WebWatch to Reveal Results of Nationwide Poll Oct. 26 at Conference at National Press Club, Washington, D.C.

Harvard Law Professor, Noted Net Law Expert Jonathan Zittrain to Keynote

YONKERS, NY, August 22, 2005: Consumer Reports WebWatch will present findings from its national poll of Internet-savvy adults to the press, government, non-profit and private-sector executives at a one-day conference at the National Press Club Ballroom, Washington, D.C. on Oct. 26.

The survey of 1,500 U.S. adult Internet users over 18 looks at consumer attitudes towards Web site trustworthiness and consumer understanding of privacy, security, transparency and the separation of editorial content from advertising. The poll also assesses what qualities and attributes make some Web sites more trustworthy than others. In addition, the research, which follows up on a similar national poll WebWatch published in April 2002, focuses on:

-- News and information Web sites, "blogs," and the credibility of photography online

-- Children's sites

-- Financial sites

-- Fraud, identity theft and security

The one-day, free conference will begin with a 1-hour press conference on the survey's key findings and continue with panel discussions from more than twenty expert speakers. For more information on the conference and the 2002 findings, go to http://www.consumerwebwatch.org.

Consumer Reports WebWatch also announced today its keynote speaker for the conference, Harvard University Law Professor Jonathan Zittrain, co-founder and director of Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society. There, he researches digital property, privacy, and speech, and the role played by private "middlepeople" in Internet architecture. Professor Zittrain also runs the H2O Project, which creates tools to facilitate the growth of communication among intellectual communities; and is a principal investigator of the Open Net Initiative, a collaboration between researchers at the University of Toronto, the University of Cambridge, and Harvard Law School. Educated at Yale University, Harvard Law School, and the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Zittrain was co-counsel for the plaintiffs in Eldred vs. Ashcroft, and filed an amicus brief in the MGM vs. Grokster Case.

Attendance for the press conference and extended program is free. However, registration for the event is mandatory. To register for the conference and reserve a seat, go to www.consumerwebwatch.org.


About Consumer Reports WebWatch
Consumer Reports WebWatch is the leader in investigative reporting on trust and credibility in the online marketplace. WebWatch uses the proven methods of Consumer Reports to produce comprehensive research, breakthrough conferences and serves as a daily resource of unbiased and trustworthy information. Its research agenda includes entire online marketplaces, such as travel, search, health, financial services and more. WebWatch is a project of Consumers Union and is funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and the Open Society Institute. WebWatch's investigative reports, articles and news are available to the general public at http://www.consumerwebwatch.org/ .

About Consumers Union
Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports, is an expert, independent nonprofit organization whose mission is to work for a fair, just, and safe marketplace for all consumers and to empower consumers to protect themselves. To achieve this mission, we test, inform, and protect. To maintain our independence and impartiality, CU accepts no outside advertising, no free test samples, and has no agenda other than the interests of consumers. CU supports itself through the sale of its information products and services, individual contributions, and a few noncommercial grants. Consumer Reports content can be found online at ConsumerReports.org. Consumers Union's public policy work can be found online at ConsumersUnion.org.

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