Bridging the Digital Divide: A Journey to Rural Oklahoma

Growing up in a bustling suburb, accessing the internet was something I took for granted. I never thought about internet access or access in other parts of the country. It wasn’t until I embarked on my journey at USTelecom that I began to learn about the challenges of deploying broadband in rural communities. I headed to Sulphur, Oklahoma, population 4,700, home to the Chickasaw Telephone Company, to better understand what it takes to deploy broadband in rural America. USTelecom members, like Chickasaw, are leading the way in connecting rural America. Broadband providers have made massive investments, including a record $102.4 billion in 2022, to build, expand, and upgrade our nation’s high-speed infrastructure. Deploying broadband in rural America is an expensive and lengthy task. Like many communities in our nation’s heartland, the picturesque town of Sulphur, nestled amidst the Arbuckle Mountains, presents unique deployment challenges. The oldest mountain range in America means that digging through the soil is no simple task Chickasaw’s dedication to improving customer speed, reliability, and network performance is evident in its transition from copper to fiber. The commitment to laying fiber in a challenging landscape underscores the determination to bring high-speed connectivity to rural America.