Alex Alben
Encyclopedia
Alex Alben American
politician, author
and technology executive, was a candidate for the United States House of Representatives
in 2004, a campaign which drew national attention because of the high tech district and the media personalities involved in the race, as noted by media coverage in The New York Times, "In a House Campaign With Personality, One Candidate Has the Microphone," June 12, 2004. He ran as a Democrat in the Eighth Congressional District of Washington. The seat was held by Republican Jennifer Dunn
, who retired after Alben announced that he would run for the seat. It is now held by Republican Dave Reichert
. Part of the Microsoft corporate campus is located within the district, which stretches from the affluent suburbs of Bellevue and Mercer Island to the rural areas of south King County and a swath of Pierce County. Since its creation, the seat has been held by Republican legislators.
in 1980, Alben began his career working for CBS
News in New York
as a research assistant to anchorman Walter Cronkite
. He covered the 1980 Presidential campaign and the first Ronald Reagan inauguration. In 1981, Alben worked on the controversial CBS Reports Documentary, "The Uncounted Enemy, A Vietnam Deception," which sparked a $100 Million libel suit between General William C. Westmoreland and CBS News. The suit settled in 1985, with no payment, but a statement from CBS that Westmoreland "had done his duty as he saw fit." By this time, Alben had left CBS for Stanford Law School, where he graduated in 1984. Alben's work at CBS and on "The Uncounted Enemy" documentary are cited in the Sam Adams biography, "Who The Hell Are We Fighting?" C. Michael Haim, Steerforth Press, 2006. Adams's book, "War of Numbers," posthumously published in 1994, was the basis for the documentary.
Alben participated in Stanford University's undergraduate program in Arms Control in 1980 (A.B.) and received a J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1984. He worked for Senator Claiborne Pell, Democrat of Rhode Island, on the Foreign Relations Committee and Senator John Culver, Democrat of Iowa, on the Armed Services Committee during the Senate's consideration of the SALT II treaty.
Alben began work in 1985 as an entertainment lawyer for the Beverly Hills, CA, firm of Rosenfeld, Meyer & Susman. He moved on to legal and business affairs for Orion Pictures
and Warner Bros.
, before moving to the Seattle area in 1993.
Prior to running for Congress in 2004, Alben served as General Counsel and V.P. Business Affairs for Starwave Corporation and head of government affairs for RealNetworks
. At Starwave, Alben worked on pioneering CD-ROM
products and helped launch popular web sites such as ABCNews.com and ESPN.com
. As a RealNetworks Vice President, Alben worked on the "RealJukebox" music management project, which contributed to the proliferation of MP3 music files, both legally and illegally disseminated across the Internet. On behalf of the technology industry, Alben testified before the U.S. Copyright Office, Senate Judiciary Committee and House Commerce Committee on the digital distribution of music and the importance of creating authorized channels for the distribution of Internet Radio and music downloads. In testimony before the Senate in 2002 as Vice President of public policy for RealNetworks, Alben predicted that web video was evolving so rapidly that one day all television programs would be found on the Internet. (Source: CNN)
Along with record label and high tech executives, he participated in the founding of the Secure Digital Music Initiative and the Digital Media Association. Alben's work as an entertainment attorney and as counsel for Starwave are explored in the book, "Free Culture," by Lawrence Lessig, Penguin Press, 2004, which describes Starwave's efforts to license digital rights for products such as a CD-ROM based on the film career of Clint Eastwood.
Alben is the author of a comedy-spy novel, Our Man In Mongoa, published by Charles Scribner's Sons. Regarding Our Man In Mongoa, Publishers Weekly wrote: "Alben writes smoothly, with terrific pace and even better humor, which, deliciously deadpan, skewers even moving targets." From 2005 to 2008, he wrote opinion pieces about politics and media for The New York Times, Seattle Times and Seattle Post-Intelligencer. His initial editorial about his experience running for Congress, "Real Candidates Have Curves," appeared in The New York Times, Opinion, September 27, 2004.
and other issues affecting the software industry. Alben won the endorsement of the Seattle Times, the Seattle Post Intelligencer and the King County Journal. The Seattle Times, September 12, 2004, "The Times Endorses . . ." "In The Northwest: Finding 8th District front-runner is no Dunn deal," By Joel Connelly, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, August 23, 2004.
