North Carolina lawmakers KO municipal broadband

North Carolina's legislature has killed a key state agency and passed a law that makes it nearly impossible for cities in the state to operate their own broadband networks. The law follows restrictions on broadband in 19 other states, and came after years of lobbying by big cable and telecom companies. The state legislature also killed North Carolina's broadband authority, which had a national reputation for its statewide planning and technical assistance work. (Aug 24)