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 not  just  an  FCC  Commissioner  but  also  a  consumer  like  you.  As  a  Commissioner,  I  need  to  be  using  these  everyday  experiences  to  help  me  be  a  champion  for  the 
 thing  consumers  and  parents  need.  I  can  never  forget  that  deciding  technical  things  like  “allocating  spectrum”  might  mean  that  when  I  drive  through  rural 
 Tennessee,  my  cell  phone  might  not  work  somewhere. 
 3.  Educator.  How  many  of  you  know  how  to  use  the  V-  Chip  on  your  television?  How  many  of  you  know  what  the  ratings  on  television  programs  mean?  How 
 many  of  you  know  if  your  TV  will  still  work  when  broadcasters  switch  over  to  digital  transmission?  The  communications  world  moves  so  fast  that  it’s  almost 
 impossible  for  anyone  to  keep  up  with  it.  It’s  important  for  policy  makers  to  be  educators.  We  have  streamlined  our  consumer  complaint  forms,  regularly 
 participate  in  consumer  education  forums,  and  of  course  speak  at  events  like  this  all  across  the  country. 


 4.  Facilitator.  One  of  my  first  meetings  as  a  Commissioner  was  with  a  group  representing  the  television  industry,  advertisers,  and  advocates  for  children.  I  was 
 pleased  when  they  presented  me  with  a  proposal  that  they  had  worked  out  to  address  some  of  the  issues  the  FCC  is  considering  related  to  children’s  television. 
 I  applaud  the  willingness  of  different  parties  with  competing  interests  to  get  together  to  find  a  compromise  that  tries  to  benefit  everyone.  I  want  to  help  others 
 do  the  same  thing.  There’s  a  good  chance  that  the  best  solution  to  a  problem  is  going  to  be  a  consensus  solution  that  takes  into  account  the  concerns  of  all  the 
 parties. 
 I  encourage  you  to  take  on  these  roles  for  yourselves  and  make  a  difference  for  your  country.  Be  the  lawyer  who  brings  the  cable  industry  and  children’s  advocates  together 
 and  comes  up  with  a  way  to  make  television  a  positive  force  in  children’s  lives.  Be  the  doctor  who  suggests  ways  to  use  media  to  fight  childhood  obesity.  Be  the  broadcaster 
 who  finds  a  better  way  to  warn  citizens  in  an  emergency.  Be  the  inventor  who  comes  up  with  ideas  that  improve  distance  learning  or  provide  better  telemedicine.  Be  the  investor 
 who  funds  the  next  great  idea  that  changes  the  way  we  talk  to  each  other.  Be  the  informed  consumer  who  talks  to  your  television  station,  your  phone  company,  or  your 
 Congressman. 
 I  recently  wrote  an  Op  Ed  for  the  Washington  Times  about  indecency  on  television  and  at  the  end  I  quoted  from  a  speech  by  Edward  R.  Murrow  in  which  he  talks  about  what 
 television  could  do  for  our  society.  His  words  are  equally  applicable  to  all  technology:  “This  instrument  can  teach,  it  can  illuminate;  yes  and  it  can  even  inspire.  But  it  can  do  so 
 only  to  the  extent  that  humans  are  determined  to  use  it  to  those  ends.”  What  are  you  going  to  do  to  see  that  technology  fulfills  the  promise  that  we  all  know  it  can  have? 


 Thank  you. 
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