NEWS
Federal Communications Commission
445 12th Street, S.W.
Washington, D. C.  20554
This is an unofficial announcement of Commission action.  Release of the full text of a Commission order constitutes official action.
See MCI v. FCC. 515 F 2d 385 (D.C. Circ 1974).
News Media Information 202 / 418-0500
Internet: http://www.fcc.gov
TTY: 1-888-835-5322
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  NEWS MEDIA CONTACT:
July 17, 2008 Greg Orlando at (202) 418-2500
STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER DEBORAH TAYLOR TATE ON AGREEMENT BY 
THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN AND THE 
CABLE INDUSTRY TO FIGHT CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
FCC Commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate issued the following statement on today’s 
announcement:
“Today’s announcement is good news for America’s families.  This partnership 
constitutes a ground-breaking step toward protecting children in the online world – just 
as in the offline one -- and I applaud the work of the National Center for Missing and 
Exploited Children and National Cable and Telecommunications Association.
With the proliferation of internet crimes but especially child pornography that continues 
to threaten our children, now more than ever it is critical that every segment of society 
contributes to the solution.  Many parents still do not realize that the “virtual world” our 
children inhabit is actually a very real world and we must protect them as they travel the 
cyberspace highways of today.
This agreement, supported by 45 Attorneys General, takes an important step in that 
direction, giving cable operators who provide internet service the tools to effectively 
guard against the proliferation of child pornography on their servers, and help build a 
barrier to protect children from unlawful content.  With the information provided, cable 
providers will have critical access to lists of child pornography websites identified by 
Center experts so that those sites can be purged from their servers, material can be 
reported, and offenders duly referred to law enforcement for punishment.  I applaud this 
type of voluntary partnership, and I encourage all cable operators to take advantage of 
this data to protect the children and families that use their networks.”  
I again commend the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the cable 
industry for their vision and commitment to protecting our country’s most valuable 
resource – our children.”