December 2009

A Minaret Ban and "Climate-gate" Stir Online Discussions

Two distinct controversies drove the online commentary last week. A decision by voters in Switzerland to ban the building of minarets, distinctive structures associated with Islamic mosques, earned the most attention in the blogosphere. And in the run-up to the climate summit in Copenhagen, global warming skeptics continued to dominate the blogosphere debate. Last week, that subject also gained major traction on Twitter. From November 30-December 4, 17% of the links in blogs were about the Swiss referendum, according to the New Media Index from the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism. While a few commentators applauded the vote as a stand against radical Islam, most expressed disappointment that the country would support a move they perceived as intolerant and divisive.

Telecordia Proposes Center for Broadband and Information Networking R&D

Ensuring America's competitiveness in the 21st century requires a broadband telecommunications infrastructure that is secure, scalable, evolvable, trusted, robust, interoperable, affordable, inclusive, fault-tolerant, easy to use, and easy to maintain. Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and broadband networking drive all aspects of the U.S. economy, from education, healthcare, transportation, public safety, and energy to commerce, manufacturing, government, entertainment, science and engineering. The underlying capabilities that drive ICT and broadband networking are evolving rapidly, creating significant challenges to cost-effectively achieve the roadmap of our National Broadband Plan. Meeting these challenges requires a balanced, coordinated and strategically directed R&D investment of adequate size and scope.

To achieve value and avoid bottlenecks, innovations must proceed in a balanced fashion:

1) Across the key dimensions of CapEx, OpEx, Services, and Adopters, so that underlying network capability is available to deliver new services and that new adopters can be supported efficiently,

2) Across the services value chain or, perhaps better, the services value web, which includes the totality of organizations and market segments that design, develop, deploy, and operate information networking technology: from physical components, devices, and equipment; to network systems, services, management, and operations; to content, media, storage, and applications; and to management and assurance of content, identity, and security,

3) Across the lifecycle phases of R&D from basic and applied research to systems, management, and operational capability so that the nation reaps the rewards of research by getting better and more affordable services in the hands of a wider range of citizens and businesses, regardless of their ability, geography, or industry,

4) Across the short, medium and long term so that we solve not only the problems of today, but also lay the groundwork for breakthrough innovations in the longer term; there are a number of specific challenges in the current environment for initiating and sustaining long-term, high-risk research projects with uncertain but promising -- and perhaps revolutionary -- potential.

Target Broadband Research at Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing

In comments filed at the Federal Communications Commission, the Broadband for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Corporation (BDHH), an organization formed to bring broadband Internet access to the low-income deaf and hard-of-hearing population, says any recommendations the FCC makes to Congress on funding broadband research should include a targeted focus on the deaf and hard of hearing, for whom broadband Internet access can be life changing. The most vulnerable populations, those who are disabled and who are poor, are geographically dispersed and their broadband needs are notoriously difficult to assess accurately. As organizations serving the deaf have noted, despite the myriad opportunities that "broadband offers to Americans with communication disabilities, there remains a paucity of comprehensive data about broadband subscribership among this population." Because funding for the provision of broadband is frequently built upon research findings, research targeted at vulnerable populations will likely result in increased broadband provision to these groups, thereby drastically altering the lives of groups that have historically been excluded from the benefits of broadband.

Cost Estimates for Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2009

The Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2009 (HR 4061) would reauthorize several National Science Foundation (NSF) programs that aim to enhance cybersecurity (the protection of computers and computer networks from unauthorized access). The bill also would require the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to establish a cybersecurity awareness program and implement standards for managing personal identifying information stored on computer systems. Finally, the bill would establish a task force to recommend actions to improve cybersecurity research and development. Based on information from NSF and NIST and assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4061 would cost $639 million over the 2010-2014 period and $320 million after 2014. Enacting the legislation would not affect direct spending or revenues.

Cost estimate for CALM Act

The CALM Act (HR 1084) would require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to adopt, within one year, an industry-created standard capping the volume level of television commercials and equalizing the volume between advertisements and other television programming. CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 1084 would have no significant impact on the federal budget.

