MPAA and NCTA to host Discussion with Floyd Abrams in Support of Free Speech Week

October 17, 2013

*MEDIA ADVISORY*

MPAA and NCTA to host Discussion with Floyd Abrams in Support of Free Speech Week

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 17, 2013

WASHINGTON- On Tuesday, October 22, 2013, the Motion Picture Association of America together with the National Cable and Telecommunications Association will host a discussion with renowned First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams in support of Free Speech Week. The event will be moderated by Barbara Cochran, who is the Curtis B. Hurley Chair in Public Policy Journalism at the University of Missouri School of Journalism.

Free Speech Week is an annual event celebrated nationwide during the third week of October. It has traditionally featured panel discussions, events and other programs sponsored by the many participant organizations and intended to celebrate, promote, and protect free speech in America. MPAA Chairman and CEO Senator Chris Dodd is the chairman of the Free Speech Week Advisory Council, where he joins leaders in the entertainment and media industries in supporting this year’s efforts.

Floyd Abrams is a senior partner in the New York law firm of Cahill Gordon & Reindel LLP and the author of “Friend of the Court: On the Front Lines with the First Amendment” (2013) and “Speaking Freely: Trials of the First Amendment” (2005). Mr. Abrams has argued frequently in the Supreme Court in a large number of its most significant First Amendment cases. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan characterized Mr. Abrams as “the most significant First Amendment lawyer of our age.”

What:
Discussion with Floyd Abrams in support of Free Speech Week

Who:
Floyd Abrams, First Amendment Attorney
Barbara Cochran, University of Missouri School of Journalism

Where:
The Motion Picture Association of America
1600 Eye Street, NW

When:
Tuesday October 22. Reception 12:00pm. Program 12:30pm

RSVP:
Rsvp5@motionpictures.org

For more information, contact:

MPAA
Anna Soellner
(202) 293-1966
Anna_Soellner@motionpictures.org

NCTA
Rob Stoddard
(202) 222-2352
Rstoddard@NCTA.com

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About the MPAA
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. (MPAA) serves as the voice and advocate of the American motion picture, home video and television industries from its offices in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. Its members include: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures; Paramount Pictures Corporation; Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.; Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation; Universal City Studios LLC; and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

About the NCTA
NCTA is the principal trade association for the U.S. cable industry, representing cable operators serving more than 90 percent of the nation’s cable television households and more than 200 cable program networks. The cable industry is the nation’s largest broadband provider of high-speed Internet access, serving more than 51 million customers, after investing $200 billion to build two-way interactive networks with fiber optic technology. Cable companies also provide state-of-the-art digital telephone service to more than 27 million American consumers.