead the office, which is expected to work with non-profits and community organizations to encourage "social entrepreneurship." The administration has thus far avoided releasing any details about the mission or structure of the office. Shah also served as a member of Obama's transition team, helping to develop technology policy.
The news of Shah's appointment has been greeted favorably in some circles, particularly among the philanthropic community. However, her involvement with the White House has been controversial due to her ties to the right-wing Vishwa Hindu Parishad, which is accused of using charitable works in India as a cover for inciting communal hatred. The VHP has been condemned by the State Department and the nonprofit Human Rights Watch for its role in the 2002 mob violence in Gujurat, which resulted in the deaths of 1,000 people, most of whom were Muslims.
The Entertainment Software Association's head of government relations, Jennifer Manner, is out the door after just a month. ESA announced on Feb. 18, 2009, that Manner would be the group's new senior vice president for government affairs and would head the association's federal and state government relations team. Manner, a long-time Democrat, didn't appear to have extensive Capitol Hill or administration experience. Her background included stints as a vice president of regulatory affairs at Skyterra Communications, chair of the Satellite Industry Association, and senior counsel to former FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy. She has also worked for Worldcom, Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, and taught as an adjust professor of law. ESA is not advertising any new job openings on its Web site. An association spokesman confirmed that Manner had departed but gave no further information.
In 2007, ESA brought on former Motion Picture Association of America executive Rich Taylor, and in 2008, it wooed Recording Industry Association of America lawyer Kenneth Doroshow. Both are also Democrats. The group's executive director is Michael Gallagher, a former assistant secretary of Commerce under President George W. Bush. A recent CongressDaily story (subscription required) reported that ESA spent $980,000 per quarter in 2008 on lobbying-related activities. Efforts focused on a range of issues from media violence and parental control technologies to industry ratings and videogame sale regulation. Lobbyists also spent time advocating for increased intellectual property protection. -- Winter Casey
In the next few months it is expected that Philip Verveer will become the State Department's next U.S. Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy, according to sources familiar with the matter. Verveer will be filling the shoes of David Gross, who held the title of coordinator since 2001. The position also comes with the title of "ambassador." Sources say the White House is currently doing a background check of Verveer and his nomination will also be subject to approval by the Senate in addition to the administration. Verveer is currently counsel at the firm Jenner & Block's litigation department [bio]. He is also a member of the firm's communications practice with a focus on regulatory and antitrust issues.
Verveer has nearly three decades advising clients on communication regulatory issues before Congress, the FCC, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, Office of U.S. Trade Representative, Federal Trade Commission, the State Department, and the Committee on Foreign Investment. Verveer, who served in the military, also worked as a partner in the Washington office of Willkie Farr & Gallagher where he founded the firm's communications practice. He has also served as a trial attorney in the Justice Department's antitrust division, a supervisory attorney in the FTC's Bureau of Competition, and as the chief of the cable bureau at the FCC. He earned his law degree from the University of Chicago Law School in 1969 and is married to Melanne Verveer, who was Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's chief of staff when she was first lady. President Obama has tapped her to be his ambassador at large for global women's issues. -- Winter Casey
NextGov.com's Aliya Sternstein reports...
Aneesh Chopra, the nation's first-ever chief technology officer, would serve as both "assistant to the president" and "associate director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy" if confirmed by the Senate, White House officials said on Monday. As assistant to President Obama, he would have direct access to the president, said Rick Weiss, senior science and technology policy analyst at OSTP. Within OSTP, he also would report to OSTP Director John Holdren.
The CTO job was initially touted as a White House-level position, but the technology industry feared the post had been downgraded after months went by without an appointment. When the administration announced the CTO would work at OSTP, open government advocates and industry expressed even more doubts about the job's heft. But with the president's ear, Chopra, the current technology secretary for the state of Virginia, will automatically carry the backing of the White House when conferring with agency officials.
The CTO slot entails thinking through uses of advanced technologies that can improve the economy and quality of life, Weiss said. Examples include examining how technology can foster private sector innovation, reduce health care costs and transform teaching. White House officials described the CTO position and the role of Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra as complementary. Kundra is more focused on intergovernmental uses of technologies to improve federal operations and public outreach. The OSTP appointment requires confirmation by the full Senate, but the assistant to the president appointment takes effect immediately, officials said.
Meanwhile, tech observers said they were pleased with Obama's pick and consider Chopra's nomination as a signal that the administration is serious about updating the nation's technology infrastructure. Former Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., said Chopra "is not a partisan individual" and, as such, will have the power to shape a far-reaching technology strategy. Read the full post here.
Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., will join Reps. Rick Boucher, D-Va.; Bob Goodlatte, R-Va.; and Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., as the newest co-chair of the Congressional Internet Caucus. Thune's ascension to the leadership of one of the most active and prestigious caucuses on Capitol Hill reinforces the bipartisanship that has been the hallmark of the group during more than a dozen years since its inception, a press release stated. Thune has shown leadership on the Senate Commerce Committee and in the past has sponsored legislation to promote e-government, health information technology and youth online safety. Thune will make his first speech as a caucus co-chair at the inaugural State of the Mobile Net Conference on Thursday. Other highlights of the summit include remarks by Goodlatte and Internet expert Susan Crawford, who serves on President Obama's National Economic Council. For a full agenda, click here.
