Press Contact: Danielle Yates, Internet Education Foundation
202.638.4370 or dyates@neted.org
Major Technology and Media Organizations,
Non-Profits Launch Project Online Safety
Educational Campaign to Promote Internet Safety
via Online Portal, PSAs
February 7, 2007 – A broad array of technology companies, media organizations, trade associations and nonprofits announced today their collaboration in launching Project Online Safety, an educational campaign focused on promoting Internet safety for children. The initiative provides parents and children with a centralized online resource of Internet safety tools and educational materials at www.ProjectOnlineSafety.com, and supports and encourages the broadcast of a series of related national public service advertisements (PSAs) being sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) and the Ad Council.
Project Online Safety is part of an ongoing, industry-wide effort working with leading advocacy organizations to educate parents and children about the importance of online safety. The partners of the initiative that are investing resources to support online safety programs are AT&T, BlogSafety.com, Cable in the Classroom (CIC), Charter Communications, Comcast, Cox Communications, Facebook, Fox Interactive Media (MySpace), Internet Education Foundation, National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), Network Solutions, News Corp., Qwest Communications, Time Warner Cable and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC).
This educational campaign addresses concerns regarding abuse of the Internet to victimize children online. Many companies are currently taking important measures to reduce the potential threats posed by Internet predators and to prosecute individuals who utilize the Internet to prey upon children. For example, companies participating in Project Online Safety are conducting a variety of activities, including national traveling education programs; conducting extensive law enforcement training sessions; and designating specific online locations where parents, guardians and children can learn how they can have safer and more rewarding experiences on the Internet.
Technology and media companies are also marshaling the experience and resources of non-profit advocacy organizations in developing best practices for online safety to further promote a safe online experience. At the BlogSafety.com forum, for example, parents can share intelligence and learn about successful strategies developed by other parents to support safe blogging and social networking. Also, the Congressional Internet Caucus Advisory Committee has aggregated information about the respective efforts of various online and technology companies to help safeguard children while online.
Online Portal
In conjunction with the initiative, a new online portal at www.ProjectOnlineSafety.com serves as a central repository where parents, guardians, teachers and children can access numerous Internet safety tools and educational materials, which are made available by the participating companies and organizations. The site serves as a portal through which users may access resources on specific topic areas of interest, such as parental control technologies, ways to report trouble online, cyberbullying, and safe web sites for children. In addition, users can also click on a participating technology company or advocacy organization web page to review their online safety materials and read more about their efforts to help protect children’s online experiences.
By offering one point of access to the wealth of valuable information about Internet safety, ProjectOnlineSafety.com can more effectively educate parents and children about the importance of online safety and empower children to have safer experiences online.
PSAs on Internet Safety
In conjunction with this initiative, the partners will devote resources toward distributing and encouraging the broadcast of PSAs on Internet safety. The PSAs, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Justice, NCMEC, and the Ad Council, are designed to educate parents and guardians about measures they can take to better protect their children online, and to instruct teens on how to be smart and maintain safe online relationships in order to reduce risks of sexual exploitation and abduction.
The PSAs direct parents, guardians, and teens to visit www.cybertipline.com to learn about safe and responsible use of the Internet, as well as how to report threats. Administered by NCMEC, the CyberTipline is a reporting mechanism for child sexual exploitation. Reports can be made on the website or by calling 1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678). The PSAs will run on cable, broadcast and Internet properties, including being accessible through links on the web sites of participating companies and organizations.
A third series of these PSAs will be released and will run this spring. This series will continue to engage teenage Internet users with the message of protecting themselves online by not posting images or information that might put them at risk. The PSAs were created pro bono by advertising agency Merkley + Partners.
Other organizations interested in participating in the Project Online Safety initiative should contact Danielle Yates, Internet Education Foundation at 202.638.4370 or dyates@neted.org.
Following are quotes provided by executives representing the companies and organizations that are participating in Project Online Safety.
AT&T
“AT&T, as the nation’s leading broadband provider, has a long-standing commitment to protecting children online and safeguarding their Internet experience,” said Dorothy Attwood, senior vice president of regulatory planning and policy for AT&T. “As the Internet is impacted by a wide variety of stakeholders, industry initiatives—such as Project Online Safety—are a critical component of these efforts as they provide additional opportunities to raise awareness of how to create a safer online environment for children.”
