YNOT – Diane Duke will continue to lead the Free Speech Coalition at least through 2015, the board of directors for the adult industry trade association announced Friday. Along with a new contract came a change in Duke’s title: She becomes the organization’s chief executive officer instead of executive director.
“Duke’s tenure with the organization is marked by extraordinary achievements,” said FSC President Sidney Grief. “She has brought fiscal discipline and transparency to the Free Speech Coalition, impressing long-time critics of the organization’s operations, leading to important industry figures recommitting to our trade association.”
Before taking the reins at FSC, Duke served 12 years as senior vice president for Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon, where she was responsible for the oversight of board development, public affairs, fundraising, marketing and media relations, budget development and strategic planning. She holds a masters degree in business administration from the University of Oregon.
Since joining the FSC Duke has led the efforts to battle ICM Registry’s dot-xxx sponsored Top Level Domain, oppose the State of California’s initiative to mandate condoms on adult film sets, establish an effective replacement for the Adult Industry Medical database and provide a range of anti-piracy tools for studios. Duke’s poise and professionalism have helped to convey a pro-industry message to mainstream media and the public.
“In addition to her accomplishments as the industry’s chief policy executive, her administration of FSC itself has been spectacular,” said Grief, owner of AAA News, a chain of adult stores in Texas. “She has recruited extraordinary staff, people committed to the mission of improving the lives of the people who make up the adult industry. She has dramatically improved every aspect of the operation.”
FSC Chairman Jeffrey J. Douglas noted, “Duke has also brought the entire industry credibility in her relationships with non-adult interest groups and legislatures. Whether in Sacramento, Washington, D.C. or the international stage of [the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers], she is respected and admired.
“Diane has nurtured successful relationships long needed for the industry to thrive, including chambers of commerce, healthcare providers, the [Motion Picture Association of America] and financial institutions,” he cotinued. “She has inspired some of the nation’s finest lawyers to provide free or substantially discounted services to benefit the industry as a whole. She is esteemed by the widest possible range of the disparate and often contentious leaders of the contemporary adult industry.
“The adult industry is privileged to have her as its principal — and principled — voice.”
The FSC’s board of directors extended its heartiest congratulations and deepest appreciation to Duke.
For more information about the organization, visit FreeSpeechCoalition.com.
