Announcements

Diversity at SOTN
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Diversity At State of the Net 2021

Two weeks ago we were thrilled to convene the Internet stakeholder community at the 17th annual State of the Net Conference, the nation’s most prominent Internet policy summit.

Speakers at SOTN reflect different perspectives on Internet policy issues. We have long curated the program to highlight differences of opinion among experts from across the spectrum of industry, government, academia, and civil society. Yet, over those 17 years the speakers at SOTN have not always sufficiently represented women and communities of color. Over the course of our 25 year history, those voices have been woefully underrepresented in Internet policy conversations.

We have made strides over the years to bring more diverse voices to the table at State of the Net. We’ve made great progress in some areas and have made incremental improvements in others. In other areas, we haven’t made much of a dent and we need to do better. In the interest of accountability, we’re publishing the below stats regarding speaker diversity at #SOTN2021.*

BIPOC Keynote Diversity SOTN2021
BIPOC Speaker Diversity SOTN2021
Gender Keynote Diversity SOTN2021
Gender Speaker Diversity SOTN2021

There is always room for improvement and will work harder. We will also continue our work to create a pipeline for talented Internet policy practitioners of color through the Internet Law & Policy Foundry. The Foundry, which we launched six years ago, is a professional development platform for early career professionals passionate about Internet law and policy. Diversity is a major goal in the Foundry admissions criteria for incoming fellows. We will also continue to inspire students of color to pursue careers in computer science and STEM through the Congressional App Challenge (CAC). Through the House’s official computer science competition for middle and high school students, which we administer, we work to ensure that student participation in the CAC reflects the diversity of the American people. (See impact/diversity).

* BIPOC Defined.
** Our survey of speakers at SOTN was passive. Our data is not a reflection speakers’ attestation of identity.  

Agenda, Video
SOTN 2021 is over. Here are links to the program agenda, speakers, videos.

 

Amy Klobuchar
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Watch: Senator Amy Klobuchar Keynote And Panel On “Tech Competition: What Can Biden Learn From The Last Tech-ade Under Obama and Trump?”

We were thrilled to have Senator Amy Klobuchar keynote State of the Net last week and preview her plans to address a range of tech policy issues including antitrust. Today she announced her antitrust reform legislation and plans for the subcommittee.

At SOTN an expert panel on antitrust and competition policy followed her comments. Antitrust reporter Leah Nylen led speakers Jennifer Huddleston, Sarah Miller, Ashley Baker, and Charlotte Slaiman. The video and transcripts for both discussions are available to watch now. See below.

Amy Klobuchar
Transcript

Tech Competition: What Can Biden Learn From The Last Tech-ade Under Obama and Trump

Transcript
Matt Lira Nick Sinai
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Civic & Gov Tech 3.0 Under Biden Featuring Matthew Lira

Using the Internet to make government more responsive and accountable to its citizens remains a stubbornly bipartisan issue. While other aspects of Internet policy have become politicized, “civic tech” is having a decade of policy support from both sides of the aisle. From the US Digital Service, 18F, the Presidential Innovation Fellowship program, and the House Modernization Committee, making government less dysfunctional and more cost effective through technology is a bright spot for Internet policy wonks. Just recently Congress passed the IT Modernization Centers of Excellence Program Act, which President Trump signed. And there seems to be a lot of well-meaning folks eager to enlist in the Biden Administration’s civic tech corps. Join us as a bipartisan group of experts discuss why such enthusiasm exists for civic tech across the aisle and what lies in store for the Biden Administration.

SPEAKERS

Matthew Lira

Matthew Lira
Former Special Assistant to the President for Innovation Policy and Initiatives
White House Office of American Innovation

Matthew Lira

Nick Sinai
Senior Advisor
Insight Partners

LISTEN

  1. Download

READ

Transcript

WATCH YOUTUBE

Rep Katko
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Rep. Katko Leads Cyber Discussion At SOTN, SolarWinds Panel to Follow

Rep. John Katko to Keynote
Followed by “The Solar Winds of Cybersecurity: Biden and the 117th Congress Need A Unified Strategy” Panel

The newly minted Biden Administration will need to work with Congress to address devastating attacks like the recent SolarWinds hack. Rep. John Katko, the new Ranking Member on the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, will be key to that strategy. We’re thrilled that Rep. Katko will keynote State of the Net and set the stage for our expert panel on cybersecurity to follow. The panel will offer perspectives on how Congress and the Administration can learn from past mistakes and successes. Rep Katko address here. Panel here.

Rep KatkoCyber Panelists

Learn more about our expert speakers below. Registration free and is open.

230 Panel
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Leading Scholars Break Down Section 230 Legislation At SOTN

The only thing that Joe Biden and former President Trump seemed to agree on was that Section 230 needed to be “revoked, immediately.” Those were President Biden’s words in 2020 and President Trump inserted a repeal of 230 in the National Defense Authorization Act passed in December. Legislative repeal is only one option for a law that has been inflaming passions for years. There are myriad proposals to amend 230 up for grabs (there’s a list here) and others say, “Leave it alone.”

Next week, Mozilla VP of Global Policy, Trust and Security Alan Davidson will lead an export group of legal scholars at a State of the Net panel titled “Revising Section 230: What Proposals are on the Table?” The group will break down what types of legislative proposals are on the table and what implementation might look like. Don’t miss it.