During the course of the campaign, Alben publicly criticized radio talk show host Dave Ross
, for remaining on his daily radio program, "The Dave Ross" show while actively fund-raising and campaigning as a candidate for federal office. Alben claimed that Ross's activity violated federal campaign finance law, according to the New York Times, in an article published June 12, 2004.
Alben was one of three Democrats vying for the party's nomination (the other two being interior designer Heidi Behrens-Benedict
and radio personality Dave Ross). Alben was endorsed for Congress by The Seattle Times, Seattle Post Intelligencer, King County Journal and numerous local organizations. Ross won the primary election held 14 September 2004, but then lost to the Republican nominee in the general election on 2 November 2004. Reichert won reelection in 2006 and a third term in 2008.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
politician, author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and technology executive, was a candidate for the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
in 2004, a campaign which drew national attention because of the high tech district and the media personalities involved in the race, as noted by media coverage in The New York Times, "In a House Campaign With Personality, One Candidate Has the Microphone," June 12, 2004. He ran as a Democrat in the Eighth Congressional District of Washington. The seat was held by Republican Jennifer Dunn
Jennifer Dunn
Jennifer Blackburn Dunn was a prominent Republican member of the United States House of Representatives 1993–2005, representing .-Early life:...
, who retired after Alben announced that he would run for the seat. It is now held by Republican Dave Reichert
Dave Reichert
David George Reichert is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party. He previously served as Sheriff of King County, Washington.-Early life, education and career:...
. Part of the Microsoft corporate campus is located within the district, which stretches from the affluent suburbs of Bellevue and Mercer Island to the rural areas of south King County and a swath of Pierce County. Since its creation, the seat has been held by Republican legislators.
Biographical Background
After graduating Stanford UniversityStanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
in 1980, Alben began his career working for CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
News in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
as a research assistant to anchorman Walter Cronkite
Walter Cronkite
Walter Leland Cronkite, Jr. was an American broadcast journalist, best known as anchorman for the CBS Evening News for 19 years . During the heyday of CBS News in the 1960s and 1970s, he was often cited as "the most trusted man in America" after being so named in an opinion poll...
. He covered the 1980 Presidential campaign and the first Ronald Reagan inauguration. In 1981, Alben worked on the controversial CBS Reports Documentary, "The Uncounted Enemy, A Vietnam Deception," which sparked a $100 Million libel suit between General William C. Westmoreland and CBS News. The suit settled in 1985, with no payment, but a statement from CBS that Westmoreland "had done his duty as he saw fit." By this time, Alben had left CBS for Stanford Law School, where he graduated in 1984. Alben's work at CBS and on "The Uncounted Enemy" documentary are cited in the Sam Adams biography, "Who The Hell Are We Fighting?" C. Michael Haim, Steerforth Press, 2006. Adams's book, "War of Numbers," posthumously published in 1994, was the basis for the documentary.
Alben participated in Stanford University's undergraduate program in Arms Control in 1980 (A.B.) and received a J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1984. He worked for Senator Claiborne Pell, Democrat of Rhode Island, on the Foreign Relations Committee and Senator John Culver, Democrat of Iowa, on the Armed Services Committee during the Senate's consideration of the SALT II treaty.
Alben began work in 1985 as an entertainment lawyer for the Beverly Hills, CA, firm of Rosenfeld, Meyer & Susman. He moved on to legal and business affairs for Orion Pictures
Orion Pictures
Orion Pictures Corporation was an American independent production company that produced movies from 1978 until 1998. It was formed in 1978 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and three former top-level executives of United Artists. Although it was never a large motion picture producer, Orion...
and Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
, before moving to the Seattle area in 1993.
Prior to running for Congress in 2004, Alben served as General Counsel and V.P. Business Affairs for Starwave Corporation and head of government affairs for RealNetworks
RealNetworks
RealNetworks, Inc. is a provider of Internet media delivery software and services based in Downtown Seattle, Washington, United States. The company is the creator of RealAudio, a compressed audio format; RealVideo, a compressed video format; RealPlayer, a media player; RealDownloader, a download...
