Former Democratic senator and current Motion Picture Association of America chairman Chris Dodd had some words of advice for the newly Republican controlled Senate (and House): Take into account the "powerful economic role" the entertainment industry plays not only on the coasts but between them.
"The television and film industry is a major private sector employer in the United States. It supports 1.9 million jobs in all 50 states and contributed $111 billion in total wages in 2012, the most recent year for which data is available," he said Wednesday (Nov. 5).
He framed the industry not as L.A. and New York-centric operations, but as "a nationwide network of almost 100,000 small businesses in every state, multiplied by the $38 billion the industry paid to 330,000 local businesses," saying where productions go, jobs follow.
He pointed to Fox's production of Gone Girl in Cape Girardeau, Mo., as an example.
"So, when the new Congress is seated in January and addresses issues that are critically important to the continued strength of this great American industry," he said. "I hope they will bear in mind that the economic impact is very real in communities all across the country."
Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.