President Obama on Saturday tapped Virginia Secretary of Technology Aneesh Chopra to serve as the nation's first chief technology officer, making good on a campaign promise to create the post that enthused Silicon Valley and high-tech policy watchers in Washington. Chopra, who was widely rumored to be a top contender, "will promote technological innovation to help achieve our most urgent priorities -- from creating jobs and reducing health care costs to keeping our nation secure," Obama said in his weekly radio address. Chopra will work closely with Obama's chief information officer, Vivek Kundra, who is responsible for setting technology policy across the government, and using technology to improve security, ensure transparency, and lower costs. Kundra was appointed CIO and administrator for e-government at OMB last month.
The pair worked together before when Kundra served as Virginia's assistant secretary of commerce and technology. Before joining Gov. Tim Kaine's cabinet, Chopra was a managing director at the Advisory Board Company, a publicly-traded healthcare think tank. Obama also named Jeffrey Zients to serve as deputy director for management at OMB and the federal government's first chief performance officer. High-tech leaders praised Chopra's appointment. Jim Hawley, acting CEO of TechNet, said Chopra's track record in Virginia will serve as a model for his CTO work. Most recently, he was responsible for the creation of Virginia-specific free educational content offered digitally through Apple's popular iTunes Store and a statewide effort to encourage software developers to produce innovative mathematics applications that will engage middle school students.
Georgetown University law professor David Vladeck has been named director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, the agency announced Tuesday. Vladeck has taught federal courts, government processes, civil procedure, and First Amendment litigation and co-directed Georgetown Law Center's Institute for Public Representation, a clinical law program for civil rights, civil liberties, First Amendment, open government, and regulatory litigation. He previously spent almost 30 years with Public Citizen Litigation Group, including 10 years as director. In that role, he has argued a number of First Amendment and civil rights cases before the Supreme Court, and more than 60 cases before the federal courts of appeal and state courts of last resort, the FTC said.
The announcement came a month after a handful of watchdog groups asked FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz to appoint a new consumer protection chief post haste. They wanted someone who had "a track record as a genuine champion of consumer rights" and someone whose experience reflects not simply a broad familiarity with industry procedures, but a deep commitment to proactively protecting the public from all manner of unfair, deceptive, and fraudulent practices. Lydia Parnes, who had the job for four years, left the agency recently to join law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati. Her deputy, Eileen Harrington, took over as acting director. Center for Digital Democracy's Jeff Chester called Vladeck's appointment "great news for the public interest" and those interested in privacy, online advertising, and marketing regulation.
Other new senior FTC appointments include:
• Richard Feinstein, who rejoined the agency as director of the Bureau of Competition, after serving as a partner at Boies, Schiller & Flexner.
• Former University of California-Berkeley professor Joseph Farrell, who was named director of the Bureau of Economics.
• Susan DeSanti, who will be director of policy planning, after focusing on antitrust and litigation at Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal.
• Jeanne Bumpus, who was re-appointed as director of the Office of Congressional Relations after serving in that position since June 2006.
• Joni Lupovitz, who will serve as chief of staff to Leibowitz.
NationalJournal.com's Amy Harder recently sat down with Joe Rospars, President Obama's new media campaign director. Here's a snippet...
Long after dozens of Obama For America campaign diehards had gone home, Joe Rospars and Sam Graham-Felsen were still staked out on the 11th floor of a nondescript Chicago office building one night in March 2007. As usual, they were working long hours, blogging, tracking supporters and otherwise keeping Barack Obama's new media operation alive. But that night they were also waiting for someone special to arrive -- the campaign's 75,000th donor, a milestone that, at the time, seemed grand.
Rospars, then 25, had recently come on as the campaign's new media director, overseeing a team of fewer than a dozen Web specialists. From the start he was committed to recognizing donors, not money, recalls Graham-Felsen, who ran the campaign's blog. So when the donation came in, Graham-Felsen remembers Rospars saying, "Let's give that guy a call." The donor's story was spotlighted on the blog and e-mailed to thousands of supporters. The blog post was signed by Graham-Felsen, and the e-mail came from campaign director David Plouffe. Not from Rospars, even though the idea was his. That's how Rospars wanted it.
A few fun facts about Rospars: He spends a lot of time on Facebook; follows Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., and Shaquille O'Neal on Twitter; and has a MacBook Pro.
Read the full story here.
TechNet CEO Lezlee Westine is leaving the high-tech group to head up the Personal Care Products Council, according to a number of industry sources. Before joining TechNet in 2005, Westine was director of the White House Office of Public Liaison under President George W. Bush. She will be replacing Pamela Bailey, who left the Council to lead the Grocery Manufacturers Association last year. The Personal Care Products Council position is one the top paying jobs in Washington. Bailey received total compensation of $1.5 million, according to National Journal's 2008 salary survey.
Jim Hawley, general counsel at TechNet will be acting CEO of the organization until a replacement is found. Though there has been speculation that Westine's departure may result in the group merging with other high tech associations, a person familiar with the organization said the executive board isn't interested in a merger and will be looking for a new leader. TechNet's founding members include Cisco Systems CEO John Chambers, Silicon Valley venture capitalists John Doerr and Floyd Kvamme and former Netscape CEO James Barksdale. --Bara Vaida
Tech-savvy Republican strategist David All has grown his boutique Web 2.0 agency by two. On Monday he announced the hiring of Ethan Eilon and Heath Clayton. Eilon was formerly executive director of the College Republican National Committee and joins the David All Group (DAG) as manager of political and grassroots advocacy. Eilon has overseen the grassroots organization and online activism of over 250,000 students on 1,800 college campuses. In Colorado, Eilon lead the 72 hour get-out-the-vote program for the former President George W. Bush's 2004 reelection effort and worked on numerous congressional and state legislative campaigns.
