Rich Fiscus
5 Dec 2011 17:03
It's certainly not news that the anti-piracy bills making their way through Congress, PIPA (aka Protect IP) and SOPA (aka E-PARASITE) are essentially just wish lists written by the entertainment industry.
While sponsors of both bills claim they are tightly focused on taking action against websites operated outside the US which are "dedicated to infringement," the reality is there are a number of troubling implications for innovation and even security.
The Sunlight Foundation, an organization dedicated to transparency in government, has published lists detailing the amount of money contributed by the TV, movie, and music industries to the campaigns of SOPA and PIPA sponsors.
The list for SOPA includes 18 of 25 sponsors:
- Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., $1,727,156. His southern district border is Hollywood Blvd. and he was the beneficiary at a fundraiser earlier this month hosted by two lobbyists at a firm that represents the National Broadcasting Association.
- Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., $516,400
- Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., $488,731
- Rep. Mary Bono Mack, R-Calif., $488,636
- Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Tex., $392,995 (sponsor)
- Rep. Robert Goodlatte, R-VA, $316,686
- Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., $261,700
- Rep. Lee Terry, R-Nev., $248,168
- Rep. John Barrow, D-GA, $210,900
- Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., $204,199
- Rep. Elton Gallegly, R-Calif., $133,023
- Rep. Melvin Watt, D-N.C., $130,100
- Rep. John Carter, R-Tex., $75,850
- Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., $64,648
- Rep. Steve Scalise, R-LA, $54,000
- Rep. William Owens, D-N.Y., $42,850
- Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Fla., $30,000
- Rep. Thomas Marino, R-Penn., $21,300
- Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., $1,996,470
- Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., $1,465,160
- Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., $1,295,718
- Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., $899,366 (sponsor)
- Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., $890,668
- Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., $747,491
- Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Missouri., $503,291
- Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., $493,069
- Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, $492,407
- Sen. Robert Menéndez, D-N.J., $445,575
- Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., $430,500
- Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., $368,733
- Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., $365,589
- Sen. Robert Casey, D-Penn., $343,225
- Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., $312,320
- Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., $297,771
- Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, $291,621
- Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, $284,225
- Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., $254,162
- Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., $237,084
- Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., $230,569
- Sen. Benjamin Cardin, D-Md., $218,539
- Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., - $217,847
- Sen. Kay Hagan, D-N.C., - $171,790
- Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., $158,066
- Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., $94,450