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Digital Childhood Alliance — Team, Formation & Organizational Analysis

Research Date: 2026-03-12 Data Sources: DCA website (via Wayback), Idealist, Institute for Family Studies, American Fork Citizen, Deseret News, Substack investigative reporting, DOJ.gov

Executive Summary

DCA was publicly announced in February 2025 as a coalition of "50+ conservative child advocacy groups" promoting the App Store Accountability Act. Its domain was registered on December 18, 2024 — two months before the public launch. The organization is a 501(c)(4) based in Washington, DC, led by individuals from the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), the DOJ Antitrust Division, and a Utah parent activist. Meta's funding was confirmed by Bloomberg and partially admitted by DCA's Executive Director under legislative questioning. The organization has never filed a Form 990 (first filing expected ~May 2026).

1. Organizational Details

Field Value
Legal Name Digital Childhood Alliance (Inc.?)
Tax Status 501(c)(4) — contributions not tax-deductible
Location Washington, DC, USA
Email info@digitalchildhoodalliance.org
Website digitalchildhoodalliance.org
Domain Registered 2024-12-18 (GoDaddy, privacy-protected)
First Web Archive 2024-12-19
Public Launch ~February 28, 2025 (IFS article)
EIN Not yet publicly available
Form 990 None filed — first due ~May 2026
Idealist Profile Active, Washington DC

Incorporation Status — UNRESOLVED

Per prior research (dca_corporate_registry_findings.md), DCA has no incorporation record found in Colorado, DC, or other searched states. The organization may:

  • Operate as a fiscal sponsorship under another 501(c)(4)
  • Be incorporated in an unsearched state (Delaware, Wyoming, Virginia)
  • Have incorporated too recently to appear in databases

2. Leadership & Staff

Casey Stefanski — Executive Director

Field Detail
Prior Role Senior Director of Global Partnerships and Events, NCOSE
Tenure at NCOSE ~10 years
Key Achievement Built coalition of 600+ organizations at NCOSE
Notable Incident LA Senate Finance Committee testimony — refused to name tech company funders, eventually admitted receiving tech company funding

Dawn Hawkins — Chair

Field Detail
Current Role CEO, National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE)
Description "Nationally recognized leader in child protection and digital safety"
Connection Dual role — leads NCOSE while serving as DCA Chair

Melissa McKay — Chair / Board President

Field Detail
Role President and Chair of the Board, DCI (Digital Childhood Institute)
Background American Fork, Utah mother of five
Origin Story Became concerned in 2017 when a young relative was exposed to harmful content at school
Timeline 2018: pushed tech education bills; 2019: #FixAppRatings; 2021: #Default2Safety
2023 Co-authored ASAA policy paper with Institute for Family Studies and Ethics & Public Policy Center
Key Partners Dawn Hawkins (NCOSE), Chris McKenna (Protect Young Eyes)

John Read — Senior Policy Advisor

Field Detail
Prior Role U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division — 30 years
Specialty Investigated app stores and Big Tech
Current Role Leads DCA's legal strategy and policy development
DOJ Record Declaration of John R. Read found in DOJ antitrust case documents
LinkedIn linkedin.com/in/john-read-69518a6

3. Formation Timeline

Date Event
2017 Melissa McKay begins advocacy after child exposed to harmful content
2018 McKay pushes tech education bills in Utah
2019 #FixAppRatings movement launched
2021 #Default2Safety movement launched
2023 ASAA policy paper written with IFS and EPPC
2024-12-18 digitalchildhoodalliance.org domain registered
2024-12-19 First Wayback Machine snapshot — site fully operational
~Feb 28, 2025 Public announcement: "50+ conservative groups form Digital Childhood Alliance"
Mar 5, 2025 Utah SB-142 (ASAA) signed by Gov. Cox — first state to pass
Apr 2025 LA HB-570 Senate Finance Committee hearing — Stefanski questioned about funding
May 2025 Federal ASAA bill introduced by Sen. Mike Lee
Jun 30, 2025 Louisiana HB-570 signed by Gov. Landry
Jul 2025 Texas ASAA signed, Bloomberg exposes Meta funding
Dec 7, 2025 Deseret News op-ed by Brian Lenney exposes Meta manipulation

4. Coalition Members

Per IFS article and DCA press releases, the coalition includes "50+ child advocacy groups":

Confirmed member organizations:

  • National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE)
  • The Heritage Foundation
  • Institute for Family Studies
  • Ethics and Public Policy Center
  • Protect Young Eyes
  • Moms for Liberty
  • 45+ additional organizations (not individually listed in sources)

DCA's Idealist profile focus areas: Children & Youth, Consumer Protection, Family, Policy, Science & Technology

5. Funding — What Is Known

Confirmed

  • Meta funds DCA — confirmed by Bloomberg reporters, admitted under oath by Casey Stefanski (partially)
  • Meta spent $24 million on lobbying in 2024 (OpenSecrets)
  • Meta deployed 12 lobbyists in Louisiana for HB-570 alone
  • Meta has hired lobbying firms in 45 of 50 states
  • Meta spent $26.29 million lobbying in 2025 — all-time record
  • DCA operates as 501(c)(4) — no legal obligation to disclose donors

DCA's Stated Position (per FAQ — Cloudflare-blocked but referenced in reporting)

DCA reportedly acknowledges receiving tech company funding on its FAQ page but does not name which companies.

Funding Exposure Timeline

  1. Apr 2025: Sen. Jay Morris (R-LA) directly questioned Stefanski about tech funding at Senate Finance Committee hearing
  2. Apr 2025: Stefanski "squirmed, deflected and claimed she 'didn't feel comfortable' answering" (Deseret News)
  3. Apr 2025: When pressed for yes/no, Stefanski admitted receiving tech company funding but refused to name companies
  4. Jul 2025: Bloomberg reporters exposed Meta as DCA funder
  5. Dec 2025: Brian Lenney op-ed in Deseret News detailed the Meta connection

Additional Coordination Mentioned

Per Substack reporting, DCA engagement involved coordination with:

  • DCI Group — lobbying/PR firm
  • Hilltop Public Strategies — messaging coordination

6. NCOSE — DCA's Institutional Backbone

The National Center on Sexual Exploitation provides DCA's institutional DNA:

  • CEO Dawn Hawkins chairs DCA
  • Casey Stefanski spent 10 years at NCOSE before becoming DCA Executive Director
  • NCOSE's Eleanor Gaetan, Ph.D. (VP Public Policy) appears as a DCA testimonial on the website

This suggests NCOSE is the primary organizational parent of DCA, with Meta funding enabling the creation of a new 501(c)(4) entity specifically for the App Store Accountability Act campaign.

7. Strategic Analysis

Meta's Incentive Structure

The ASAA framework shifts age verification responsibility from social media platforms (Meta's products) to app stores (Apple and Google's products). If ASAA becomes federal law:

  • Apple and Google must implement age verification before app downloads
  • Meta's apps (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Threads) are exempted from direct compliance
  • Parents blame app stores, not Meta, for children's access to harmful content

Conservative Coalition Strategy

By partnering with conservative organizations (Heritage Foundation, Moms for Liberty, NCOSE), Meta:

  • Gains bipartisan credibility on child safety
  • Leverages organizations whose members would typically oppose Big Tech
  • Creates a "grassroots" appearance through parent activism (McKay)
  • Uses the 501(c)(4) structure to hide its financial role

DCA's DOJ Antitrust Connection

John Read's 30 years at DOJ Antitrust Division investigating app stores provides DCA with:

  • Insider knowledge of antitrust arguments against Apple/Google
  • Credibility with legislators and regulators
  • Understanding of legal vulnerabilities in Apple/Google's app store practices

Sources