Every state is poised to receive a large amount of federal money to expand broadband access, but they have a lot of work to do to meet the government’s requirements for distributing it.
Is your broadband internet service always up to speed when you need it?
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Ensuring that billions of dollars of federal funding for broadband service are well spent – and that consumers get what they pay for – comes down to knowing the actual speeds internet users experience.
Students and teachers alike struggle with digital connectivity – but education is just one area in which technology matters.
AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh
States have widely different track records on expanding broadband internet access. Here are the ones that could struggle to handle the federal funds coming their way.
Smart cities promise a shining future, but without deliberate efforts to include underserved communities they can worsen the digital divide.
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Hernán Galperin, USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act designates broadband internet access as an essential service and targets billions of dollars to close the digital divide.
A collapsed bridge in Atlanta in 2017 backed up traffic for a month.
AP Photo/David Goldman
As President Biden signs the bipartisan infrastructure bill, it’s important to determine which road, freight and information networks are the most vital to protect.
Congress has asked many questions of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg but has done little to regulate Facebook.
AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin
Pressure is mounting on Congress to take action on Facebook. Our panel of experts offers their top priorities: user control of data, banking-like oversight and resources to close the digital divide.
You can measure the speed of your broadband connection, but that’s not the whole story. Your network provider also has to manage factors such as data loss and latency to ensure a smooth connection.
A crossing guard stops traffic as students arrive at École Woodward Hill Elementary School, in Surrey, B.C., Feb. 23, 2021.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Comprehensive early childhood education, mental health support, internet connectivity and post-secondary funding are part of reducing the consequences of poverty so all students may excel.
President Joe Biden talked about healing the rifts and uniting America in his inaugural address on Jan. 20, 2021.
Michael S. Williamson/Washington Post
A new federal antipoverty program for both rural and urban areas is part of the solution, but the power of Big Ag, lack of internet and struggling towns need attention, too.
The first COVID-19 vaccines arrive packed in dry ice and need special freezers that can keep them extremely cold.
AP Photo/David Goldman
Bennett Doughty, Binghamton University, State University of New York and Pamela Stewart Fahs, Binghamton University, State University of New York
The vaccines’ cold storage requirements and shipment rules put small, rural communities at a disadvantage, but that’s only part of a long-running challenge.
The pandemic will have a long-term impact on life in the countryside.
Farmers, cottagers and small business organizations are among the groups clamouring for better broadband in Ontario, especially in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The need for much-improved internet connectivity exists across Canada. Will the Ontario government’s recent announcement of $1 billion and the federal government’s announcement of the Universal Broadband Fund of $1.75 billion for improved broadband be enough to make a difference?
Conflict arising from government’s ownership of Telkom and its regulatory role contributed to failure to achieve digital transformation.
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South Africa has come short of its digital ambitions, but it can catch up by ensuring access to high speed broadband, and support for domestic digital firms and entrepreneurs.
Millions of households are expected to gain access to upgraded internet connections, with speeds of up to one gigabit per second (if you’re willing to pay for the plan).
High-speed internet is harder to come by in the country.
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Americans depend more than ever on high-speed internet to connect to jobs, get health care and socialize. What policies really work to close the rural-urban digital divide?
After the ‘world’s biggest work-from-home experiment’, many people (and their employers) might decide they needn’t commute every day. If even a fraction do that, infrastructure needs will change.
Professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Deputy Dean Research at Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, The University of Melbourne