CIO Insight
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In June, CIO Insight ran the first installment of a new quarterly column by Lawrence Lessig, a professor of law at Stanford Law School and founder of the Stanford Center for
Internet and Society. Lessig also is the author of the book Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace.
As one might expect, his column explores the intersection of technology and legal policy. The June column, for example, examined in some detail the present tensions between
entertainment-content producers and technologists in pursuit of content-sharing mechanisms.
Lessig says technology professionals have managed to sidestep questions of legal policy for many years. In reality, though, public policy and technology must advance together.
Thus, CIO Insight is the ideal forum for his ideas. "It's extremely important that technologists understand the terms of this debate," he said. "These are precisely the people who
have to think about these issues."
The technology decision-makers reading his column each quarter number about 50,000, and are responsible for their company's IT business goals and implementation.
Content/Contacts
Lessig wants substance. He follows closely the developments in the space where technology and law intersect, and he looks to top industry players for a sense of the big
picture. His first column, for instance, drew quotes from public statements made by former officers of Intel and Xerox PARC.
With its focus on substantive issues, his column affords PR professionals in the IT world a forum in which to address legislative or policy issues that could affect their
companies. Lessig is especially interested in those policy changes that have the potential to hinder the development of new technologies or to impede the growth of existing IT
mechanisms.
Email Lessig at [email protected].
Pitch Tips
"I'm a big reader. I don't like telephones," Lessig said. "I won't talk on the phone to anybody. Send me stuff to read, and I will read it. And I don't like to see press
releases. I like to see real analysis and studies. It is that core content that I find most useful."
As a general rule, Lessig would like to see white papers addressing fundamental issues of law and technology. Don't bother to send him press announcements about new
products.
Best bet is to keep it clean and simple and - again - substantive. If you are representing the IT world, and you want to get Lessig's attention, you'll need to show him that
there is a policy issue at stake here.
Comments
To understand where the "Code Breaking" column is coming from, "you have to see that legal regulation has fundamentally affected growth and innovation in the IT sector," Lessig
says. "The Hollywood sector has been very good at motivating policymakers to benefit themselves, and I think IT leaders have to be more aware of the ways in which policymakers may
be harming them. It is critical to the continued growth of this field."
A PR player whose IT firm faces a legislative hurdle may very well find a sympathetic ear here.
In the Pipeline
Lessig's next few columns will deal with the rapidly-changing legislative landscape surrounding the evolution of wireless and broadband technologies.
"We have lots of issues about how the government regulates the spectrum, how much they leave open for innovation outside the regulatory field, and with broadband we have a lot
of questions about what it is going to take to get broadband developed," he explains.
In addition to hearing from analysts who follow the wireless space, Lessig would entertain serious policy-related communications from PR professionals representing major
players in the wireless world.