Biden’s policies on technology

President-elect Joe Biden is set to have a very different relationship with the tech industry from when he served as vice president. Tech companies have grown more powerful over the past four years — and more perilous. They have continued to amass data and wealth. But they have been used as tools for election interference and disinformation, contributing to the divide in the nation. The Biden administration will face pressure to immediately prioritize the expansion of broadband access and dismantle some of the Trump administration’s hallmark efforts to deregulate the Internet. The pandemic is highlighting a persistent digital divide, in which Americans without a strong and affordable Internet connection are increasingly boxed out of work and education opportunities. President-elect Joe Biden promised throughout his candidacy that he would prioritize expanding Internet access as he made fixing the nation’s infrastructure a central tenet of his campaign message. His “Build Back Better” plan, a response to the dual health and economic crises, calls for the creation of “universal broadband" for every American. That could set the stage for Democrats to finally make good on a long-standing push to expand federal funding for Internet access. The Biden transition team is exploring immediate actions it can take to bring relief to Americans in need of an Internet connection.

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