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President Names Three Communications Executives to NSTAC

Arlington, VA. June 8, 2007 - The White House announced today that President Bush intends to appoint three communications executives to the President’s National Security Telecommunications Advisory Committee (NSTAC).

According to the July 11 White House release, the President plans to appoint Ivan G. Seidenberg, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Verizon; Mike S. Zafirovski, President and Chief Executive Officer of Nortel; and Kyle E. McSlarrow, President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA) to the advisory committee.

Composed of up to 30 industry chief executives representing the major communications, information technology, finance, and aerospace companies, NSTAC provides industry-based advice and expertise to the President on issues and problems related to implementing national security and emergency preparedness (NS/EP) communications policy. For 25 years, NSTAC has addressed a wide range of policy and technical issues regarding communications, information systems, information assurance, critical infrastructure protection, and other NS/EP communications concerns.

Ivan G. Seidenberg,
Chairman and CEO
Verizon

Mr. Seidenberg became Verizon’s Chairman of the Board on January 1, 2004 and has served as Verizon’s sole CEO since April 1, 2002 after serving as co-CEO when Verizon was formed in 2000. As chief executive of Bell Atlantic, and previously of NYNEX, Mr. Seidenberg was instrumental in reshaping the communications industry through two of the largest mergers in its history – the merger of Bell Atlantic and NYNEX in 1997, and the Bell Atlantic merger with GTE in 2000. He also led efforts to form Verizon Wireless.

Mr. Seidenberg began his communications career more than 39 years ago as a cable splicer's assistant. His career encompasses numerous operations and engineering assignments, including various leadership positions at AT&T and NYNEX.

Mr. Seidenberg serves on the Board of Directors of Honeywell, the Museum of Television and Radio, The New York Hall of Science, Pace University, Verizon Foundation and Wyeth. He earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from City University of New York and a master's degree in business administration and marketing from Pace University in New York.

Mike S. Zafirovski,
President and CEO
Nortel

Mr. Zafirovski joined Nortel in November 2005. He is a 30-year business veteran with impressive global experience at General Electric and Motorola. Prior to his current role at Nortel, he was President and Chief Operating Officer of Motorola from July 2002 to February 2005. He was a key player leading the company's re-emergence in innovation, market share gains and significant profitability improvements by all six businesses.

Mr. Zafirovski joined Motorola in June 2000 to lead its mobile devices business, which during his tenure returned to profitability and increased market share through the introduction of exciting new products and the Moto branding campaign. .

Before his leadership positions at Motorola, Mr. Zafirovski spent 25 years at General Electric, including 13 years as President and Chief Executive Officer of five businesses in the industrial, financial services and insurance areas.

Prior to that, he held a number of increasingly senior positions in finance, auditing, marketing and strategy/business development at various GE businesses.

Mr. Zafirovski holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics from Edinboro University in Pennsylvania, where he also captained the intercollegiate soccer and swimming teams. In 2002, Edinboro University awarded Mr. Zafirovski with an honorary doctorate degree. A native of Macedonia, he received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2004.

Mr. Zafirovski serves on the board of directors of Boeing. An active member of civic and business communities, Zafirovski serves on several professional, educational and non-profit business organizations, including The Canadian Council of Chief Executives, The Economic Club of Chicago and the Macedonian Arts Council. He and his wife Robin are the national chairs for Duke University's Parents' Committee.

Kyle E. McSlarrow,
President and CEO
National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA)

Mr. McSlarrow began his tenure as President and CEO of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA) on March 1, 2005. In this role, Mr. McSlarrow is the cable industry's primary public policy advocate in Washington, D.C., and represents the industry's interests before Congress, the Federal Communications Commission and the Administration.

NCTA is the primary trade association of the cable television industry in the United States, representing cable operators serving more than 90 percent of the nation's cable television households and more than 200 cable program networks, as well as equipment suppliers and providers of other services to the cable industry.

Prior to joining NCTA, Mr. McSlarrow served as Deputy Secretary and Chief Operating Officer of the U.S. Department of Energy, an agency with more than 100,000 Federal and contractor employees, 17 national labs, and a budget of $23 billion. In that role, he exercised policy and programmatic supervision in a diverse agency that includes the nation's nuclear weapons complex, non-proliferation programs, a $7 billion environmental cleanup program, and a research and development portfolio that includes high energy physics and the development of advanced technology to strengthen the nation's energy and homeland security.

He also served on the President's Management Council and as the American co-chair of the US-Russia Energy Working Group established by President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin. He joined the Department of Energy in January 2001 as Chief of Staff.

Prior to joining the Department of Energy, Mr. McSlarrow served as Vice President of Political and Government Affairs for Grassroots.com, a privately-held Internet company marketing web-based political tools and services.
He has held numerous positions in the political arena, including serving as the National Chairman for the Quayle 2000 Presidential Campaign from November 1998 to February 2000. In 1997, he joined the office of the late U.S. Senator Paul Coverdell as Chief of Staff. He also served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Chief Counsel for Senate Majority Leaders Bob Dole and Trent Lott between 1995 and 1997. Mr. McSlarrow was the Republican nominee in Virginia's 8th Congressional District in 1992 and 1994.

Before moving to Capitol Hill in 1995, Mr. McSlarrow was an associate with the Washington, D.C law firm of Hunton and Williams. As a captain in the U.S. Army, he served in the Secretary of the Army's office as Assistant to the General Counsel of the Army from 1985-1989. He is a native of Virginia and earned degrees from Cornell University and the University of Virginia School of Law.

The National Communications System, part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Cyber Security and Communications, administratively supports the NSTAC in accordance with Executive Order 12382

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Reviewed June 8, 2007