Clayton will serve as executive assistant to the president to help ensure that the leadership of the firm is best utilized to produce results for clients and focus on business development, according to a press release. He joins DAG having previously worked for Bush at the White House; first in the Office of Strategic Initiatives and then in the Office of Presidential Correspondence. A native of Texas, Clayton most recently worked for his hometown district congressman, Rep. Louie Gohmert. All founded his firm in 2007 and works with a range of clients from blue chip companies and conservative non-profits to Republican political organizations and candidates.
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration is pulling together the membership of its Online Safety and Technology Working Group, which was created under the Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act. The 30-member working group will report on industry initiatives to promote online safety and is charged with issuing a report to the Commerce Department within a year of its first meeting. While NTIA has not published a full list of participants, the Center for Democracy and Technology's John Morris and the Progress and Freedom Foundation's Adam Thierer have both been recruited, according to separate announcements from the organizations on Monday.
The group will consist of representatives of relevant sectors of the business community, public interest groups, and other appropriate groups and federal agencies, according to a November Federal Register notice. Appointments will be for a single 15 month term. Specifically, the OSTWG will review and evaluate:
• The status of industry efforts to promote online safety through educational efforts, parental control technology, blocking and filtering software, age-appropriate labels for
content or other technologies or initiatives designed to promote a safe online environment.
• The status of industry efforts to promote online safety among providers of electronic communications services and remote computing services by reporting apparent child pornography, including any obstacles to such reporting.
Internet law expert Susan Crawford has joined President Barack Obama's lineup of tech policy experts at the White House, according to several sources. She will likely hold the title of special assistant to the president for science, technology, and innovation policy, they said. Crawford, who was most recently a visiting professor at the University of Michigan and at Yale Law School, was tapped by Obama's transition team in November to co-chair its FCC review process with University of Pennsylvania professor Kevin Werbach. Her official administration appointment has not been formally announced. Crawford may be best known for her work with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the California-based nonprofit group that manages the Internet address system. She served on ICANN's board for three years beginning in December 2005. She also founded OneWebDay, a global Earth Day for the Internet that takes place every Sept. 22. Crawford, a Yale graduate, clerked for U.S. District Judge Raymond Dearie before joining Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering where she worked until the end of 2002.
Surf on over to CongressDaily's TechCentral for a new "Issue of the Week." Here's a taste:
Julius Genachowski, the architect of President Barack Obama's technology policy and his pick to run the FCC, quietly made the rounds visiting Senate Commerce Committee members last week, an indication that his formal nomination is near, according to government sources. These courtesy calls will help shape the questioning at his confirmation hearing and provide the public with a glimpse into the mindset of the man who's on track to become the first permanent Democratic agency chief in eight years.
For now, Genachowski's agenda remains shrouded in mystery because he's not granting interviews. But there is one thing that can be said with certainty about his widely anticipated arrival at the FCC in the coming weeks or months: the inboxes on his desk and computer will be overflowing. The two Democrats serving at the commission now -- Acting Chairman Michael Copps and Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein -- are laying the ground work for Genachowski's agenda, and if early indications are any sign, it's ambitious. Policy proposals that remained dormant during the long stretch of Republican control are hastily being dusted off, while regulatory matters that have faced perpetual gridlock could receive fresh attention.
"The Democrats are going to push to see what they can get traction on," said David Kaut, a telecom analyst at the investment firm Stifel Nicolaus, which expects newer players, such as eBay, Google and Yahoo to carry more weight at the agency, with incumbents AT&T, Qwest and Verizon receiving tougher scrutiny. The latter could feel the sting when the commission reviews their requests for relief from existing regulations and discounted rates they're required to charge competitors, though pending litigation in these areas also could guide the agency's hand. Read the full story here (subscription required).
President Barack Obama has appointed economist Carl Shapiro to become chief economist for the Justice Department's antitrust division, according to news reports. Shapiro, who served at the agency as a deputy assistant attorney general in the Clinton administration, is the author of "Information Rules" (with Hal Varian) and was an expert witness in the 1999 Microsoft antitrust case while a professor at the University of California in Berkeley. Shapiro has published extensively in the areas of industrial organization, competition policy, patents, the economics of innovation, and competitive strategy with his recent academic research focusing on antitrust economics, intellectual property, patent policy, product standards and compatibility, and the economics of networks and interconnection, according to his Berkeley bio.
"Shapiro is a leading authority on the economics of competition in the information economy. This is a top-flight appointment by the Obama administration and this expertise is just what the country needs now as it looks for ways to turn the economy around," Computer and Communications Industry Association President Ed Black said. He noted that Shapiro understands the impact of different types of corporate behavior on competition and what that means for creating a business climate where innovative start-up businesses can thrive. "Innovation can boost the economy, but a lack of antitrust oversight and badly needed intellectual property reforms can hold the information technology sector back," Black said in a statement.
