A new coalition has been formed, dubbed Pause, Parent, Play, designed to educate parents about taking control of what their kids listen to and watch in the world of entertainment. The coalition is backed by Senators Rick Santorum (R-PA) and Joe Lieberman (D-CT) and encompasses many entertainment companies, including Viacom, the RIAA, Time Warner, NBC Universal, Comcast, Microsoft and the National Cable And Telecommunications Association, among other partners. The campaign aims to "empower parents to choose what their kids watch, hear and play - from TV and movies to video games and music," according to the Web site, pauseparentplay.org. The coalition is encouraging parents to:

PAUSE - take a minute to think about the media that is available and how their kids might react to it.
PARENT - decide what is appropriate for their own kids, talk with them, and use the options at their disposal to help them.
PLAY - enjoy the media with their kids.

The Web site also provides customer service hotlines for XM and Sirius Satellite Radio, as well as Walmart's "Mature Merchandise" policy. And, the Web site notes, "Pause, Parent, Play brings together parties that create, distribute, monitor and consume all major forms of recorded and broadcast media material – an unprecedented coalition. Although many of the members compete against each other within each industry, they are united by their commitment to caring about what kids watch, hear and play."

The new initiative was set to launch today on Capitol Hill with a display of parental control tools and technologies for TV, movies, music, and video games.