Which Broadband and IT Vision for America?

[Commentary] We need a debate in America that focuses on the most important issues like how to get fast broadband networks to all Americans; how to use IT to transform our health care system, transportation system, education system, and government; and how to encourage all organizations to become digital, thereby driving productivity and income growth and a better quality of life. To get there we will need smart public-private partnerships. Big corporations, as well as small entrepreneurial ones, will play key roles in spurring digital transformation. But so too will government, in part by ensuring the public interest is protected, but just as importantly by helping private actors take into account public benefits (what economists call positive externalities) when making decisions. This kind of pragmatic, realistic policy approach is needed not just for broadband policy but also for a host of IT policy areas. As we move into the heart of the ‘08 campaign and next year’s Congressional debates, we can only hope that the debate and deliberations are based on pragmatic realism, not ideological extremism.
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