Press Release
Tim Wu Named Free Press Board Chair
Contact: Timothy Karr, 201-533-8838
FLORENCE, Mass -- Free Press, the national, nonpartisan media reform organization, has elected Columbia Law Professor Tim Wu as chair of the board. Wu is a leading authority on telecommunications law and coined the term "Net Neutrality" -- the idea that the Internet should be free from discrimination by network providers.
"Tim Wu is one of our nation's great visionaries," said Josh Silver, executive director of Free Press. "He brings the kind of intellectual acumen and integrity that drives our work. Wu's deep understanding of emerging technologies reflects the critical link between the Internet and the future of virtually all media in this country."
"Free Press is an organization that's in the right place, at the right time, with the right people," said Wu. "It is a great honor to be a part of it."
Wu previously served as a board member of the Free Press Action Fund, the group's advocacy arm. Wu takes on the board leadership position held by media scholar Robert W. McChesney since he and Silver co-founded Free Press with journalist John Nichols in 2002. McChesney will remain a member of the Free Press board of directors.
"This is truly a historic moment for Free Press and for the media reform movement in the United States and worldwide," McChesney said. "Tim Wu is a figure of singular importance in helping us to understand and change media and media policies in the digital era."
Wu, who frequently testifies before Congress and speaks to the media about technology issues, is the co-author of Who Controls the Internet? Illusions of a Borderless World and a regular contributor to Slate magazine. In addition to Net Neutrality, Wu has written about copyright, international trade and the study of law-breaking. He previously worked for Riverstone Networks in the telecommunications industry in Silicon Valley and was a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and U.S. Court of Appeals Court Judge Richard Posner. In 2006 Wu was recognized as one of the 50 top leaders in science and technology by Scientific American magazine, and in 2007 he was listed as one of Harvard's 100 most influential graduates by 02138 magazine.
###
Free Press is a national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media, and universal access to communications. Learn more at www.freepress.net
Columbia Law School, founded in 1858, stands at the forefront of legal education and of the law in a global society. Columbia Law School joins traditional strengths in international and comparative law, constitutional law, administrative law, business law and human rights law with pioneering work in the areas of intellectual property, digital technology, sexuality and gender, and criminal law.
"Tim Wu is one of our nation's great visionaries," said Josh Silver, executive director of Free Press. "He brings the kind of intellectual acumen and integrity that drives our work. Wu's deep understanding of emerging technologies reflects the critical link between the Internet and the future of virtually all media in this country."
"Free Press is an organization that's in the right place, at the right time, with the right people," said Wu. "It is a great honor to be a part of it."
Wu previously served as a board member of the Free Press Action Fund, the group's advocacy arm. Wu takes on the board leadership position held by media scholar Robert W. McChesney since he and Silver co-founded Free Press with journalist John Nichols in 2002. McChesney will remain a member of the Free Press board of directors.
"This is truly a historic moment for Free Press and for the media reform movement in the United States and worldwide," McChesney said. "Tim Wu is a figure of singular importance in helping us to understand and change media and media policies in the digital era."
Wu, who frequently testifies before Congress and speaks to the media about technology issues, is the co-author of Who Controls the Internet? Illusions of a Borderless World and a regular contributor to Slate magazine. In addition to Net Neutrality, Wu has written about copyright, international trade and the study of law-breaking. He previously worked for Riverstone Networks in the telecommunications industry in Silicon Valley and was a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and U.S. Court of Appeals Court Judge Richard Posner. In 2006 Wu was recognized as one of the 50 top leaders in science and technology by Scientific American magazine, and in 2007 he was listed as one of Harvard's 100 most influential graduates by 02138 magazine.
###
Free Press is a national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media. Through education, organizing and advocacy, we promote diverse and independent media ownership, strong public media, and universal access to communications. Learn more at www.freepress.net
Columbia Law School, founded in 1858, stands at the forefront of legal education and of the law in a global society. Columbia Law School joins traditional strengths in international and comparative law, constitutional law, administrative law, business law and human rights law with pioneering work in the areas of intellectual property, digital technology, sexuality and gender, and criminal law.