President Barack Obama on Wednesday nominated Richard Verma for the post of assistant secretary for legislative affairs at the State Department. Verma has a lengthy lobbying pedigree at the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson, which he rejoined in 2007 after serving for more than five years as a senior policy adviser to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., according to the firm. He originally joined Steptoe in 1998 as a member of the firm's international and technology practices. While there, registered to lobby on behalf of a variety of clients including: the U.S.-India Business Council, EchoStar Corporation, Dish Network, and Liberty Media Corporation.
The Steptoe profile on Verma, an Indian-American, holds that: "He advises on legislative and political strategy and helps companies successfully navigate crisis situations including handling Congressional investigations to designing effective public affairs and messaging campaigns." According to the White House, last year Verma was appointed to serve on the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism. Verma, a former Air Force officer, once also served as country director for the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs. -- Winter Casey
High-tech trade association COMPTEL announced Wednesday that its president, Matt Salmon, has resigned and will join Policy Impact, whose clients include General Motors, Prudential and T-Mobile. COMPTEL CEO Jerry James will continue to provide leadership over the group's public policy initiatives and will assume the day-to-day responsibilities. James, a former president of Grande Communications, and Salmon, a former Republican congressman from Arizona, both joined COMPTEL in 2007. Salmon also notably lost a 2002 gubernatorial race against Janet Napolitano, who now serves as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. "It has been a pleasure working with Matt over the past year," James said in a press release. "We appreciate his hard work and dedication and we wish him all the best in his future endeavors." James affirmed that the nearly 30-year-old association remains strong and will continue advocating for its members before Congress, the FCC and the courts.
Former Office of the U.S. Trade Representative spokesman Sean Spicer has launched a boutique public affairs firm with his former deputy, Gretchen Hamel, and digital media strategist Nathan Imperiale. The trio's new venture -- Endeavour Global Strategies -- will combine their Capitol Hill, administration and media experience with the latest new media and social networking tactics to offer a full service public relations operation, according to Monday e-mails from Spicer and Hamel. The business also capitalizes on the 440,000-plus miles of international travel that Spicer logged during his USTR days. The firm's tagline is: "Global Focus. Global Reach. Global Solutions."
Spicer left USTR at the end of the Bush administration after serving as the office's point person for creating and implementing the domestic and international media strategy on trade issues. Earlier, he did communications work for the House Republican Conference, the House Budget Committee, and the National Republican Congressional Committee. Before joining USTR, Hamel spent four years on Capitol Hill working for the House Republican Conference as well as former Rep. J.C. Watts, R-Okla., and Rep. John Carter, R-Texas. Imperiale previously did Internet strategy at the White House and launched the House Republican Conference's new media department.
Two veterans of the Clinton White House have taken top positions at the Office of Science and Technology Policy, which "serves as a source of scientific and technological analysis and judgment" for the president, according to The Wonk Room blog.
∙ Thomas Kalil, who was responsible for technology policy at the National Economic Council in the Clinton administration, has been named associate director for policy. He previously ran the Big Ideas @ Berkeley program at the University of California-Berkeley and was a member of California's Blue Ribbon Nanotechnology Task Force.
∙ Jim Kohlenberger, who served as Vice President Al Gore's senior policy adviser, has been named OSTP chief of staff. As one of Gore's key technology advisers, Kohlenberger worked to help pass the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and helped shape the administration's approach to the Internet. Before joining OSTP, Kohlenberger was executive director of the Voice on the Net (VON) Coalition.
The former director of the e-campaign division of the Republican National Committee is resigning but not without getting in his two cents worth. Cyrus Krohn wrote Thursday that the Republicans must attract more computer programmers to build platforms and applications in order to gain political power once again.
"Maybe we should start providing computer science scholarships in exchange for a commitment to serve our party," asked Krohn. "Yes, we have generational and geographical hurdles stunting our digital spurt. The former will be solved actuarially and the latter the Democrats will solve for us by upgrading the grid," he wrote.
Krohn said that he is relocating to Seattle with his family and plans to work on building new online applications for the best presidential candidate to use in 2012. Prior to joining the RNC, he was director of content production for Yahoo and served as publisher of Slate.com. -- Winter Casey
CongressDaily's AM Edition on Wednesday reports (subscription required)...
The White House is quietly assembling a list of two -- and potentially three -- more candidates for the FCC now that President Barack Obama announced Tuesday that he wants his chief technology adviser and close confidante Julius Genachowski as chairman. Mignon Clyburn, a state regulator and daughter of House Majority Whip James Clyburn, is a leading contender for Democratic commissioner. The younger Clyburn, who has served on the Public Service Commission of South Carolina for more than a decade, declined to comment.
She would replace Jonathan Adelstein, who is under serious consideration to run the Rural Utilities Service, an Agriculture Department division that issues loans and grants for telecom, energy and water treatment projects. The RUS is set to receive $2.5 billion in loans from the economic stimulus package to promote broadband deployment. Adelstein, whose term expired in June but can remain through 2009 pending renomination, would exit when a successor is confirmed. Sources said the administration doesn't plan to renew his term. Read the full story here.
The Internet's key oversight agency is saying goodbye to its president and CEO after six years at the helm. Paul Twomey broke the news to attendees at the opening of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers' 34th international public meeting in Mexico City this week. Twomey, who was tapped for the top spot after serving four years as chairman of ICANN's Governmental Advisory Committee, said he plans to leave at the end of the year and will "move on to another leadership position in the private or international sectors." Before joining ICANN, he founded Argo P@cific, a firm that helped companies build their Internet presence.
