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.kids: Safe Sites for Kids
With Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.)
Wednesday, July 25, 2001; 1:30 p.m. EDT
Worried about your kids surfing the Internet? How can you tell if a site is appropriate for a child to view?
Join Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.), to talk about the Dot Kids Domain Name Act of 2001.
Taking a key part in protecting children online, Shimkus and Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass. and other lawmakers introduced a new legislation mandating the creation of a ".kids" Internet domain. The sites would be designed to serve as a safe online haven for children.
Under the bill, the U.S. Department of Commerce would impel the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to include .kids alongside .com, .net and .org.
The debate is whether ICANN would approve and accept the domain.
Read the recent article "Lawmakers Spur ICANN On '.Kids."
Below is the transcript.
Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control
over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.
washingtonpost.com:
Welcome to an online discussion with Rep. John Shimkus (R-Ill.) to talk about the .Kids Domain Name Act of 2001. If you are concerned about your kids safely surfing the Internet, send in your questions now.
Rep. Shimkus, can you tell us about your recent press conference introducing the .kids bill. What are the key points our readers need to know? Also, what does your bill mean in regards to federal regulations of Internet sites?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: First, let me thank you for allowing this on-line discussion. I want to apologize in advance to you and your readers for any type-o's I may make while trying to answer your questions.
Congressman Ed Markey of MA and wanted to create a voluntary sight where kids could go to find information that was kid friendly. ICANN is a nonporfit corporation that assigns top level domain names. just as they assing .biz .edu .com they should be able to do a .kids
Iowa City, Iowa:
Congressman, it's very nice to see someone offering a new kids domain, but one immediate problem I see is determining what is appropriate for the kids domain. For example would a Britney Spears website (perhaps called www.britney-spears.kids) be appropriate? I know many parents who don't allow their kids to listen to Ms. Spears because they consider her to be an inappropriate role model for young women. Furthermore Ms. Spears (along with a fellow singer Christina Aguilera) sometimes dress in provocative clothing which many parents disapprove of like the way Ms. Aguilera dresses in her latest video. Would the kids domain ban certain pictures of Ms. Spears or Ms. Aguilera because they consider them to be too provocative? Yet both Ms. Spears and Ms. Aguilera are fairly popular with the younger set.
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: That is a very good question. There will be a board established of pro family and pro kid groups that will set the standards and review for compliance. The Department of commerce will have a say in a review of appropriate sites also.
Vienna, Va.:
What are the main points of your bill and where can I find it? Are you getting overwhelming support or grief about censorship?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: Go to www.congress.gov and look up HR 2417. That will give you my bill. The system is user friendly and you shouldn't have a problem. I have a lot of support for the concept. It does take some time to explain Top Level Domain Names, their roles, who administers and why we have them. Since we have taken a green light approach and it is voluntary on both ends we feel we have addressed the censorship issue.
Oakton, Va.:
Rep. Shimkus, what I'd like to know is why should what is legally or not legally available on the Internet be an issue at all if a child is told by his parents not to look at certain web sites? If a child is raised in a proper moral upbringing (too many aren't these days), he or she, first of all, will not WANT to look at garbage (even with peer pressure). Then there is the matter of obedience. A parental order not to go into certain areas means just that, DO NOT. It doesn't mean wait until parents are not at home, then do it. It does not mean do it if it is legally available and don't if it is not. It doesn't mean do it it all of your friends are doing it. It doesn't mean do it and then find an excuse for doing it. No, it means DON'T DO IT, PERIOD. I know that when I was a kid, my parents didn't HAVE to tell me not to involve myself with trash for the most part, I had enough sense not to get mixed up with porn, drugs, alcohol, sex, etc.
The problem is we're trying to rely on laws to take the place of basic morals and it just isn't working. There is no substitute for common sense and obedience.
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: This does not absolve anyone of parental responsibility. It is an additional tool to assist. Be careful researching the whitehouse and do not make any top level domain name mistake . You may be surprised.
Nashville, Ill.:
How will a '.kids' domain assist parents?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: I wish you had access to my last answer. .Kids is a tool to assist parents. Nothing can take the place of parenting responsibility. .kids is a voluntary site for kids and those who want to provide information to kids that will be reviewed periodically for kid friendly content. Those who want to provide information on .kids will have to meet high standards.
Silver Spring, Md.:
Mr. Congressman; Why should the Federal Government dictate what kids have access to on the Internet? This is primarily a parental responsibility. A properly raised child will not want to waste his time with on-line trash. He or she will have "gotten a life" and will use the Internet for more important things, like academic research or setting up their own accounts. Putting trash on the web sites means nothing, legally or otherwise, if kids simply stay away from it.
