Jemal Public Affairs

Politico.com
Suite Talk July 21, 2009
Voices for Children gets a PR lift

Jemal Public Affairs is now the go-to consulting firm for Voices for Children, a San Diego-based child advocacy organization.

The partnership was established to help the nonprofit promote its government relations and public awareness initiatives. But San Diego’s overburdened foster care system has resulted in limited resources and funding for the organization’s special projects.

So Jemal will also work to secure additional government funding and educate elected officials on its achievements and work.

Bill Would Provide Funding to Programs Educating Children and Teens on Safely Using the Internet and Mobile Technologies

Orange County, Calif. and Washington, D.C., July, 16, 2009 – Web Wise Kids applauds the introduction of bipartisan legislation that would provide funding to programs educating children how to safely, securely and ethically use the Internet and mobile technologies. Sponsored by Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL) and Congressman John Culberson (R-TX), H.R. 3222, the Adolescent Web Awareness Requires Education Act (AWARE Act), would provide critical resources to America’s educational infrastructure to train educators in online risk prevention and empower students and parents with hands-on opportunities to use technology safely for generations to come. This legislation is a companion measure to S. 1047, introduced by Senator Robert Menendez in May of this year.

“Web Wise Kids applauds the outstanding leadership of Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz and Congressman Culberson in sponsoring this bill and recognizing the critical importance of programs to keep children safe in a cyber world,” said Web Wise Kids CEO Judi Westberg Warren. “Today’s digital world presents a tremendous opportunity for innovation but also significant challenges to keep children safe. Our kids’ futures depend on their understanding and leveraging technology in a smart way. We urge swift passage of this bipartisan legislation which will help prevent online victimization of millions of children.”

The bill would establish a competitive Internet safety education grant program for state and local education agencies and non-profit organizations to promote the safe use of digital technologies. The legislation authorizes $125 million over five years for the grant program, which will be administered by the U.S. Department of Justice in collaboration with the Departments of Education and Health & Human Services. The grants would also provide much-needed professional development training to educators so they have tools to teach children how to safely use the Internet.

“The Internet has opened up the world for our children, but it has also opened up our children to the world,” said Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a mother of three young children under 10. “Educating children must be our first line of defense to keep them safe from the dangers of online predators, cyber-bullies, ‘sexting,’ and other online dangers. This bill will help fund high quality, engaging, and age-appropriate Internet safety education programs to teach our children how to be smart and safe online and reduce their risk of being victimized by Internet crime.”

Congressman Culberson said: “The way to meet the challenges and opportunities the Internet presents isn’t to deny our children access to this great resource but to empower them to use it wisely. Just as we make sure our children know not to talk to strangers, not to bully kids on the playground, and not to provide personal information, we have the same responsibility to teach them to apply these values online.”

Virtually every tween and teen in the country is using the Internet daily. Some 93% of youth ages 12 to 17 are online (Pew Internet & American Life Project, April 2007). This meteoric rise in children’s use of the Internet to gain knowledge and socialize with one another has also led to a disturbing rise in risky online behaviors such as ‘sexting,’ kids sharing nude photos from cell phones and cyber-bullying where kids use the Internet or mobile devices to send hurtful messages to peers. According to the National Crime Prevention Council, about 43% of teens have been victims of cyber-bullying in the last year. Child predators also migrate to the Internet. A startling 32% of teens online admitted to being contacted by strangers and 23% of teens contacted by a stranger said they felt scared or uncomfortable (Pew Internet & American Life Project).

The Broadband Data Improvement Act, signed into law October 2008 by President Bush, requires the majority of schools nationwide to have Internet safety programs but included no funding to help schools meet this requirement. Currently, students receive almost no education on Internet safety despite data showing youth face enormous risks online. State and local agencies place the majority of responsibility of teaching Internet safety on educators who have received little or no professional training to help students safely navigate the Internet. This historic bill encourages collaboration between schools and nonprofit organizations with expertise in Internet safety education to develop programs that teach young people to how to be savvy, safe and smart in today’s digital world.