Upon learning of Twomey's decision to step down, some of the most significant leaders in the Internet community praised his work. "I can think of no other person who has had more influence on the course of ICANN's evolution than Paul," said Vint Cerf, Google's chief Internet evangelist, who served for eight years as ICANN chairman. "We owe him a great debt for long and faithful service and I owe him personal thanks for his counsel during my time on the board. The Board will be challenged to find a worthy and capable successor." Internet Society CEO Lynn St Amour added that ICANN has become a stronger organization during Twomey's tenure.
ICANN Chairman Peter Dengate Thrush said he was happy to have Twomey on board until the end of 2009 given the monumental tasks the body has ahead of it this year. In September, the Commerce Department's formal ICANN oversight role expires and the agency is moving forward with a controversial expansion of the way Web domains are assigned. Big brand owners fear that expanding these top-level domains will force them to spend big bucks to protect their identities from fraud and infringement.
Christopher Caine, the head of IBM's worldwide programs based in Washington, D.C, is stepping down, National Journal has confirmed. Caine, vice president for governmental programs at IBM, has led the company's offices and teams in 35 countries for the past 13 years. He has worked for IBM for 25 years but will be retiring at the end of March to start his own company, Mercator XXI. The firm will focus on navigating the global economy.
In other lobbying news, former Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology Robert Cresanti will soon be heading up the Washington office of SAP America, a business software company. Cresanti most recently worked for Ocean Tomo, a bank specializing in intellectual property. While at Commerce, Cresanti served as the head of the Technology Administration, where he oversaw policy analysis staff and worked closely with the National Institute of Standards and Technology and National Technical Information Service.
At SAP, he will be filling the old position of Mary Arnold. Cresanti may have been drawn to the German-based company in part because he was a military brat who grew up in Germany with a German mother and an American father. -- Winter Casey
Update: Arnold has been named vice president of business development and is no longer lobbying for the first time in years. She has been reporting to Rick Knowles, senior vice president of operations for SAP America, since 2008. Prior to lobbying for SAP, Arnold was a lobbyist for AT&T.
Kei Koizumi has been appointed assistant director for federal research and development at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, where he will be working on federal R&D budget issues and tracking funding. Koizumi served on the Obama transition team as part of the Technology, Innovation & Government Reform Policy Working Group. He said the group talked a lot about science funding in the stimulus bill and brainstormed ways to implement the Obama campaign agenda within the first 100 days of office. Koizumi last served as the longtime director of the R&D budget and policy program at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, an international nonprofit organization. While at AAAS, Koizumi was the principal budget analyst, editor, and writer for annual reports on federal R&D and for updated analysis on federal R&D on the association's Web site. Koizumi, who considers himself a Democrat, said he is "happy to be entering public service after 14 years in the nonprofit sector." -- Winter Casey
President Barack Obama formally announced several White House staffers on Monday who have a role in the high-tech world. They include:
Macon Phillips has been named director of new media, a position he held on the presidential transition team. Phillips developed Change.gov and oversaw the transition's overall online communications. Prior to that, he served as deputy director of new media for the Obama campaign where he managed daily online operations. Before joining the campaign, he led Blue State Digital's strategy practice.
Cammie Croft has been named deputy new media director. Croft comes to the White House from the Obama transition project, where she served in the same capacity. Prior to that, she was new media rapid response manager for the Obama campaign where she oversaw efforts like FighttheSmears.com and UndertheRadar.com. Previously, Croft built the tracking and media monitoring program at Progressive Accountability, a campaign that provided video of Republican presidential candidates.
Jesse Lee has been named online programs director after having worked in the new media department for the transition team. Previously, Lee worked on online communications for the Democratic National Committee during election season. Prior to that, he was senior new media advisor to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Katie Stanton has been named director of citizen participation after having served at Google where she was a principal in the new business development team. While there, she was responsible for OpenSocial, Google Moderator, and various election-related initiatives. Also at Google, Stanton managed Google Finance, Google News, and Blog Search.
From National Journal magazine:
Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Fla., has hired blogger Matt Stoller to be his senior policy adviser in Washington. He plans to focus on the lawmaker's financial services portfolio, including housing foreclosure issues. Stoller, 31, has been active in liberal Internet circles for five years, according to his Web site, MattStoller.com. He is a big fan of populist politics, or as he describes it: "Embracing the people and the public and allowing them to participate in self-governance." Stoller blogged for Jon Corzine's New Jersey gubernatorial campaign in 2005. He also did blog outreach for the Democratic National Convention in 2004 -- a first.
Stoller sees a big appetite for change. There is a "huge populist spirit," he says "and someone is going to figure out how to channel that into governance." While in college, Stoller spent one summer cleaning toilets and another working for an ad firm in Japan. He also put in a couple of years at a small software company in Boston. Stoller, who grew up in Miami, enjoys reading -- he is currently turning the pages of Come Home, America by William Greider -- and playing basketball. -- Winter Casey
The greatest challenges for U.S. telecommunications and high-tech companies continue to be difficulties in dealing with governmental restrictions on doing business, according to top U.S. telecom official David Gross. The former U.S. Coordinator for International Communications and Information Policy is joining the communications practice of Wiley Rein LLP in March. At the law firm, Gross will provide counseling on global telecommunications issues and assist U.S. and foreign entities looking for international business opportunities.
