November 2017

The Origin And Evolution Of The Digital Divide

[Commentary] Things have improved in the last 20-plus years: We’ve gone from 15 million people on the internet when I joined the Clinton Administration to 3.5 billion on the internet today worldwide and, in the U.S., we’re 80 to 85 percent connected. The numbers are moving in the right direction, but we won’t be done until there is no gap, until every person who wants access has access to the information and opportunities the internet provides. We’re still hammering away at the problem of the connectivity gap, but the face of the problem has changed as well.

DNAinfo and Gothamist Are Shutting Down

A week ago, reporters and editors in the combined newsroom of DNAinfo and Gothamist, two of New York City’s leading digital purveyors of local news, celebrated victory in their vote to join a union. On Nov 2, they lost their jobs, as Joe Ricketts, the billionaire founder of TD Ameritrade who owned the sites, shut them down.

AT&T wants to close its deal with Time Warner. But first, it has to go through Makan Delrahim

The biggest corporate acquisition of the year is inching closer to resolution. With President Donald Trump's top antitrust official, Makan Delrahim, getting up to speed in his new job, many analysts predict the Justice Department could rule on AT&T's purchase of Time Warner in a matter of weeks. At this point, it seems, things could go either way. The Justice Department is still talking to the companies involved, as well as outside parties, to try to understand how the deal could affect competition.