Connectivity in the Time of COVID
Friday, January 8, 2021
January 2021
January 4-8, 2020
January 4-8, 2020
Weekly Digest
Weekly Digest
How Should the Biden-Harris Administration Close the Digital Divide?
The Biden-Harris “Build Back Better” agenda calls for closing the digital divide. The questions now are: how much funding will this initiative secure from Congress, and how will it be distributed? We believe that the answer will be informed by actions that states, cities, and counties take. As spending proposals are released, debated, approved, and then designed as Federally administered programs, the next few months will be a critical period for local governments.
Boulder Junction’s ‘Aggressive’ Fiberoptic Broadband Plan to Set Northwoods Standard (WXPR)
Submitted by benton on Fri, 01/08/2021 - 09:29Internet outage in Worcester revives municipal broadband discussion (Telegram & Gazette)
Submitted by benton on Fri, 01/08/2021 - 09:28Broadband in Rural Wisconsin
Universal broadband access is crucial for Wisconsin. Over the past two decades, the growing importance of broadband for business, farming, school, and governments has been obvious. The COVID-19 pandemic has re-emphasized its critical nature. While broadband access is nearly universal in Wisconsin cities and villages, there are major gaps in rural Wisconsin. According to the most recent data from the Federal Communications Commission, 25% of rural residents lack access to 25 Mbps broadband, the speed which is now considered the standard.
Could The Digital Divide Unite Us?
The digital divide is not only a rural problem. The digital divide is a problem that unites us across rural, urban, suburban and tribal lands. It is a bipartisan problem. The solution must be multi-pronged: affordable ubiquitous broadband with the appropriate devices and trusted digital literacy and technical support. It has been over a decade since the federal government has supported broadband access and use for disadvantaged communities. The current emergency support for digital inclusion is temporary.
FCC Publishes Unbundling Order; Effective February 8, 2021 (Federal Communications Commission)
Submitted by benton on Fri, 01/08/2021 - 09:17Daily Digest 1/8/2021
Submitted by benton on Fri, 01/08/2021 - 09:16Daily Digest 1/8/2021 (Neil Sheehan | Narinder Kapany)
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Fri, 01/08/2021
Media and the insurrection at the US Capitol