DPI In the News





Who We Are

Joel Thayer, President of the Digital Progress Institute, previously was an associate at Phillips Lytle. Before that, he served as Policy Counsel for ACT | The App Association, where he advised on legal and policy issues related to antitrust, telecommunications, privacy, cybersecurity and intellectual property in Washington, DC. His experience also includes working as legal clerk for FCC Chairman Ajit Pai and FTC Commissioner Maureen Ohlhausen. Additionally, Joel served as a congressional staffer for the Hon. Lee Terry and Hon. Mary Bono.
Nick Degani, Chief Strategist at the Digital Progress Institute, previously served as Senior Counsel to FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. He also served as Acting General Counsel and Wireline Legal Advisor to Commissioner Pai. Before that, Nick served in other roles at the FCC and on the Energy and Commerce Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives. He also clerked for Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton on the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.


Kim Keenan is the first female co-chair of the Internet Innovation Alliance (IIA), a broad-based coalition of business and non-profit organizations working to ensure every American has access to broadband Internet. She has a special interest in privacy and tech policy. She is also a Mediator/Arbitrator for JAMS, a nationally recognized dispute resolution service.
Kate Forscey is the Principal and Founder of KRF Strategies LLC. She has served as Senior Technology Policy Advisor for Congresswoman Anna G. Eshoo and Policy Counsel at Public Knowledge. Prior to PK, Kate spent several years as an associate at several Washington-based firms before choosing technology advocacy as her passion. Kate graduated with a B.A. from University of Virginia and a J.D. from Vanderbilt University Law School.


Mike Wacker is a contributing fellow for the Digital Progress Institute. He was previously a software engineer at Microsoft and Google and a tech fellow for Congressman Gus Bilirakis. He holds a Master’s Degree in computer science from Arizona State University and a B.S. from Cornell University.