About Web Wise Kids
Web Wise Kids is a national non-profit organization dedicated to preventing online child victimization by providing innovative tools to assist youth to stay safe online. Web Wise Kids implements interactive Internet safety programs nationwide in conjunction with school systems, law enforcement, teachers, community-based youth organizations, technology companies and others. The Web Wise Kids products were chosen to participate in the federal initiative Project Safe Childhood. Web Wise Kids programs have reached nearly seven million children and thousands of parents nationwide. For more information, visit www.webwisekids.org or call + 1 714-435-2885.

Media/Public Policy Contact
Tim Jemal
Jemal Public Affairs
202-263-1120
Tim@jemalpublicaffairs.com

HISTORIC CHILD INTERNET SAFETY LEGISLATION INTRODUCED

Bill Authorizes $175 Million Over Five Years to Programs Educating Children and Teens on Safely Using the Internet

Orange County, Calif. and Washington, D.C., May 13, 2009 – Web Wise Kids applauds the introduction of landmark legislation that would authorize $175 million funding over five years to programs educating children how to safely, securely and ethically use the Internet and mobile technologies. Sponsored by Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schulz (D-FL), the School and Family Education about the Internet (SAFE Internet) Act would provide critical resources to America’s educational infrastructure to train educators in online risk prevention and empower students and parents with hands-on opportunities to use technology safely for generations to come. Web Wise Kids is represented by Jemal Public Affairs in Washington, D.C. and in state capitols nationwide. The bill introduction caps over a year of education and adovcacy of Jemal Public Affairs on behalf of Web Wise Kids and the Internet safety education community nationwide.

“Web Wise Kids applauds Senator Menendez and Congresswoman Wasserman Schultz for their leadership in sponsoring this bill and recognizing the critical importance of programs to keep children safe in a cyber world,” said Web Wise Kids CEO Judi Westerberg Warren. “Today’s digital world presents a tremendous opportunity for innovation but also significant challenges to keep children safe. Our kids’ futures depend on their understanding and leveraging technology in a smart way. We urge swift passage of this legislation which will help prevent online victimization of millions of children.”

The bill would establish a competitive Internet safety education grant program for state and local education agencies and non-profit organizations to promote the safe use of digital technologies. The legislation authorizes over $175 million over five years for the grant program, which will be administered by the U.S. Department of Justice in collaboration with the Departments of Education and Health & Human Services. The grants would also provide much-needed professional development training to educators so they have tools to teach children safely use the Internet.

Senator Menendez said: “The way to meet the challenges and opportunities the Internet presents isn’t to deny our children access to this great resource but to make sure they know how to use it wisely. Just as we make sure our children know not to talk to strangers, not to bully kids on the playground, and not to give out their personal information, we have the same responsibility to teach them to apply these values online. That’s why I’m introducing a bill to make Internet safety the strong federal priority it should be.”

“The Internet has opened up the world for our children, but it has also opened up our children to the world,” said Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a mother of three young children under 10. “Educating children must be our first line of defense to keep them safe from the dangers of online predators, cyber-bullies, ‘sexting,’ and other online dangers. This bill will help fund high quality, engaging, and age-appropriate Internet safety education programs to teach our children how to be smart and safe online and reduce their risk of being victimized by Internet crime.”

Virtually every tween and teen in the country is using the Internet daily. Some 93% of youth ages 12 to 17 are online (Pew Internet & American Life Project, April 2007). This meteoric rise in children’s use of the Internet to gain knowledge and socialize with one another has also led to a disturbing rise in risky online behaviors such as ‘sexting,’ kids sharing nude photos from cell phones and cyber-bullying where kids use the Internet or mobile devices to send hurtful messages to peers. According to the National Crime Prevention Council, about 43% of teens have been victims of cyber-bullying in the last year. Child predators also migrate to the Internet. A startling 32% of teens online admitted to being contacted by strangers and 23% of teens contacted by a stranger said they felt scared or uncomfortable (Pew Internet & American Life Project).

The Broadband Data Improvement Act, signed into law October 2008 by President Bush, requires the majority of schools nationwide to have Internet safety programs but included no funding to help schools meet this requirement. Currently, students receive almost no education on Internet safety despite data showing youth face enormous risks online. State and local agencies place the majority of responsibility of teaching Internet safety on educators who have received little or no professional training to help students safely navigate the Internet. This historic bill encourages collaboration between schools and nonprofit organizations with expertise in Internet safety education to develop programs that teach young people to how to be savvy, safe and smart in today’s digital world.

