YNOT – Former American Civil Liberties Union President Nadine Strossen, child-protection authority Sharon Girling, law professor Fred Cate and attorney Robert Corn-Revere have been named to the policy council for the International Foundation for Online Responsibility, the organization announced Wednesday.
In addition, mainstream businessmen Clyde Beattie and Sébastien Bachollet have been named to the organization’s board of directors.
The six mainstream individuals at least partially achieve IFFOR’s goal of establishing an international oversight body: three are Americans, one is British, one is Canadian and one is French.
Washington, DC-based IFFOR is the non-profit organization tasked with establishing and enforcing policy for the new dot-xxx adult-specific Top Level Domain. Created by ICM Registry as part of its registry contract with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, IFFOR will be funded through a mandatory donation of $10 per year per dot-xxx domain registered.
The policy council is responsible for defining and enforcing responsible business practices and conduct within the dot-xxx online adult entertainment community. According to IFFOR Executive Director Joan Irvine, among other things the council will establish guidelines to ensure adult content cannot be accessed easily by children. Other goals include protecting the privacy and security of adult entertainment consumers.
“IFFOR has the potential to become one of the internet industry’s greatest forces for good,” said ICM Chief Executive Officer and IFFOR board chairman Stuart Lawley. “The caliber of our founding [board of directors and policy council] members, international leaders in their fields from child protection to privacy to freedom of expression, is testament to the organization’s vision and ambition. We are extremely honored by their commitment to IFFOR’s mission, and we all look forward to collaborating with our industry and other partners as IFFOR begins its important work.”
Policy council members
Strossen, an American, will occupy the free expression seat on the policy council, the first of four designated for individuals and organizations outside the adult entertainment industry. She has written, lectured and practiced in the areas of constitutional law, civil liberties and international human rights. She served as president of the ACLU from 1991 through 2008 — the first woman to head the nation’s largest and oldest civil liberties organization.
“Wearing both of my hats, as a scholar and activist, I have long championed the freedom of consenting adults to make their own choices about what sexual expression to access online as well as the rights of parents and guardians to make such choices regarding their own children,” Strossen said. “It is an honor — and an important responsibility — to serve as the inaugural member of IFFOR’s policy council who is designated as the advocate of these fundamental freedoms.”
Child protection authority Girling, a British citizen, is a member of the Order of the British Empire and possesses 30 years’ experience in policing, specializing in the past 10 years in addressing international internet-enabled pedophilia. She has advised both the British Prime Minister and the President of the United States.
Cate, an American, is a distinguished professor of law at Indiana University School of Law – Bloomington and director of the Indiana University Center for Applied Cybersecurity Research. He specializes in privacy, security and other information law issues, and regularly appears before Congress, government agencies and professional and industry groups to address the matters.
Corn-Revere, a partner at the Washington, DC-based law firm Davis Wright Tremaine, has extensive experience in First Amendment law and communications, media and information technology law. He speaks and writes extensively about First Amendment and communications policy issues.
The remaining five policy council members will be selected from among the adult entertainment industry. IFFOR will accept applications from industry members through July 5 and expects to announced its selections in late July or early August, Lawley said.
IFFOR board of directors
Lawley will serve as the chairman of IFFOR’s three-member board of directors. The other two board members are Yorkland Investment Corp CEO Beattie and Bachollet, CEO of BBS Consulting and a member of ICANN’s board of directors.
A Canadian, Beattie’s experience includes serving as chairman of the Canadian Internet Registry Authority, the ICANN-accredited registry responsible for creation and management of the dot-ca country code domain. In addition, Beattie has served as a director of the Canadian Association of Internet Providers.
Bachollet, who is French, launched the SNCF.fr website and built Club Informatique des Grandes Entreprises Françaises. CIGREF is an association of more than 100 major companies whose mission is to promote digital literacy as a source of innovation and performance.
