Research

This report profiles six key trends, six significant challenges, and six developments in educational technology for higher education.

Compared with the US public overall, which voices are represented on Twitter? The analysis indicates that the 22 percent of American adults who use Twitter are representative of the broader population in certain ways, but not others. Twitter users are younger, more likely to identify as Democrats, more highly educated, and have higher incomes than US adults overall. Twitter users also differ from the broader population on some key social issues.

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) most recent Internet Use Survey depicts a rapidly evolving nation eager to take advantage of technological innovation. Mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets, and wearables are increasingly dominating the computing landscape, as more Americans than ever use the Internet. Yet a portion of the population still does not use the Internet at home, consistent with findings in previous NTIA and US Census Bureau surveys on Internet use.

New research from Parks Associates finds 22 percent of US broadband households have a service speed of 100-999 megabits per second (Mbps), the most common service tier, although 39 percent of US broadband households do not know their broadband speed. The report, Modern Broadband: Competition and Retention at Gigabit Speeds, notes only 6 percent of US broadband households have gigabit-speed services and interest in upgrading to that speed of service has declined over the past two years.

The Digital Global Access Policy Act (HR 1359) would direct the Department of State and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to collaborate with other agencies, international organizations, foreign governments, and other entities to promote the availability of access to the Internet in developing countries. In addition, the bill would require the Administration to report to the Congress on its policy to promote such access.

Roughly six-in-ten self-described urban residents (62%) say their local news media mainly cover the area they live in, while a majority of those who describe themselves as rural residents (57%) say the opposite is true – their local news media mostly cover some other area, a concern raised by many journalism watchers following newsroom cutbacks and media consolidation.

The Save the Internet Act (HR 1644) would require the Federal Communications Commission to return to the regulatory framework for Internet service providers (ISPs) that was in effect as of Jan 19, 2017. Restoring the 2015 regulatory framework could increase oversight and enforcement actions by the FCC and could reduce enforcement and oversight by the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice. Spending on such increased FCC activities would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.

The digital economy accounted for 6.9 percent of the US gross domestic product, or $1.35 trillion, in 2017, according to a new batch of statistics released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.  How does that compare with traditional US industries? The digital economy ranked just below professional, scientific, and technical services, which accounted for 7.4 percent of GDP, and just above wholesale trade, with a 6.0 percent share.  New BEA data also show that:

This framework for US privacy legislation outlines clear rules of the road for entities using personal data, details strong rights for people who interact with those entities, and gives the FTC effective authority to make and enforce these rules as technologies evolve. In general, it is designed to shift more of the burden to safeguard personal data from users to companies, and to alleviate the burden on individuals.

To demonstrate what makes internet health meaningful for stakeholders and communities at the municipal level, this collection of case studies offers a portrait of a vibrant city working in different ways toward a common public good – an inclusive, safe, secure, open, and decentralized internet. The report examines how people, civil society institutions, government, and advocates – all committed to digital rights – can make our relationship to the internet healthier across five crucial issue areas: