[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 105 (Wednesday, July 25, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H4547-H4548]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              V-CHIP TECHNOLOGY UNDERUTILIZED BY AMERICANS

  (Mr. STEARNS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to highlight a study released 
yesterday by the Kaiser Family Foundation indicating that few parents 
use the V-chip to block their children from viewing sex and violence on 
television.
  Mr. Speaker, Congress included a provision in the Telecom Act of 1996 
that television sets 13 inches or larger sold after January 1, 2000, 
must be equipped with a V-chip to screen out objectionable programming.
  Well, yesterday's study finds that 40 percent of American parents now 
own a TV equipped with a V-chip. However,

[[Page H4548]]

despite high levels of concern about children's exposure to TV sex and 
violence, just 17 percent of these parents who own a V-chip, or 7 
percent of all parents, are using it to block programs with sexual or 
violent content.
  Some of my colleagues are quick to rely on government as a panacea 
for all of our problems. Yesterday's report reveals that the long arm 
of government regulation is no substitute for good parenting.

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