About Web Wise Kids
Web Wise Kids is a national non-profit organization dedicated to preventing online child victimization by providing innovative tools to assist youth to stay safe online. Web Wise Kids implements interactive Internet safety programs nationwide in conjunction with school systems, law enforcement, teachers, community-based youth organizations and others. The Web Wise Kids products were chosen to participate in the federal initiative Project Safe Childhood. Web Wise Kids programs have reached over six million children and thousands of parents nationwide. For more information, visit www.webwisekids.org or call + 1 714-435-2885.

About Jemal Public Affairs
Jemal Public Affairs represents Web Wise Kids in Washington and in state capitols nationwide. Operating in California, Florida and Washington, D.C., Jemal Public Affairs provides services to government, nonprofit and corporate clients in the areas of legislative and political advocacy, strategic communications, coalition building, business and fund development and corporate responsibility. Jemal Public Affairs has an excellent record of working with diverse corporate, community and government audiences to find solutions for clients. For more information, visit http://jemalpublicaffairs.com/ or call +202-263-1120.

School And Family Education about the Internet Act (SAFE Internet) Act

Short summary: This bill would establish an Internet safety education grant program. It would initially fund research to determine best practices in Internet safety education and create guidelines for the grants. Then, using those guidelines, grants would be awarded to the following eligible recipients:
1. a partnership between a State Educational Agency (SEA) and one or more Local Education Agencies (LEA); or
2. a LEA of a State; or
3. a non-profit organization; or
4. a partnership between a nonprofit organization and –
a. one or more SEAs; or
b. one or more LEAs; or
c. a consortium of schools.

For the following purposes:
1. identify, develop, and distribute Internet safety education programs, including, but not limited to, educational technology, multimedia applications, online resources, and lesson plans;
2. provide professional training in Internet safety and Internet media literacy to teachers, administrators, and other staff;
3. develop youth online risk prevention programs;
4. train and support peer-driven Internet safety education initiatives;
5. coordinate and fund research initiatives that investigate youth online risks and Internet safety education;
6. develop and implement media campaigns to promote awareness of youth online risks and Internet safety education; and
7. educate parents about identifying and protecting their children from online risks;

Grant applications that have one or more of the following characteristics will be prioritized in the selection process:
• are collaborative
• target at-risk children
• provide services at no-cost to schools
• accommodate multiple languages
• accommodate differing levels of technological sophistication
• have a plan to continue program after grant funds run out

Funding: Authorized at $35 million per year from FY2010 through FY2014.

More details:
This legislation would authorize a five year grant program, under which each grant will be awarded for a two year period. Grant guidance and awards will be administered by the DOJ, in concurrence with the Department of Education, and the Department of Health & Human Services (the applicable agency heads), and in consultation with education, internet safety, and other relevant experts. This grant guidance will also be in line with established principles and research-based recommendations as provided in the Act. The applicable agency heads shall contract with an independent research organization to conduct an initial investigation of current Internet safety education programs and youth online risk.

This research group shall have 3 months to report the following:
1. The nature and prevalence of current Internet safety education programs and any evidence-based research conducted on them already;
2. Findings regarding at risk children; and
3. Any other area the applicable agency heads shall require.
This research group shall also identify gaps in Internet safety education and youth online risk research.

As the grant administration process continues, and as the appropriation level permits, the applicable agency heads shall contract with the research organization to continue research in the identified gap areas. The research organization shall report its findings back to the applicable agency heads and the findings shall be included in the Final Report to Congress.

Funds appropriated under the grant program may also be used to support media awareness campaigns, which will be another way to disseminate the research and messages out to schools, parents, teachers, and kids.

This Final Report will use this research, grantee reports, and testimony from hearings, to further refine best practices in Internet safety. The goal is to use independent, more comprehensive research and objective studies of the effectiveness of individual Internet safety programs to confirm what really works, and what protects children best.

Plouffe Backtracks on Visit to oli-rich Azerbaijan 

Does anyone believe that one of the brightest political and media strategists on earth was not aware that Washington lobbyists representing the authoritarian, oli-rich country of Azerbaijan had a hand in arranging his puff visit to Baku? Plouffe owes the 13 million subcribers of Obama for America, including yours truly, an apology for betraying the values of the Obama campaign and for inserting himself into a geo-political world where such visits do more damage than good.

