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CNN Live At Daybreak
Markle Foundation's Zoe Baird Discusses Internet Survey
Aired July 10, 2001 - 07:39 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: There is a survey coming out by a foundation called the Markle Foundation. This group encourages emerging communications tools, and they survey people across the country, both in person and on the telephone, and even online, gathering up information.
Zoe Baird, as you might recall, was President Clinton's first choice for attorney general. She is now the president of the Markle Foundation, and she joins us from Washington, to give us a preview of the survey.
Good morning, Ms. Baird.
ZOE BAIRD, PRESIDENT, MARKLE FOUNDATION: Good morning. Nice to be here.
LIN: Well, good to see you.
Now what do you make of these interesting figures? Eighty percent of people say that they use the Internet, but a lot of them have worries and don't necessarily trust the information that they're getting.
BAIRD: Well, it was very interesting to see just how enthusiastic the American people are about the Internet. They find it a tremendous benefit in their lives, and some of the stories you've just reported on reflect ways in which people are using the Internet.
It's also interesting to see that people most often compare it to a library, as one of your viewers just did. They don't think of it as a shopping mall, but rather as a source of information, like a library.
At the same time, people have real concerns about the Internet. Seventy percent say that they don't find the information trustworthy and people don't feel they have the same rights and protections online. So they are looking for a range of actors -- government, business, non-profit organizations -- to help develop the Internet in a way where it is more trustworthy and where they can find a place to go to solve problems.
LIN: Well, does the public identify which agency, if any, they want regulating the Internet, or any regulation at all? BAIRD: Well, the public said that when it comes to protecting them online, they do believe that government has to be more involved and play a strong role. But they generally want the rules made by business and non-profits. So what we took from this survey is the public doesn't see this as a black-and-white issue of whether there should be more government regulation or self-regulation by business. But rather they want what each sector has to contribute to improve their life on the Internet.
LIN: What specifically would most improve their lives on the Internet? Did they say?
BAIRD: People want a place to go when they have a problem. They seem to be troubled by the thoroughly impersonal nature of the Internet, as it feels to them. So they want someone to go to, to resolve problems, to identify places, to deal with complaints.
But people also seem very interested in having their values taken forward on the Internet, their values of the protection of individual privacy, personal security, and the values of progress.
LIN: Did you survey teenagers separately as a group?
BAIRD: We did, yes.
LIN: And what did you find?
BAIRD: We found that teenagers were very enthusiastic about the lack of rules on the Internet, that this was a place where no one could tell them what to do.
LIN: A lot of them probably downloading music, if they were offering that opinion as well.
BAIRD: That's right.
LIN: Do you think this is an accurate sampling of people across America, or was it only a sampling of people who had access to the Internet, who, therefore, could afford to own computers and go online.
BAIRD: No, this was a sampling of people across America, whether or not they use the Internet, and it was also -- perhaps for the first time -- a broad survey of experts, so we could compare the views of experts to the views of the public.
LIN: All right, thank you very much, Zoe Baird.
BAIRD: Thank you.
LIN: We want to let our public know that you can join Zoe Baird for a live chat on cnn.com. She's going to be taking your questions at 11:30 Eastern this morning, which is about four hours from now.
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