"U.S. high tech products and services are still as good as any in the world, but some governments -- especially in Africa, Asia and the Middle East -- need to be convinced to let them compete in their markets. These problems include spectrum licensing issues for wireless carriers, the provision of competitive, international telecommunications services, and attempts to restrict Internet-based services, including the free flow of information," Gross said. "Although a lot of great work has been done on these issues during the past few years, much still needs to be accomplished if the remaining billions of potential users and customers will be allowed to benefit from these transformational goods and services. I want to help make these potential benefits a reality by helping companies and other organizations with their market-opening efforts," the former ambassador added.
Richard Beaird is currently serving in Gross's place at the State Department in an acting capacity. Gross held the title of coordinator since 2001 when he was nominated by former President George W. Bush. According to the State Department's Web site, Gross led "more U.S. delegations to major international telecommunication conferences than anyone in modern history." As coordinator, Gross was responsible for the formulation and advocacy of international communications policy for the United States. He had previously been a partner at Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan. Before serving as Gross's deputy, Beaird was an associate administrator at National Telecommunications and Information Administration. -- Winter Casey
Former Patent and Trademark Office Director Jon Dudas has joined the law firm Foley & Lardner as a partner in the Washington, D.C. office, working with the intellectual property and public affairs practices. Dudas was nominated by President Bush in March 2004 and confirmed by the Senate several months later after having served for two years as deputy director. During his tenure at PTO, Dudas managed the day-to-day business of the $2 billion agency and its 9,000-plus employees and was vocal about legislative proposals aimed at overhauling the U.S. patent system.
In a Monday press release, Dudas said Foley was "a natural next step" after having served at PTO because the firm's IP practice earns high marks for litigation and prosecution. In his role as the nation's top patent official, Dudas spearheaded a number of patent cooperation and development missions with the European Union, China, Japan, Korea and other countries and made progress toward "patent work-sharing," which could enhance efficiencies in patent examination at the PTO and achieve better U.S. patent protection abroad. Earlier in his career, Dudas served as counsel to the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property and was staff director for the House Judiciary Committee.
"Jon brings a unique mix of talent and experience leveraging both his distinguished tenure within the federal government and his experience as a litigator established prior to his government service," Foley IP chief Sharon Barner said. "Foley's global IP practice and its increasing global patent litigation will benefit from Jon's integration with our multinational patent enforcement teams."
Greg Garcia, the Homeland Security Department's first assistant secretary for cyber security and communications -- who left his post in December after more than two years -- announced his next move on Thursday. In an e-mail to friends and colleagues, he wrote: "I have known that I want to continue contributing to the mission of cyber security and national security/emergency communications. But rather than commit myself to this mission through just one organization, I have chosen to contribute independently."
"After taking some time off through the holidays, I have formed my own advisory firm, cleverly named Garcia Strategies. This approach I believe will broaden my perspectives, and diversify my partnerships and tools for making progress against a complex challenge," Garcia wrote. "I have also tailored a Web site of rather modest accoutrements, and will try to maintain a blog, which might on occasion have the intended effect to entertain and inform." Find out more here.
Despite rumors swirling in the blogosphere about Patent and Trademark Office Director Jon Dudas leaving the agency before the end of the Bush administration, a spokeswoman for his office says he is staying put until Jan. 20, the day that President-elect Barack Obama takes the reigns. The PTO is, however, having a reception next week where employees will have an opportunity to say goodbye to Dudas.
A notice that went out in the PTO's employee newsletter read:
"Director Dudas will be leaving the USPTO in mid-January. The Office of the Under Secretary and Director is hosting a farewell event from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, January 12, 2009, in the South Madison Auditorium, on the concourse level of the Madison building. It is an opportunity for Director Dudas to thank you for making his time at the USPTO so rewarding. If you would like to say farewell to Director Dudas in person, please feel free to stop by the auditorium on Monday afternoon."
Former eBay chief executive Meg Whitman is preparing to run for California governor in 2010, the Associated Press reported Monday. The Silicon Valley leader who served as an adviser to the 2008 presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., stepped down from the boards of eBay, Procter & Gamble Co. and DreamWorks Animation SKG as of Dec. 31, her spokesman confirmed. He said it was for "personal reasons and time commitments" but would not elaborate.
A person who is knowledgeable about Whitman's political aspirations told the AP that the 52-year-old wants to run for governor and her resignations were "a strong indication" that she wants to clear any commitments that might interfere with a run for political office. She will make the announcement official in four to six weeks, the individual said. Whitman is one of three Republicans who are considered front-runners in the 2010 California gubernatorial race. The others are state Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner and former Rep. Tom Campbell. GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger cannot run again under the state's term-limits law.
If Whitman were to win the GOP primary, she is likely to face a well-known Democratic opponent in a state where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans by 13 percentage points, the AP said. Former Gov. Jerry Brown, 70, now the state's attorney general, is thought to be the leading Democratic candidate if he decides to run -- unless Sen. Dianne Feinstein jumps into the race. Read more news about the race here.
