Entertainment Industry Liaison

House Democrats Name Rep. Howard Berman Entertainment Industry Liaison

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 10, 2005 - 4:39am.
Washington -- House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi has named Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.) as chief liaison between the House Democratic Caucus and the entertainment industry. Berman is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property, and once co-sponsored legislation that would have enabled the entertainment industry to "hack" into individuals' computers if they had a "reasonable basis" to think the individuals were engaged in Internet piracy. "Howard Berman has long been a leader on copyright enforcement and stopping Internet piracy," Pelosi said. "He understands the business and creative interests of the entertainment industry, which comprises the largest and fastest growing sector of the U.S. economy and creates a surplus balance of trade."