Friday, October 2, 2026
Headlines Daily Digest
A New Name, a New Platform, and a Voluntary Industry Accord on What You Used to Call AI
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New BEAD round presents complications, uncertain timeline
Digital Equity Act grants are coming: Start building your application partnerships now
Across the Globe, People Increasingly Say Social Media Is Harming Democracy
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After ban threats, TikTok touts a $12-billion boost to California businesses | LA Times
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While broadband advocates appear to broadly support the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's move to open up a supplemental funding round to reach remaining unserved Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program locations, it's also clear that many are concerned and curious about how that process will unfold from here. "Big picture, NTIA is recognizing that things change," said Carol Mattey, former Federal Communications Commission official and founder of Mattey Consulting, in a conversation hosted by the Fiber Broadband Association. That, she said, is a "good thing," but "there are some complications."
The Oklahoma Broadband Office is celebrating the completion of two broadband expansion projects by Lake Region Technology & Communications that are bringing fiber-optic internet service to communities in Wagoner County. The projects were funded through Oklahoma’s American Rescue Plan Act Capital Projects Fund broadband program. Lake Region received approximately $756,000 across two projects to expand high-speed internet infrastructure in and around the towns of Okay and Porter. With construction complete, residents and businesses within the project areas now have access to reliable, high-speed fiber-optic broadband.
The Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program is coming back, and applications could open as soon as December. After a federal court ruled in July that the administration could not simply cancel the program, the Commerce Department committed to reopening it under a new Notice of Funding Opportunity. That is good news for the field. But the application window is likely to be short and badly timed, and the organizations that start preparing now will be best placed to compete. Finding the right partner can make or break a joint application, and the clock is already running. We break down what’s confirmed, what we’re still waiting on, and how Connect Humanity and Human-I-T can help you line up partners and put together a competitive application.
Researchers from Pennsylvania State University recently published an excellent report, Beyond Connectivity Among Rural First Responders in Pennsylvania. The report is based on the findings from focus groups and interviews with law enforcement officers, firefighters, EMTs, 911 center representatives, local officials, and other key stakeholders. The in-depth discussions identified multiple problems that hinder public safety work in rural areas:
- The lack of rural cellular coverage means there are rural dead zones where first responders and the public can’t reliably communicate with each other. The report cites examples where first responders sometimes have to go door-to-door looking for somebody with a landline in order to communicate locally—which will be an increasing problem as copper networks are being torn down.
- Many jurisdictions have public safety radio networks for first responders to communicate with their home hub. First responders in Pennsylvania complained that there is a major inconsistency between the types of networks being deployed, and that they often find themselves working in an area that uses different radios and frequencies than the radios they are equipped with.
- There were complaints about the astronomical cost of devices. Both cellphones and public safety radios have gotten increasingly expensive. In rural areas, first responders might have to carry multiple cellphones to connect to different carriers.
- There is an overall perception among first responders that they are underfunded and don’t have the resources needed to do a good job in rural areas.
As social media platforms have become an important part of the information environment around the world, the view that social media is harming democracy has become more common. A new 37-nation Pew Research Center survey finds that in most countries where trend data is available, the share of the public who believes social media is bad for democracy has increased significantly from 2022 or 2023 to now. Views about social media’s impact are particularly negative in the United States, where 64% of adults say it is bad for democracy. However, while assessments have become more negative in many countries, American attitudes are unchanged since 2022.
On September 29, 2026, President Donald Trump took three significant steps shaping how the federal government will use, refer to, and oversee artificial intelligence (AI)—including a voluntary accord with six of the country's largest AI companies that signals the Administration's preference for industry self-governance over federal regulation. The three actions were:
- An Executive Order (EO) directing the executive branch to stop using the term "Artificial Intelligence" and replace it with "Super Intelligence" (SI) in all official communications going forward;
- An EO directing the General Services Administration (GSA) to establish America.gov as a single digital front door through which Americans can access federal government services online; and
- A White House Accord on Super Intelligence, a voluntary commitment signed by the President and the chief executives of six major AI companies establishing four layers of internal controls and audits for frontier AI development (the most powerful, cutting-edge AI systems).
Together, the three actions mark the Administration's most public-facing AI moves to date: a terminology change that rebrands the technology for every American who interacts with the federal government, a platform that puts SI-powered federal services directly in the hands of ordinary citizens, and an industry accord that reaffirms voluntary self-governance as the Administration's answer to calls for federal AI regulation.
Benton (www.benton.org) provides the only free, reliable, and non-partisan daily digest that curates and distributes news related to universal broadband, while connecting communications, democracy, and public interest issues. Posted Monday through Friday, this service provides updates on important industry developments, policy issues, and other related news events. While the summaries are factually accurate, their sometimes informal tone may not always represent the tone of the original articles. Headlines are compiled by Kevin Taglang (headlines AT benton DOT org) and Zoe Walker (zwalker AT benton DOT org) — we welcome your comments.
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