Copyright Czar

As has been widely reported this week, White House officials, including Victoria Espinel, the Copyright Czar (officially the “U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator for the Office of Management and Budget”), have been involved in negotiations between the recording and movie industries and ISPs to interrupt internet access for users suspected of violating copyright law. These negotiations, which involve private agreements between content providers and ISPs, do not involve any actual government law or announced policy. Many observers have therefore expressed surprise that Czar Espinel and others would have played a role here. Surprise, however, seems misplaced. Espinel has a loosely-defined and wide-ranging mandate related to the enforcement of intellectual property rights. There is no reason to imagine that she operates only in public settings. Indeed, it’s likely that there are many other closed-door, private meetings and negotiations in which she has participated. And if Espinel has exceeded what Congress envisaged when it authorized her position, well, that’s the trouble with czars: once you have them, it’s hard to keep them in check.

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