On Lee Listens, Sen. Lee Terry asks for input on how congress can help combat online piracy.
Rep. Lee Terry of Nebraska (left), a former co-sponsor of the Stop Online Piracy Act (“SOPA”) who dropped support for the bill on Jan. 18, is looking to his constituents for ideas on how to curb online piracy. Utilizing the virtual town hall product of Omaha startup MindMixer, Terry has posted “Internet Piracy” as one of the topics on Lee Listens, a custom site built by MindMixer.
“Looking for your ideas on how to best combat internet piracy and the sale of counterfeit goods,” Terry said on his Facebook page. “Please reply at Lee Listens: www.leeterry.house.gov/leelistens.”
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The topic, posted on Friday, offers an actionable step for a challenge posed in our interview with Terry’s legislative director, Brad Schweer, on Jan. 18.
“As internet users are seeing these sites blocked out today and, you know, getting engaged,” Schweer said the day of the SOPA Strike, “I would ask them to ask questions like, ‘How should congress restrict access to these rogue websites?’ “
Terry’s use of MindMixer to engage constituents marked the first legislator-specific site for the startup, who began working with cities and special causes in 2010.
“MindMixer was designed to be a way for elected officials to better connect, listen, and communicate with their constituents,” Nick Bowden, MindMixer co-founder and CEO, told Silicon Prairie News in July. “So this new market is really an extension of that vision.”
It seems it’s also become an extension of Terry’s online place to gather feedback, as well. At the time this article was published, Terry’s Facebook update encouraging feedback on Lee Listens had 14 comments and his topic on Lee Listens had seven ideas with 10 comments total.
With both online piracy bills postponed but legislation to combat it inevitable, MindMixer could prove to be a useful tool for legislators to effectively engage with constituents. Terry’s internet piracy topic on Lee Listens is scheduled to remain open until March 20.
For more on SOPA and Silicon Prairie politicians, see our post: “Silicon Prairie politicians distance themselves from SOPA, PIPA“.
To learn about MindMixer and Lee Listens, check out our story: “With ‘Lee Listens’ launch, MindMixer debuts first legislator-specific site“.
Image credits: Screenshot and photo of Rep. Lee Terry from leelistens.com.