230 Panel

See below for a list of our expert speakers, and follow us on Twitter @SOTN #SOTN2021 for updates!
Registration is open.

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Senator Amy Klobuchar To Keynote Followed By A Panel On “Tech Competition: What Can Biden Learn From The Last Tech-ade Under Obama and Trump?”

We are pleased to announce that Senator Amy Klobuchar will keynote State of the Net. Senator Klobuchar’s comments will cover a range of tech policy issues and likely will touch upon antitrust issues. Her comments will be followed by an expert panel on antitrust and competition policy (see speakers below). Registration free and is open.

Regardless of your position on competition policy, the last decade witnessed enormous growth in Internet platforms spanning both the Obama and Trump Administrations. The COVID-induced recession may have exacerbated existing concentrations in the Internet marketplace. The Biden Administration pledges to “build back better.” Competition policy is an important part of the economic recovery for working Americans.

Our panel at State of the Net will look at competition during the Obama and Trump administrations and what lessons, if any, the new Biden competition policy officials can learn from their approaches to competition in the Internet marketplace.

Register Here

Speakers

klobuchar
The Honorable Amy Klobuchar
Senator
U.S. Senate

Panelists

Huddleston

Jennifer Huddleston    
Director of Technology and Innovation Policy
American Action Forum

sarah miller

Sarah Miller  
Executive Director
American Economic Liberties Project  

ashley baker

Ashley Baker    
Director of Public Policy
Committee for Justice  

Charlotte Slaiman

Charlotte Slaiman    
Competition Policy Director 
Public Knowledge  

Leah Nylen

Leah Nylen    
Antitrust Reporter
POLITICO  
MODERATOR

Register Here
Covid Panel Image
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New Panel: When Words Can Kill: The COVID Infodemic’s Impact IRL

Presidential de-platforming, Parler, and insurrection are getting all the disinfo headlines lately. But consider the mortal implications of COVID vaccine disinformation. Experts predict that large swaths Americans will refuse the vaccine because of misinformation, resulting in scores of deaths in America.

There’s an urgent need to tackle widespread misinformation about its safety, efficacy and deployment – and help prevent its dissemination online. The State of the Net panel, “When Words Can Kill: The COVID-19 Infodemic’s Impact IRL” will feature experts spanning tech, government and academia to discuss whether the incoming Biden administration can shore up efforts to address this existential threat to public health.

This panel will follow keynote remarks by Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, who, along with Senator Mark Warner, recently warned the Biden COVID task force focus on this deadly issue.

SPEAKERS
Renee DiResta
Technical Research Manager
Stanford Internet Observatory
Dr. Joan Donovan
Research Director 
Harvard Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy
Dr. Diana S. Grigsby-Toussaint, PhD, MPH
Associate Professor of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Associate Professor of Epidemiology
Brown School of Public Health
Ana Santos Rutschman, S.J.D.
Advisor
Biden Campaign COVID-19 Innovation Committee
Davey Alba
Technology Reporter
New York Times
MODERATOR
Register
Geopolitical
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Geopolitical Internet Forces and Biden: Sepulveda, Strayer, & Mehlman Discuss

“The New Geopolitics Of The Internet: How Will The Biden State Department Navigate Them?” Panel
Dear <<First Name>>,

The State of the Net Conference is around the corner and we’ve assembled a panel of experts to make sense of the new geopolitical forces shaping Internet policy.

Two former ambassadors, one of DC’s top strategic thinkers, and a Fletcher School professor will debate how sovereign governments are seeking to exert more control over Internet technologies and how the incoming Biden Administration should tackle these issues. Issues include Huwaei, EU DSA, USMCA’s 230, TikTok ban, Privacy Shield, and more.

We’ll announce more speakers and panels on a rolling basis. Follow us on Twitter @SOTN for updates. Registration is now open.

SPEAKERS
Bruce P. Mehlman
Founder 
Mehlman Castagnetti Rosen & Thomas
Daniel Sepulveda
Ambassador Daniel Sepulveda
Senior Vice President for Policy and Advocacy
MediaMath
Ambassador Robert Strayer
Executive Vice President, Policy
Information Technology Industry Council (ITI)
Josephine Wolff

Josephine Wolff
Assistant Professor of Cybersecurity Policy
The Fletcher School of Tufts University
Register
More speakers to be announced shortly.

The New Geopolitics Of The Internet: How Will The Biden State Department Navigate Them?
Increasingly sovereign governments are seeking to exert more control over Internet technologies. Long ago the Internet enmeshed the terrestrial globe with little respect for national borders. Now governments are trying to exert control over Internet companies at all levels of the stack. Intermediary liability laws like the European DSA are becoming more common and the Trump Administration has sought to ban certain smartphone apps in the U.S. Governments are increasingly wary of Internet infrastructure technologies manufactured in foreign countries. Social media companies are now under enormous pressure regarding their users’ speech. The few existing intergovernmental agreements on Internet policy such as the USMCA’s Section 230 language and the EU-US’s Privacy Shield are under enormous strain. Our panel will try to make sense of the new geopolitical challenge.
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