Washington D.C. – The Writers Guild of America, West continues to take a strong stance on the principle of “net neutrality” as necessary public policy to preserve internet freedom. Speaking on behalf of the Guild, three-time Emmy Award-winning writer-producer Steven Peterman testified in support of HR-5353, the Internet Freedom Preservation Act, at today’s U.S. Representatives’ Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet hearing.
A longtime member of the WGAW, Peterman is executive producer of The Disney Channel’s Emmy-nominated hit series Hannah Montana, whose other TV writing credits include Murphy Brown, Suddenly Susan, State of Grace, and Becker. His appearance before the House of Representatives marks the latest chapter in the WGAW’s ongoing efforts to back HR-5353 and promote net neutrality. WGAW President Patric M. Verrone appeared before the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on April 22 to publicly voice the Guild’s position in favor of the principle of net neutrality.
During his testimony, Peterman outlined the pervasive rise of media consolidation and vertical integration that has come to define the entertainment industry and impact creative artists: “When I began my writing career 20 years ago you could watch Roseanne, Cosby, Cheers, The Wonder Years, and the series on which I was lucky enough to be one of the original writers: Murphy Brown. These shows were all considered smart, funny, sometimes touching and even thought provoking – and they were all made by independent production companies. Unfortunately, over the years since, those companies have disappeared. The unraveling of the financial interest and syndication rules, a process that began in 1992, has allowed for the greatest consolidation of media we have ever seen. Instead of a rich marketplace of ideas, today we have seven conglomerates controlling nearly all of the information and content we see,” he told the Subcommittee.
