Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai defended the recent repeal of network neutrality rules, saying that the move was necessary to increase competition among internet service providers. “The effects of these regulations were holding back investment and innovation,” Chairman Pai said. “The number one concern I hear consistently from consumers is that 'we don’t have internet access at all,' or 'we don’t have enough competition — we’re locked into one provider.' The solution to that is not heavily regulating something out of Washington, making it even harder for a company to build a business case for deployment.”

Ultimately, Chairman Pai said that the net neutrality rules were unfairly affecting small internet service providers, leading to a lack of potential to bridge the "digital divide."  “Smaller companies that perhaps none of you have heard of, these are the companies that are critical to providing access and competition. These are the companies that bore the brunt of these regulations,” Pai said. “When it comes to something like the digital divide, all of us gain when Americans are connected.” But only so much can be done at the federal level to address the divide, so some of the responsibility falls on states, Pai said. 

“I think the most important thing that state officials could do…is to create a consistent set of policies. If you are a company, big or small, it is difficult, if not prohibitive, to jump through the hoops of regulatory review on the federal level, on the state level, on the perhaps thousands of municipalities that are involved,” Pai said. “One of the things we’re trying to do is create a consistent set of rules that companies can work around.”

On September 26, at the Federal Communications Commission’s open meeting, commissioners will vote on an order that will limit the roles of local policymakers in the deployment of fifth generation (5G) wireless infrastructure. So one might ask, why doesn’t my community get a say in this? Under the guise of promising shiny new technology and closing the digital divide, the FCC is proposing a change in rules that is a blatant effort to strengthen the hand of wireless carriers in negotiations with local governments over small cell deployment and to limit the ability of local governments to negotiate in the public interest. This is a huge tradeoff -- and one happening without much public debate. The small ray of light here is that the FCC is leaving local governments with some power to enact reasonable regulations governing small cell deployments. With the right approach and partner, local governments may be able to address citizens' concerns. But that means local governments need to start planning yesterday on zoning, application processing cost recovery, antenna design, location and spacing, additional pole and equipment aesthetic requirements, and other issues. 

I am thrilled to return to TPRC to present the winners of the Charles Benton Early Career Scholar Award. Deeply embedded in the DNA of the Benton Foundation are three key values: access, equity, and diversity. Today we celebrate a paper that, we feel, makes an important contribution to communications and media policy literature. We know that communities of color face complex challenges achieving equitable outcomes. This paper delves into why. There are a couple of takeaways here that I’d like to highlight. First, communities of color – and the organizations who advocate on their behalf – are not a monolith. There are robust debates within and between groups as they plan their own digital futures. Secondly, the authors argue that critical race theorists and other social scientists are desperately needed to complement and deepen communications debates, in the interest of a more democratic communications ecology. I, for one, take this diversity of viewpoints to be a strength. What is motivating these groups to get involved in communications policy debates? What advocacy strategies work best for them?  What are the implications for how we want policy decisions to be made?

[Adrianne B. Furniss is the Executive Director of the Benton Foundation]