Culture, income, location affect broadband adoption in Washington region

People who live in the Washington (DC) region are pretty well connected when it comes to high-speed Internet service — but there are still large swaths of the population that are unwilling or too financially strapped to plug in.

Having a low income is the most consistent trait among non-adopters, while Hispanics and rural residents are also less likely to be broadband subscribers, according to a four-month study of government data. The data show that in the DC region and elsewhere, the debate over the “digital divide” has become less about access to broadband and more about the far-stickier issue of affordability. The analysis shows that broadband adoption is greater in the Washington suburbs — wealthy Fairfax County (VA) ranked first in connectedness while DC was 17th. Manassas (VA) ranked last among the 29 area counties and municipalities surveyed. Counties located farthest outside the beltway generally ranked the lowest, though there were exceptions.