While visitors to Las Vegas this week should not expect the Hollywood stars, paparazzi and red carpet that make the Primetime Emmy Awards in Los Angeles so scrumptious, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards is a fitting tribute to innovators as part of the Consumer Electronics Show. The awards were launched 60 years ago to honor developments in broadcast technology and recognize companies, organizations and individuals for breakthroughs that have a significant effect on television engineering.
Verizon Communications CEO Ivan Seidenberg will receive a lifetime achievement award at the Wednesday evening ceremony. Seidenberg was instrumental in forming Verizon through a number of mergers and acquisitions including Bell Atlantic and NYNEX in 1997; GTE in 2000; and MCI in 2006. He also helped Verizon create what is now Verizon Wireless in 1999 and championed the deployment of the company's high-speed fiber-optic FiOS Internet, telephone, and TV service. Other honorees include DirecTV, Harris Corporation, Hitachi, Intel, Philips, Scripps Networks, Sony Corporation, Tandberg Television, Toshiba, and XOrbit. Read more about the awards here.
FCC Commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate, who has served on the panel for three years, took part in her last meeting via teleconference on Tuesday. Tate, one of three Republican commissioners at the agency, came to Washington after serving as director of the Tennessee Regulatory Authority and as head of the State and Local Policy Center at Vanderbilt University. She was nominated by President Bush on Nov. 9, 2005 and was confirmed by the Senate the following month.
During her term, Tate focused on children and families and, among other things, led a charge for broadcasters and advertisers to reduce the amount to which they show and promote unhealthy foods. She was also involved in a host of issues surrounding the universal service fund, which subsidizes telecom and Internet connections for citizens, hospitals, libraries and schools in rural- and low-income areas. Fellow Republican Robert McDowell said Tate should also be proud of her efforts to "lift unnecessary regulations in order to allow market competition to grow and flourish."
As part of the changes in Microsoft's Washington office, Matt Gelman has been promoted to senior director for congressional affairs. Gelman will manage Microsoft's federal policy advocacy efforts before Congress and lead the company's team of lobbyists on Capitol Hill. He previously served as Microsoft's House Democratic lobbyist and took an unpaid leave from Microsoft in early 2007 to serve as a senior adviser to House Majority Whip James Clyburn. In the 1990s, Gelman spent ten years on the House Democratic leadership staff, including eight years as floor assistant to former Rep. David Bonior, D-Mich., when he served as Democratic whip.
CongressDaily reported last week that Fred Humphries was named director of federal government affairs, replacing Jack Krumholtz who launched Microsoft's federal government affairs activities in Washington in March 1995. Meanwhile at Microsoft, Ed Ingle will serve as managing director of federal government affairs, overseeing congressional and executive branch engagement and the tech giant's political action committee. -- Winter Casey
Stanford University professor and Internet expert Lawrence Lessig, who recently focused his energy on a grassroots campaign to combat the influence of money in American politics, has decided to relocate to Harvard University in June where he will direct the Safra Center -- an initiative that "encourages teaching and research about ethical issues in public and professional life." This will be a homecoming of sorts for Lessig who was the first endowed chair at Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet and Society from 1991 to 1997.
Lessig, who also flirted with a run for the seat of the late Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif., earlier this year, said he made the difficult decision because of the opportunity to "frame a large-scale project devoted to a large, important and complex problem." He said he will continue to work on the Change Congress project with Democratic strategist Joe Trippi and will explore how to best incorporate Internet policy into his research. Read more about Lessig's move here.
The Family Online Safety Institute is broadening its horizons by appointing Dave Miles as European development director. He will spearhead the international charity’s work in Europe and help make the online world safer for children and their families. Miles has been a board member of FOSI, formerly the Internet Content Rating Association, since 2002.
Before joining FOSI, Miles was the general manager for RuleSpace, a content filtering service, and has also been a member of the Internet Watch Foundation’s funding council and a participant in the UK's Home Office Internet Task Force on Child Protection on the Internet. FOSI's Stephen Balkam said Miles' "understanding of the challenges the ever-changing online world presents" makes him the ideal choice.
"The real challenge we face with online safety is that as the Internet rapidly evolves, so the challenges become ever more complex and demanding," Miles said. FOSI is "a critical driver in making the Internet a safer place because it creates a unique environment where people from government, regulators, law enforcement, not-for-profit and industry can come together to collaborate and innovate at both a technology and a policy level."
A sad note to start the week -- First Amendment crusader Marv Johnson died late last week after a long battle with complications from diabetes. He joined the American Civil Liberties Union in 2000 after serving as executive director of the ACLU of Wyoming and became known to many who follow censorship and free expressions issues.
One of Johnson’s final legislative accomplishments was leading a bipartisan group to defeat provisions of a lobbying reform bill that he believed would have prevented Americans from expressing their views to members of Congress. Johnson was also the author of two reports on the dangers of domestic spying by federal law enforcement.
Before his ACLU career, Johnson worked as an attorney in private practice and served in the Air Force as a judge advocate general. He is survived by his life partner Billie Ruth Edwards, who is also a civil liberties activist.
Technology Daily staff writer Michael Martinez? He recently landed a plum job at WAMU (88.5 FM), the National Public Radio affiliate in Washington, D.C. Martinez is a producer for The Kojo Nnamdi Show, a two-hour daily broadcast that covers news, political issues and social trends.
Martinez, a University of North Carolina graduate, is a great addition to the Kojo team -- particularly because of the program's "Tech Tuesday" segment that explores hot-button high-tech issues. It's a favorite of mine and I've been on as a guest to talk about data security and net neutrality -- issues that have garnered considerable congressional interest in recent years.
