Public Knowledge Hails Pallante Exit

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B&C reported several weeks ago on an email from Public Knowledge president Gene Kimmelman circulated to other public interest groups asking, generally, about unseating current government officials.

Some in that public interest community assumed the email was targeted to FCC commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel over her issues with a set-top revamp proposal Public Knowledge has been pushing for.

But Kimmelman had told B&C it was more targeted to the Copyright Office and “bringing in less biased leadership.”

And then last week Copyright Office chief Maria Pallante was replaced.

“We hope this creates an opportunity to bring a more balanced perspective on copyright law into the leadership at the Copyright Office,” Kimmelman told B&C following the Pallante’s exit.

Public Knowledge has long argued that the office was too cozy with the copyright holders, including on issues like set-tops, where Pallante shared cable operator and studio concerns about the impact of the proposal on contracts and copyright protections.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.