BLOGSAFETY.COM
“BlogSafety.com is basically social networking for parents concerned about social networking, and we’re delighted to be the interactive part of this convenient, one-stop spot on the Web for the best online-safety information,” said Anne Collier, co-director of BlogSafety.com. “We welcome the questions, comments, and stories of everyone interested in the social Web.”
CABLE IN THE CLASSROOM (CIC)
“Cable in the Classroom, the national education foundation of the cable industry, is committed to providing educators and parents with the information, skills and knowledge they need to ensure that children and youth use the Internet safely and responsibly,” said Helen Soulé, Ph.D., Executive Director, Cable in the Classroom. “Working with and on behalf of cable companies and programming networks, CIC is pleased to extend its decade long advocacy for media literacy education through this important initiative.”
CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS
“Charter is proud to join this industry-wide effort to help make online safety information available to our nation’s youth,” said Jay Carlson, senior vice president of information technology for Charter Communications. “With the provision of powerful communication tools comes responsibility, and Charter takes the responsibility of raising awareness and education very seriously.”
COMCAST
“As the leading high-speed Internet service provider, we are continuing to provide a superior Internet experience, and that includes providing tools and information to make that experience safe,” said David L. Cohen, executive vice president, Comcast. “We’re especially pleased to be working with our long-time partners at the Ad Council, our good friends at NCMEC, and other leading organizations on this important broad-based initiative.”
COX COMMUNICATIONS
“Cox offers free parental control software to all of our high-speed Internet customers, but we don’t stop there. Cox continues to dedicate major resources to educating parents and children about Internet safety through our partnership with the NCMEC and our Take Charge! program,” said Ellen East, vice president of communications and public affairs for Cox Communications. “As part of this effort, Cox will continue airing parent and child targeted PSAs from NCMEC. To date, Cox has aired NCMEC’s PSAs more than 735,000 times, representing ad value of $18.5 million.”
“Facebook has invested heavily in building technology that creates a safe and trusted online environment for our millions of users. The site’s segmented network architecture and extensive privacy tools give users the control to share information with only the people they want to see it.” said Chris Kelly, chief privacy officer, Facebook. “We are proud to be among the technology companies joining this initiative in an effort to further education about online safety.”
QWEST COMMUNICATIONS
“As a preferred provider of high-speed Internet service for millions of consumers, Qwest is a also a leading steward of the technology through our online safety education program, located at IncredibleInternet.com,” said Paula Kruger, Qwest executive vice president of mass markets group and leader of the Qwest Online Safety Program. “We are pleased to work with members of Project Online Safety to promote new resources that contribute to this cause.”
NATIONAL CABLE & TELECOMMUNICATIONS ASSOCIATION (NCTA)
“Just as we’ve worked for many years to help families manage the flow of video programming into their homes, cable is committed to helping our millions of high-speed Internet customers enjoy a safe and quality online experience,” said Kyle McSlarrow, president and CEO, NCTA. “We’re proud to be affiliated with this effort to provide families with tools to increase Internet literacy and provide a safe Internet environment for children.”
NEWS CORPORATION
“News Corp is committed to making the Internet as safe as possible,” said Hemanshu Nigam, chief security officer, Fox Interactive Media. “We have been leveraging the full power of News Corp’s broad distribution channels to promote online safety and we're delighted to be working with so many responsible media organizations on this important awareness initiative.”
NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING & EXPLOITED CHILDREN
“The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children is pleased to be a partner in Project Online Safety,” said Ernie Allen, president and CEO of NCMEC. “By offering one point of access to our collective Internet safety resources, we can more effectively equip parents and their children with the tools they need to have safer experiences online.”
TIME WARNER CABLE
“Time Warner Cable joins this industry-wide initiative as a perfect complement to earlier efforts we have already undertaken in the area of educating parents and children about online safety,” said Lynn Yaeger, executive vice president for corporate affairs. “We provide free Parental Control software to all Road Runner online customers, which allows parents to customize websites their children can view and also allows parents to view a list of all sites their kids have attempted to view. Time Warner Cable has also partnered with Common Sense Media, which provides a host of reviews, ratings and content information to help parents make informed choices about websites and then use the Parent Control software to limit access to any unsuitable content.”
WEBWISEKIDS.ORG
Web Wise Kids is a non-profit organization dedicated to empowering today’s youth and their parents to make wise choices online. Using high tech computer game simulations to communicate Internet safety, we educate kids to be their own first line of defense.