Congrats, Michael. The patent reform debate is heating up. I'll have my people call your people. Updates on the whereabouts of other TD alums can be found here, here and here.
It looks like there are going to be quite a few farewell parties taking place across the federal government as several high-ranking officials announce their departures. CongressDaily's TechCentral has all the details:
NTIA Chief To Leave As Criticism Mounts Over DTV Shift
For the second time in four months, a Commerce Department official overseeing the shift to digital television transmission is stepping down.
Majoras Departure Leaves Successor, Timing In Doubt
The departure of FTC Chairwoman Deborah Platt Majoras will leave the commission with two Republicans, one Democrat and an independent, and an unclear timeline for a replacement.
Senior Bush IP Official To Step Down, Start New Firm
The U.S. coordinator for intellectual property enforcement, is moving on amid an increased focus on IP protection domestically and globally.
You never know what you're going to see on Capitol Hill on any given afternoon. The musicFirst coalition held a lengthy jam session in the House Judiciary Committee hearing room that inspired North Carolina Republican Howard Coble (pictured left) to clap along. That's RIAA lobbyist Mitch Glazier on the right.
Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., stopped by with Texas Democrat Sheila Jackson-Lee a short time later to schmooze with BeBe Winans and Godfather of Go-Go Chuck Brown . Former "Grey's Anatomy" star Isaiah Washington also did some hand-shaking. He was visiting Capitol Hill to lobby members of the Congressional Black Caucus on an unrelated issue.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich might be spending more time in sunny California now that his American Solutions for Winning the Future announced that it will open a new office in Silicon Valley to serve as the organization's technology headquarters. Gingrich made the announcement (appropriately enough) on YouTube.
"We're excited to be in Silicon Valley and to learn from the best of the private sector so we can utilize the latest technological breakthroughs to fundamentally transform government from the world that fails to the world that works," Gingrich said. David Kralik, a veteran of online grassroots campaigns, will manage the West Coast operation.
Technology Daily assistant editor Theresa Poulson? She'll be starting work Monday at nationaljournal.com as a staff writer/producer. Poulson is a New Jersey native who graduated from Rutgers University in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in art history and painting (and she happens to crank out some darned good artwork in her spare time).
She came to Tech Daily last January -- after working as a reporter, designer and editor for a weekly newspaper group -- with a strong interest in multimedia and will be involved in efforts to expand NJ's online multimedia capabilities. At TD, Theresa created a number features, including a package on the presidential candidates' tech policy views and an issue page on the Internet tax moratorium.
Want to know where my other former colleagues landed? Go here and here.
Kyle McSlarrow, the president and CEO of the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, was the highest paid executive in the communications and information technology association sector in 2006, National Journal magazine will report in its issue, dated Saturday. He received a total compensation package, including benefits and allowances, of $1.75 million. Walter McCormick, president and CEO of the United States Telecom Association and the Consumer Electronics Association president and CEO, Gary Shapiro, received a boatload too. Let's not forget about the entertainment industry -- the Recording Industry Association of America and the Motion Picture Association of America. Click here for those juicy tidbits.
Former Technology Daily writer Heather Greenfield? She has hopped the journalism fence to try her hand in the public relations world. Greenfield, a former AP writer and broadcaster, joined the staff of the Computer and Communications Industry Association. The trade group represents Google, Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, Yahoo and many other high-tech firms. Meanwhile, Technology Daily alum Aliya Sternstein has landed at CQ where she will write about agriculture.
The high-tech PR gurus at 463 Communications have hired a new partner for the bicoastal company's San Francisco office. Hani Durzy joins Sean Garrett who has been holding down the fort all by himself on the West Coast as the D.C. operation has grown and grown.
Garrett wrote on his blog that "once we got past Hani's obnoxious Red Sox Nation-isms, we knew that he would be the perfect compliment to our team and a great asset as we grow in the Bay Area." Durzy was most recently eBay's communications director, which prompted this e-mail exchange:
To: Sean Garrett
From: Andrew Noyes
Sent: Mon 11/02/2008 2:09 PM
Subject: Good get!
Did you buy your new colleague on eBay? If so, what was the highest bid? Heh!
From: Sean Garrett
To: Andrew Noyes
Sent: Mon 11/02/2008 5:27 PM
Subject: RE: Good get!
Zing! That is our whole plan. Buy low and sell high.
Greta Wodele started her Washington reporting career by covering homeland security and other issues for Technology Daily and CongressDaily. She eventually moved up the ladder to cover the Senate for CongressDaily.
We've always admired Greta for the beauty of her reporting and writing talents, but these days, with her being on camera at C-SPAN's "Washington Journal," Greta is getting plenty of attention for her natural beauty, too.
Over the summer, she was a candidate in FishbowlDC's annual "Hottest Media Types" contest. And according to today's "Reliable Source" in The Washington Post, she has earned a mention in Esquire magazine's "Sexiest Woman Alive" contest.
Here's part of the quote the Post pulled from Esquire, which mentioned Greta among the likes of actress and sexiest woman Charlize Theron: "She is not hot; she's beautiful. Her hair, thick and mahogany, shows no trace of having been put through much but a brush. Her dark eyes are moist, her smile prim and pink."
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