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Leader At Internet Group Gets Promoted
by Heather Greenfield
It's no surprise that Larry Clinton has become the new president of the Internet Security Alliance.
He has been at ISAlliance since 2002 as the deputy executive director and chief operations officer. He also wrote "A 12-Step Program to Cyber Security for Small Businesses" for the alliance and has testified on Capitol Hill about the government's role in creating incentives for better security.
Clinton said it is hard for government to legislate better security because technology and the Internet change at such a rapid pace and many of the cyber attacks originate in other countries. "What we're trying to do is develop an entirely different model for broad information security," he said. "We want to create financial incentives for industry to constantly update their systems."
In this new position, he hopes to do more to help companies understand their economic stake in security because "one person's insecurity is everyone's insecurity."
"Larry has already done an outstanding job strengthening the Internet Security Alliance and advancing its core mission," said Charlie Robinson, interim president and CEO of the Electronic Industries Alliance. "Every day, U.S. industry faces new challenges to Internet security and critical infrastructure. Larry has worked tirelessly to ensure that businesses are adequately prepared and that federal policymakers are well informed."
Before joining ISAlliance, Clinton was vice president at the U.S. Telecom Association, coordinating federal legislative and regulatory issues on issues like high-speed Internet development, security, intellectual property and international issues.
BellSouth Expert Goes To U.S. Telecom Association
Jonathan Banks has found a calling not far from home. He will move from BellSouth to become the general counsel for the U.S. Telecom Association.
Banks joined BellSouth in 1995 and most recently served as vice president of executive and regulatory affairs. He also has served as general counsel in BellSouth's Washington office. Earlier in his career, Banks worked at the FTC.
In his new job, Banks will direct the trade association's policy development and advocacy work before the FCC, FTC and the courts. "This is an exciting new opportunity, and I look forward to continuing to advocate for the rapidly evolving communications industry in my new role at U.S. Telecom," Banks said.
"We have worked closely with Jonathan for many years on the important issues facing the industry, and we're delighted to welcome him to U.S. Telecom," said Walter McCormick, the group's president and CEO.
Manufacturing Group Gains Two Tech Experts
Craig Cussimanio will be the new director of Internet strategies for the National Association of Manufacturers.
Before joining NAM, Cussimanio was with the American Gas Association, where he developed comprehensive Web sites, built and executed Web business plans, and managed Web design and e-commerce initiatives. Cussimanio frequently gives speeches on the use of Web-based technology to manage content and to enhance non-dues revenue.
"Cussimanio brings a wealth of association and technology management experience," said Patrick Cleary, NAM' senior vice president of communications. "Just as manufacturers bring tremendous innovations to the rest of world, the NAM prides itself on being a communication and media innovator."
NAM also has hired an experienced technology lobbyist for its director of technology policy.
Marc-Anthony Signorino moves over to NAM from the tech group AeA, where he served as the director of technology and environmental policy and as the executive director of AeA's state government affairs program. Before AeA, Signorino helped launch eBay's Washington operations in 2000, working as a policy analyst and law clerk.
"Marc-Anthony's an experienced advocate for the high-tech industry on issues ranging from broadband deployment and RFID issues to net neutrality and intellectual property," said Dorothy Coleman, NAM's vice president of tax and domestic economic policy. "The high-tech sector is incredibly complex and constantly expanding. It takes the industry experience and knowledge that Marc-Anthony has to make an impact for America's manufacturers."
Retired CIO Returns As Adviser
Former Treasury Department Chief Information Officer Ira Hobbs is coming out of retirement as a coach. He will be advising some of government's best and brightest participating in the Council for Excellence in Government's Leadership Fellows Program.
Hobbs oversaw the department's $2.6 billion information technology portfolio before retiring earlier this year. He had been CIO since 2004. Before that he spent seven years as deputy CIO at the Agriculture Department.
"I'm delighted to welcome 'Coach Hobbs' to the Excellence in Government fellows program and to the council community," said Patricia McGinnis, president and CEO of the council. "Ira is one of the most respected individuals in the federal IT arena."
Programming Pioneer's Work Lives On
Computer pioneer John Backus has died at the age of 82, leaving behind the Fortran programming language he helped develop as his legacy.
Fortran remains in use today. Backus's development of the programming language in the 1950s changed how people interacted with computers and paved the way for modern software.
Those who think writing code is a challenge have never tried the previous "hand-coding" method, which programmed in the raw strings of digits that triggered actions inside machines. Fortran was considered a "high-level" programming language because it let programmers enter commands in a more intuitive system, which the computer would translate into machine code on its own.
Backus' breakthrough during his career at IBM earned him the 1977 Turing Award from the Association for Computing Machinery, one of the industry's highest accolades. He also won a National Medal of Science in 1975 and got the 1993 Charles Stark Draper Prize, the top honor from the National Academy of Engineering.
In an article in IBM's employee magazine "Think" in 1979, Backus attributed his innovation to laziness, saying, "I didn't like writing programs, and so when I was working on the IBM 701 (an early computer), writing programs for computing missile trajectories, I started work on a programming system to make it easier to write programs."
Backus died Saturday in Ashland, Ore., according to IBM.
Quote Of The Week
"President Bush wants to keep everything that happens in his White House secret, but when it comes to his own emotions, he's as transparent as a teenager on MySpace."
-- Opening line from New York Times columnist Frank Rich in his Sunday column about the future of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
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