The National Telecommunications and Information Administration appointed IEF Executive Director Tim Lordan to the NTIA’s Online Safety and Technology Working Group that was established as part of the “Protecting Children in the 21st Century Act.” In the appointment letter dated April 1, 2009 NTIA Acting Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information Anna Gomez noted “President Obama recognizes the importance of protecting the safety and privacy of our children as they explore the riches of the Web. The President is also committed to helping parents better understand what content their children will see and to ensuring that they have the tools to respond.” Executive Director Lordan enthusiastically accepted the appointment.

The GetNetWise Blog is a new, periodic instructional blog dedicated to helping families and computer users make their Internet use safer and more rewarding. The GNW Blog will draw from the tremendous encyclopedic resources available at GetNetWise and provide actionable tips on Internet safety and security. The Blog will also present the many instructional Internet safety “how-to” video tutorials featured on GetNetWise with additional notes and context.

The Internet has transformed our lives and the lives of our children. The core mission of the GNW Blog is to empower users to harness the power of the Internet and provide them the basic literacy skills need to do so safely, privately and securely. The GNW Blog offers only help and instruction, not value judgments. We hope you will become regular readers and refer your friends, families and colleagues to the blog.

Please visit the GetNetWise Blog at http://www.getnetwise.org/blog/ that already contains two entries complete with video tutorials: the first one on using password protection in Apple OS X, and another on making social networking sites more private. Be sure to add our RSS feed to your preferred RSS reader.

Yesterday National Public Radio aired a pair of very balanced stories on middle and high school students’ expectations of online privacy and attitudes toward safety. The pieces were very balanced and also provided parents help in dealing with their kids’ online experiences. The second segment of the show directed parents to GetNetWise.org for advice. Over the years we have spent a great deal of time addressing the issues related to the churning state of youth expectations of privacy. GetNetWise’s Social Networking Spotlight helps parents can learn more about making social networking profiles more private.

NPR’s Two Part Series:

* Digital Culture: Teens Take Advantage of Online Privacy Tools (6:37)
* Digital Culture: Teens’ Online “Friends” Often Number in the Hundreds (6:13)