. At Starwave, Alben worked on pioneering CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
products and helped launch popular web sites such as ABCNews.com and ESPN.com
ESPN.com
ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN and a division of ESPN Inc. Since launching in 1995 as ESPNet.SportsZone.com, the website has developed numerous sections including: Page 2, SportsNation, ESPN 3.com, ESPN Motion, My ESPN, ESPN Sports Travel, ESPN Video Games, ESPN Insider, ESPN.com's...
. As a RealNetworks Vice President, Alben worked on the "RealJukebox" music management project, which contributed to the proliferation of MP3 music files, both legally and illegally disseminated across the Internet. On behalf of the technology industry, Alben testified before the U.S. Copyright Office, Senate Judiciary Committee and House Commerce Committee on the digital distribution of music and the importance of creating authorized channels for the distribution of Internet Radio and music downloads. In testimony before the Senate in 2002 as Vice President of public policy for RealNetworks, Alben predicted that web video was evolving so rapidly that one day all television programs would be found on the Internet. (Source: CNN)
Along with record label and high tech executives, he participated in the founding of the Secure Digital Music Initiative and the Digital Media Association. Alben's work as an entertainment attorney and as counsel for Starwave are explored in the book, "Free Culture," by Lawrence Lessig, Penguin Press, 2004, which describes Starwave's efforts to license digital rights for products such as a CD-ROM based on the film career of Clint Eastwood.
Alben is the author of a comedy-spy novel, Our Man In Mongoa, published by Charles Scribner's Sons. Regarding Our Man In Mongoa, Publishers Weekly wrote: "Alben writes smoothly, with terrific pace and even better humor, which, deliciously deadpan, skewers even moving targets." From 2005 to 2008, he wrote opinion pieces about politics and media for The New York Times, Seattle Times and Seattle Post-Intelligencer. His initial editorial about his experience running for Congress, "Real Candidates Have Curves," appeared in The New York Times, Opinion, September 27, 2004.
2004 Congressional Campaign
Alben ran a centrist campaign, according to "September Primary A Necessary Vote," The Seattle Post Intelligencer, August 5, 2004, emphasizing his experience in the high tech world and his active participation in the Digital Millennium Copyright ActDigital Millennium Copyright Act
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act is a United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization . It criminalizes production and dissemination of technology, devices, or services intended to circumvent measures that control access to...
and other issues affecting the software industry. Alben won the endorsement of the Seattle Times, the Seattle Post Intelligencer and the King County Journal. The Seattle Times, September 12, 2004, "The Times Endorses . . ." "In The Northwest: Finding 8th District front-runner is no Dunn deal," By Joel Connelly, The Seattle Post-Intelligencer, August 23, 2004.
During the course of the campaign, Alben publicly criticized radio talk show host Dave Ross
Dave Ross
Dave Ross is a talk show host on Seattle's KIRO-FM radio station, with whom he had been a news anchor from 1978 until his talk show started nine years later in 1987. He has sometimes broadcast his show while on assignment in other locations, including overseas, such as Baghdad, Iraq in April...
, for remaining on his daily radio program, "The Dave Ross" show while actively fund-raising and campaigning as a candidate for federal office. Alben claimed that Ross's activity violated federal campaign finance law, according to the New York Times, in an article published June 12, 2004.
Alben was one of three Democrats vying for the party's nomination (the other two being interior designer Heidi Behrens-Benedict
Heidi Behrens-Benedict
Heidi Behrens-Benedict, an American political candidate. She has been a four-time candidate for the United States House of Representatives, running as a Democrat in the Eighth Congressional District of Washington...
and radio personality Dave Ross). Alben was endorsed for Congress by The Seattle Times, Seattle Post Intelligencer, King County Journal and numerous local organizations. Ross won the primary election held 14 September 2004, but then lost to the Republican nominee in the general election on 2 November 2004. Reichert won reelection in 2006 and a third term in 2008.