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: This is voluntary. This is an aid to those parents who can not watch their kids 24-7. Parent could at least be assured that setting their kids search to .kids only would have high standards for kid friendly material with a periodic audits to insure material remains kid friendly.
Bowie, Md.:
Won't adding ".kids" to a domain name make a lot of kids LESS likely to want to visit the sites?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: Maybe, but with good parental involvement hopefully those desires will be minimized. part of this legislation has the Department of commerce advertising this site som parents know of its availability. After my press conference at a local high school in Illinois two kids came up and thought it was a pretty good idea.
Arlington, Va.:
Congressman, any thoughts on how this effort might undercut ICANN's global influence?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: this bill should help ICANN gain more influence globally. Currently their system is not transparent with no criteria by which winners and losers are selected. ICANN is constantly criticized for this. My bill forces ICANN to establish a system for winners and losers and this should serve as a precedent for future selections. Our bill also has an appeal process for those excluded from the domain.
Alexandria, Va. 22305:
What distinguishes Republicans from Democrats on Internet policy? Is this an area where partisan differences don't actually exist?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: This happens a lot more than people believe on many issues. the biggest debates are internet freedom and privacy issues. These bring interesting coalitions together.
Silver Spring, Md.:
Which committee has jurisdiction on your bill? Will there be hearings?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: I along with Congressman Markey both serve on the energy and commerce full committee. This bill has been referred to the subcommittee on Telecom. Both Ed and I also serve on this committee. Ed is the ranking member. Chairman Upton has agreed to have a hearing in the fall.
Arlington, Va.:
Congressman:
While there are many complaints about ICANN, many Internet lovers also credit the relative lack of government meddling as crucial to the development of the Web. How does your ".kids" Act fit into this debate?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: It is a voluntary domain.
Silver Spring, Md.:
What good would it do to "require" this TLD, when you cannot require providers to register domains in the .kids TLD? Or do you propose doing that? And how do you propose to keep entities in other countries from registering "unacceptable" sites in the .kids TLD?
Wouldn't it be simpler, and much less intrusive, to urge companies to create their own subdomains especially for kids, such as kids.disney.com, kids.whitehouse.gov?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: I subscribe to the KISS principle. It's an old army acronym that stands for Keep It Simple Stupid. Interested parties could easily have a Disney.kids or a whitehouse.kids. There is a benefit of having kids surf only in the .kids domain. International entities will have to have permission to use .kids and their material will be periodically reviewed.
Nashville, Ill.:
Will websites be able to have both a .com or .org site and a .kids site?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: yes
Northwest, Washington, D.C.:
I like the idea of a .kids domain. But it got me thinking.. How do you keep kids safe from pediphiles lurking? Will there be chat rooms, etc.?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: The independent baord will have to address the chat room issue. If they feel that there is danger lurking they may feel they must disallow chat rooms.
Arlington, Va.:
First of all, let me say that I think .kids is a great idea and ICANN should be ashamed of itself for not instituting it on its own. My question, though, is whether Congress can actually implement this change. ICANN, as I understand it, is an allegedly international non-profit organization charged with setting worldwide standards. Even if your bill passes, can you actually compel ICANN to do what you want?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: ICANN was established by a Memorandum of Understanding with the Department of commerce. Until that memorandum expires and ICANN becomes independent congress can direct ICANN to create .kids.
Arlington, Va.:
Rep. Shimkus,
I am sure there are several companies and associations in the D.C. area alone that support your measure -- are you hearing much support from the private sector or NPOs and NGOs?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: We just did the major press availability yesterday. We hope that the NGO's and NPO's will lend their vocal support to what Ed and I are trying to do.
Vienna, Va.:
How does President Bush feel about this program, does he support it?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: As someone who has espoused "no child left behind" and a true compassionate conservative I hope he would be supportive.
Somewhere, USA:
Congressman Shimkus, what kind of reaction are you getting for .Kids from fellow Republican lawmakers, as well as Democrats on the Hill?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: This is a bipartisan non ideological issue. We are getting support from a large spectrum of our colleagues.
Falls Church, Va.:
Are you a member of the Congressional Internet Caucus?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: yes
Nashville, Illinois:
How can websites sign up for a .kids site?
Rep. John Shimkus R-Ill.: whoever wins the application process to set up the .kids domain will design standards and an application process to those who want to use the .kids domain. If the applicant is denied there will be an appeal process available.
I want to thank the Washington Post for this opportunity. My 2:30 appointment has arrived and I must go. Thanks for your questions.
washingtonpost.com:
That was our last question today. Thanks to everyone who joined the
discussion.
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