Open Government Directive is Disappointing

[Commentary] The new Open Government Directive confirms the "asymmetry of government 2.0" -- i.e. the fact that governments take a one-way only approach to government 2.0 (data from government to citizens and engagement from citizens to government), losing sight that the information and engagement flow in the opposite direction too (information is created elsewhere that government needs to be aware of, and government employees engage with external communities). It is quite clear that the suggested approach is for agencies to address participation and collaboration on their turf and on their terms.

Ready for Open Government? Part 2

The White House issued its long-awaited open government directive on Tuesday, setting deadlines for agencies to publish more data online, improve the quality of that information and create a culture of openness. The reaction to the directive has been mostly positive, but some technology specialists say agencies could find it difficult to meet deadlines. That is only part of the story, however. According to the survey, agencies also might have to overcome managers' apathy toward reaching out to citizens, as well as the problem that the processes to do so aren't developed yet. In our first segment, many managers said they supported open government in theory, but they weren't completely sold on the idea. Add to that -- as we show in the second part here -- the fact that federal managers are not frequent users of social networking tools either in their job or for personal reasons, and you have the makings of some sizable obstacles that the Obama administration will have to overcome to create that culture of openness. What does this mean for the future of the president's open government initiative? We want to know what you, the managers who will be asked to create this new public space, think. Nextgov has teamed with the federal social networking site GovLoop to discuss the survey's findings. We invite you to read through the latest set of results here, then click on the link on this page or in the slide show to access GovLoop to post your thoughts, reactions, beliefs and respond to your colleagues' opinions.

OSTP to Launch Public Forum to Discuss Options for Improving Public Access to Results of Federally Funded Research

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy is launching a public consultation on Public Access Policy. The Administration is seeking public input on access to publicly-funded research results, such as those that appear in academic and scholarly journal articles. Currently, the National Institutes of Health require that research funded by its grants be made available to the public online at no charge within 12 months of publication.

Feds Launch Internet Healthcare Initiatives

The Department of Health and Human Services launched three Internet initiatives designed to promote the sharing of research information, improve collaboration, and encourage swine flu prevention. The programs are an implementation of President Barack Obama's principles for promoting open government through transparency, participation, and collaboration, said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. HHS will stream information about biomedical research innovations as part of the National Assets for High-Tech Economic Growth program. The agency will provide real-time access to information on technologies available for licensing from the National Institutes of Health and Food and Drug Administration intramural laboratories and the NIH's Cooperative Research and Development Agreement. In the second initiative, HHS is launching IdeaLab, a collaboration Web project for employees of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Anyone working at CDC can post an idea or request help with a project, and other CDC employees can post their comments, solutions, and similar experiences. And HHS is running the YouTube Know What to Do About the Flu and Prevention Contest, to reach the population most vulnerable to H1N1--teens and young adults--and encourage them to take proactive actions such as washing hands and getting flu shots. More than 250 videos were submitted. Ten finalists were selected and put to a public vote to determine the overall winner, which was featured on national television.

What the Open Internet Means for Democracy

How would the world have been different for the past decade if we hadn't had an open Internet? For instance, would the world know about Neda, the Iranian woman who was murdered during democracy protests? That video was captured on the spot by a citizen, quickly loaded on the Internet and then spread (for free) as bloggers and news organizations posted YouTube embeds. Over and over again, a journalist or citizen saw the video and, through the radical pro-democracy step of simply hitting Control C, Control V, spread Neda's story. It's not just in foreign lands that an open Internet helps promote democracy. The same basic dynamic has been repeated over and over in the U.S. In the last national elections both sides made effective use of virally-spreading videos and information. On the local level, citizens use digital tools to find out information about their governments and communities. Concerned citizens, community activists, and political parties across the ideological spectrum increasingly use the open Internet to obtain pertinent information about government policies, hold their elected leaders accountable, and spread their message to others. Putting aside the question for now of how to guarantee openness, it does seem clear that the ability of the Internet to encourage democracy, empower grass roots Americans and people around the world, requires a profoundly open system.