Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) on Monday asked Sony Pictures to arrange a screening of “The Interview” at the Capitol for members of Congress.
Sherman argued allowing lawmakers to see the film would educate them about its contents and allow them to make a show of solidarity with the American film industry.
{mosads}”I think it’s important for Congress to know, and see, what we are talking about,” Sherman wrote in a letter to Sony Pictures CEO Michael Lynton. “Screening ‘The Interview’ will demonstrate the U.S. Congress’s support of the freedom of speech.”
Sony canceled the Christmas Day release of the film, which depicts the assassination of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, after hackers threatened attacks reminiscent of Sept. 11 on movie theaters.
The FBI has accused the North Korean government of facilitating the hack on Sony Pictures, which resulted in the release of internal company emails.
Sherman, whose district includes parts of Los Angeles, said a Capitol screening of the satirical film would show the United States will not be intimidated by totalitarian regimes.
“It is now the responsibility of the U.S. government to allocate the necessary resources to ensure moviegoers’ safety,” Sherman said. “This is about our right to live without fear, and knowing that our values will not be compromised by the idle threats of a despotic regime.”
Sen. David Vitter (R-La.) has also called for a screening of “The Interview,” but at the White House.
Sherman also wants to boost funding for Voice of America, the external broadcast institution of the U.S. government that distributes news around the world, including in North Korea.
“The proper response to their terror against our free speech is to give them a double dose of free speech,” Sherman told The Hill in an interview.
Right now, Sherman said, Voice of America directs broadcasts into North Korea for 11 hours a day through radio towers it leases in South Korea.
“We’ve got to go to 24 hours a day,” he said. “What we need to do is build our own tower and aim it right at North Korea.”
Cory Bennett contributed.
Updated at 4:39 p.m.