Chris Dodd 'Stepping Down' From MPAA

from the good-riddance dept

It appears that Chris Dodd’s reign atop the MPAA is coming to an end. As you may recall, he took the job in 2011 to become the head of the MPAA — directly contrasting a statement he’d made just months earlier that he’d never become a lobbyist. Dodd’s first move was to preside over the MPAA’s first legislative Titanic. After years of easily passing every copyright law it wanted, Dodd helped turn a slam dunk, easy-to-pass SOPA/PIPA into a huge disaster that has consistently scared Congress away from making any substantial copyright law changes. And, yes, it was Dodd’s failed leadership that was a big part of the problem.

Other “highlights” from the Chris Dodd era include near complete silence after the Sony hack, a leaked plan on how the MPAA would help pay for lawyers to do the legwork for elected officials to attack Google, and even leading the movie studios to begin to question why they send many millions of dollars to the MPAA each year for very little return.

With that as backdrop, it’s been announced that Dodd is stepping down from the MPAA and will be replaced by Charles Rivkin, who has worked in both government and in the entertainment industry. Dodd’s contract ran through 2018, and news reports say he’ll “transition” out of his role between now and September of this year. Hopefully Rivkin will be more forward-looking, and will recognize that (1) the public and (2) the internet are not enemies of the movie industry. That would go a long way towards improving the MPAA’s approach to things, but we’ll see.

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Companies: mpaa

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Comments on “Chris Dodd 'Stepping Down' From MPAA”

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44 Comments
That Anonymous Coward (profile) says:

Its the MPAA, so I’m going to safely stay in the mindset that expecting change is like expecting Kim Jong-un was going to turn DPRK into a democracy after Kim Jong-il passed.

It would be nice to see them accept that change has happened & work to get at least to the 1990’s in their thinking… but they are paid to say the sky is falling & only they can save us.

Anonymous Coward says:

“Hopefully Rivkin will be more forward-looking, and will recognize that (1) the public and (2) the internet are not enemies of the movie industry.”

One of the very few people still selling the ridiculous notion that the MPAA and the public/internet are “enemies” is you, Mike. (I remember when I was 12 too!)

I’d offer to discuss this in depth and on the merits, but we both know that you’re a chicken. BAWK! No one runs faster from a debate than you.

Keep sellin’ that snake oil, Mike. Surely dozens (dozens!) of people are still buying it. How you can sleep at night, knowing that your entire life is dedicated to nonsense, I’ll never understand.

Bawk. Bawk.

Mike Masnick (profile) says:

Re: Re:

One of the very few people still selling the ridiculous notion that the MPAA and the public/internet are "enemies" is you, Mike. (I remember when I was 12 too!)

Can you point out where I’ve ever claimed that? For years I’ve argued the exact opposite. It’s the MPAA that treats the internet and the public as if it’s filled with criminals who need to be punished. I’ve never understood why.

And, in the meantime, what’s with this thing where you blatantly misrepresent what I say these days? Seems like an odd thing to do when we have the entire record of what I say right here on Techdirt? I don’t understand why you think lying about my position works.

Anonymous Coward says:

Re: Re: Re:

“One of the very few people still selling the ridiculous notion that the MPAA and the public/internet are “enemies” is you, Mike. (I remember when I was 12 too!)”

I feel like I need a shower each time you respond to me and I then respond to you.

Where have you claimed that the MPAA and the public/internet are “enemies”?

Hmm. How about this very post.

“Hopefully Rivkin will be more forward-looking, and will recognize that (1) the public and (2) the internet are not enemies of the movie industry. That would go a long way towards improving the MPAA’s approach to things, but we’ll see.”

You explicitly hope that Rivkin, the future MPAA head, will see things differently than the old head, whom you claim saw the “the public” and the “the internet” as “enemies of the movie industry.” It is you, and no one else, who claims that the MPAA saw itself as adverse to the public/internet.

Please, commence your weaseling. Anything less would truly amaze me.

Mike Masnick (profile) says:

Re: Re: Re: Re:

Hmm. How about this very post.

Hmm. Reading comprehension is not your strong suit. I never said that they are enemies. I’ve said that the MPAA wrongly treats them as enemies even though they are not. Got it: the MPAA acts as like they are enemies and my point has always been THAT THEY ARE NOT ENEMIES. So for you to claim that I’m saying they ARE enemies is simply, 100%, flat out… wrong.

That was the point. I thought that was clear. And, rereading it, I’m still pretty sure it’s clear to everyone but you.

So, once again, I have to ask: why do you so consistently misrepresent what I say and what I stand for? What’s in it for you?

Anonymous Coward says:

Re: Re: Re:

BAWK!

So glad you’re not now filtering comments so as to send those including the word “bawk” to the filter–only to be denied the privilege of responding to your posts. No, you’re not so scared of dissent that you’d do that. Never. Not Mike! You’ve NEVER done that.

Bawk, bawk.

You celebrate dissent. You always have, right, Mike?

PaulT (profile) says:

Re: Re: Re: Re:

I love it. Not only do you openly lie about what’s written in the very article you’re responding to, but you throw a fit because your attempts to make farmyard animal sounds are picked up as moronic spam. How much more openly do you think you need to announce that your comments are worthless before they bypass such problems, that throw you into an angry tirade every time you encounter such minor inconveniences?

Here’s an idea – why not try not being a childish liar? Those of us who manage that feat don’t end up getting quite as wound up as you do, and probably lead much healthier and productive lives.

PaulT (profile) says:

Re: Re: Re:2 Re:

It’s actually a good idea to do such a thing sometimes, if only to see alternative points of view. Not as obsessively as this guy does, and certainly not with the open lying about the content and attempts to imitate farm animals with every comment. But, I can see value in at least lurking on sites that you think represent an alternative view held by many others.

The sad thing is, he’s never actually refuted any of the points he thinks are so wrong. If he were so concerned about people “buying it”, you’d think he’d come armed with some reasoning as to why the site is wrong rather than making a mockery of himself every time he posts.

My_Name_Here says:

Re: Re:

I completely agree with you. Masnick is certainly no friend of copyright, and it both appalls and fails to surprise me that he rejoices the departure of one of the economy’s biggest contributors. I am solemnly stroking my erection in protest of this passing. May Shiva strike down this cesspool of a pirate website!

Anonymous Coward says:

Tomorrow’s post: New MPAA chief Charles Rivkin declares the Internet, streaming and file sharing to be his top targets. “We will prosecute those who steal our content”, he was quoted as saying. “And we will invest more money into education and litigation so people know piracy is wrong.”

Anonymous Coward says:

‘Rivkin will be more forward-looking, and will recognize that (1) the public and (2) the internet are not enemies of the movie industry’

there isn’t a hope in hell of that happening! even if he does feel these things, he will be prevented from doing anything because the studio heads are even worse than Dodd! in fact, i suspect that Dodd was ordered what to do and what to say, just because the studio heads want to carry on as if it were the 60s still! not condoning what he did and i’ll always think of him as a total prick but he may have had different ideas but prevented from using them. money can be a hell of a persuader!!

Anonymous Coward says:

“Those who count on quote ‘Hollywood’ for support need to understand that this industry is watching very carefully who’s going to stand up for them when their job is at stake. Don’t ask me to write a check for you when you think your job is at risk and then don’t pay any attention to me when my job is at stake.”

— Chris Dodd

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20120120/14472117492/mpaa-directly-publicly-threatens-politicians-who-arent-corrupt-enough-to-stay-bought.shtml

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