Children and Media:

Parenting in the Technological Age

Conference Agenda

Robertson Hall - Dodds Auditorium, Bowl 16
Princeton University
May 1, 2008

7:00 - 7:15	INTRODUCTION	Elisabeth H. Donahue, Associate Editor, Future of Children
8:45 - 10:15	SPEAKERS	Meeting in MySpace: Promise and Peril in the New Online Social Network Kathryn C. Montgomery, Professor, School of Communication, American University Kathryn Montgomery is a professor in the Public Communication division. She comes to American University with more than 25 years of experience in both the nonprofit field and academe. For 12 years, she was President of the DC-based Center for Media Education (CME), which she co-founded in 1991. During her tenure at CME, Montgomery's research, publications, and testimony helped frame the national public policy debate on a range of critical media issues. She led a coalition of child advocacy, health, and education groups in a series of successful advocacy campaigns, leaving behind a legacy of policies on behalf of children and families. They include: a Federal Communications Commission rule requiring a minimum of three hours per week of educational/informational television programming for children; a content-based ratings system for TV programs; and the first federal legislation to protect children's privacy on the Internet. Before moving to Washington, DC, Montgomery was a media studies professor at California State University, Los Angeles, and at the University of California, Los Angeles. She is the author of Target: Prime Time - Advocacy Groups and the Struggle over Entertainment Television (Oxford University Press, 1989) - named "Outstanding Academic book of 1989-1990" by Choice Magazine. Montgomery currently directs the Project on Youth, Media, and Democracy through AU's Center for Social Media. The project's 2004 report, "Youth as E-Citizens," documented the variety of ways that young people are using the Internet for politics and civic engagement. Her most recent book is Generation Digital: Politics, Commerce, and Childhood in the Age of the Internet, (The MIT Press, 2007). She received her Ph.D. in Motion Pictures and Television from UCLA. Cyber Savvy Children: What you and your children need to know Nancy Willard, Executive Director, Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use Nancy Willard, M.S., J.D. is the director of the Center for Safe and Responsible Internet Use. She has degrees in special education and law and taught “at risk” children, practiced computer law, and was an educational technology consultant before focusing her professional attention on issues of youth risk online and effective management of student Internet use. Willard frequently conducts workshops for educators on youth risk and Internet use and has written numerous articles on this subject. Nancy is author of two books. Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Cruelty, Threats, and Distress (Research Press), provides educators with insight into the concerns of cyberbullying, plus guidance on how schools can review cyberbullying incidents and effectively respond. Cyber-Safe Kids, Cyber-Savvy Teens, Helping Young People Use the Internet Safety and Responsibly (Jossey Bass) provides parents with insight into youth behavior online, specific risks, and effective strategies to protect younger children and empower teens to make good choices online.
8:45 - 9:00	Close	Lisa Markman, Associate Director, Education Research Section, Outreach Director, Future of Children Journal
		Registration is requested but is not required. A related special conference for school administrators, “Students and Elecronic Media: Teaching in the Technological Age” will be held on Friday, May 2 beginning at 8:30 a.m. in Robertson Hall. Additional information is available at www.futureofchildren.princeton.edu/media.