No Longer America’s Most Republican County?
Written November 13, 2008

I checked once, twice, a third time. Senator John McCain carried Orange County, California by less than 4 percent over Senator Barack Obama. At last count, 549,276 votes for McCain; 509,725 for Obama, on the home turf of famous Republican political groups like the Lincoln Club and New Majority.

It is the best performance by a Democrat in Orange County in 72 years. Not the result you would expect from what local GOP leaders have branded as “America’s Most Republican County.”

Twenty-one states provided the Arizona Senator with a greater margin of victory.

Some argue the thin margin of McCain’s O.C. victory is an aberration. President George Bush’s sustained unpopularity, economic distress, financial crisis and the selection of lightweight and stridently social conservative Sarah Palin helped fuel the once-in-a-generation uprising.

True, the Obama tidal wave did not translate into any O.C. congressional Republican seats turning over despite strong candidates, such as Hunting Beach Mayor Debbie Cook challenging long-time incumbent Rep. Dana Rohrabacher. We can largely thank gerrymandered congressional districts, which virtually guarantee the election of candidates from the two major political parties, in keeping incumbents unscathed. Tangentially, this is why the passage of Prop. 11 only is a partial victory; it deals directly with state legislative redistricting but not congressional.

The election was fundamentally a referendum on the Bush presidency. This takes away nothing from Barack Obama’s well-deserved historic victory. Barack Obama is a fascinating and compelling candidate. He possesses an eloquence and dexterity McCain lacks. I am hopeful he will be great American president.

Bush’s eight years in the Oval Office crushed the Republican brand. Downstream U.S. House and Senate Republicans scrambled to distance themselves from the disillusionment engendered by the Bush presidency.

We need not be reminded that Bush’s actions as President belied his pledges as candidate. Remember his now-discredited slogan, “compassionate conservative?” What did we get instead? Everything got bigger: government, spending, deficit, debt and depth of deception. What happened to limited government, both domestically and overseas?

Does this mean that the famously “red county” image of O.C. will turn blue in the next election? Not necessarily. However, the demographics continue to change. Voters of all ages understand better that decisions based on a flawed ideology can be reckless and cause significant harm to our country. What standing do neo-conservatives, such as Paul Wolfowitz, have today with rank-and-file Republicans? Many life-long Republicans have a right to feel betrayed.

The other development in Orange County, and across the nation, is that more people are realizing that government decisions really matter and that public policies can help or harm our way of life. The housing and financial crisis, along with declining median home prices, resulted in kitchen-table conversations about the role of government and public policy seldom discussed before. While the economic and housing downturn caused real pain to many, it also served as an enlightening on the role of government and how its decisions affect our businesses and quality of life.

The technology industry, crucial to our nation’s competitive advantage, is another example where a crisis looms unless government wakes up. The news is still mostly good but signs of trouble are rising. Nearly 1 million technology workers in California earn an average annual wage topping $100,000, more than 60 percent higher than the average annual wage in other industries. In Orange County, the average high-tech wage was $81,900, 68 percent higher than the average private sector wage.

Some argue, based on ideology, that technology innovators and entrepreneurs don’t need government involvement because the market, if truly free, will produce the breakthroughs that will keep America on the leading edge. Although the free market and America’s entrepreneurial culture is still our core advantage, to think that government has no role is naïve. And what is dangerous is that federal and state legislators continue to make harmful policy decisions, like turning away the world’s best and brightest due to short-sighted immigration laws, with little or no input from the overwhelming majority of California-based technology companies.

I moved to Orange County in 2001. The Orange County Business Council rightly and proudly boasts that it is the fifth largest in the nation. Yet political decisions, and ideas for government action, seemed to be generated by a small cadre of individuals on the far right of the political spectrum.

Today, many of these same people blog endlessly, mainly to each other, about how the county and world should work. Their decidedly partisan ideas have grown out of touch with a large swath of voters in the county previously disinterested in the political process.

Grassroots movements (where you actually get more people of all political affiliations involved in the process to help educate and, yes, lobby governments and politicians) really do work. One can be principled without being an ideologue.

Politics is for those who show up. It is also the art of the possible. This election proved that.

Tim Jemal is CEO of Jemal Public Affairs and the Executive Director of the bipartisan Technology Leadership Political Action Committee (TLPAC).