Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, who has previously waded into debates on net neutrality, slammed the Federal Communications Commission and broadband companies for not doing enough to address the digital divide. In a video with Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL), as the tech executive and the congresswoman discussed how the pandemic has underscored the broadband gap, Ohanian said that “this current FCC has not shown much of an interest” in expanding broadband to parts of rural America with little to no connectivity and that “I'd love to see more leverage put on broadband companies.” “No one's particularly a big fan of their cable company,” Ohanian added. “We’ve facilitated an oligopoly — basically there's only a few per region, they don't really have to compete. And in America, in a capitalist system where there's no competition [it’s] a big problem because the whole point is we, as consumers, are supposed to be better off when there’s competition. And because there isn’t, these broadband companies have been able to get away with it for too long.”

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced more than $6 billion will be distributed immediately to colleges and universities to provide direct emergency cash grants to college students whose lives and educations have been disrupted by the coronavirus outbreak. The funding is available through the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump March 27.

The CARES Act provides nearly $14 billion to support postsecondary education students and institutions. Colleges and universities are required to utilize the $6.28 billion made available April 9 to provide cash grants to students for expenses related to disruptions to their educations due to the COVID-19 outbreak, including things like course materials and technology as well as food, housing, health care, and childcare.

I write to express my sincere appreciation for the extraordinary leadership you have shown on all communications policy matters, especially regarding 5G advanced wireless services, and to seek your direct assistance on an issue of great importance to our nation. I believe that only you personally, with your unique ability to cut through the bureaucratic stonewalling, can free the necessary
spectrum bands to provide our wireless providers the means to succeed.

Under your direction, the US military has been vastly improved and better funded to ensure it regains its prominence as the finest and strongest force ever seen on the face of the Earth. At the same time, it is clear that more can be done to improve spectrum efficiency within the Department of Defense (DoD). Indeed, the reallocation of spectrum from DoD is not mutually exclusive with national security and must be pursued for the betterment of the American people and to ensure the continued success of our military under your leadership. In sum, I believe that only with your personal and active engagement will DoD reduce its spectrum footprint in a timely manner to promote 5G services. I implore you to exercise your exemplary skills in responding to this critical need.

Trump administration officials sought to revoke federal licenses used by China Telecom to do business in the US as part of a broader campaign to curb global Chinese technology interests on national security grounds. A collection of federal agencies led by the Department of Justice and including the departments of Defense and Homeland Security asked the Federal Communications Commission to permanently revoke licenses the Chinese internet service provider’s US subsidiary has used since 2007 to act as a “common carrier” connecting domestic and overseas networks. The FCC has final authority over the decision but often defers to national security officials at other agencies. The proposal, if adopted, would effectively bar China Telecom from serving US clients and could hinder its ability to send data across American networks.

The agencies’ decision cited an “evolving national security environment since 2007 and increased knowledge of the [People's Republic of China]’s role in malicious cyber activity targeting the United States.” State-owned China Telecom is one of China’s three major phone and internet providers and has operations around the world. The US agencies also claimed China Telecom made inaccurate statements to officials about where it stores US records, that its lax network security threatened American interests, and that the company disrupted and misrouted internet traffic. The filing details 10 such reported incidents from 2010-2019 that interrupted Facebook’s US traffic, Google’s global traffic and the US Energy Department’s traffic.

4-H and Microsoft released a report that captures how much broadband can mean to youth and their communities. The report is based on a survey of more than 1,500 teens, ages 13 to 19, that was conducted in November 2019.

• High-Speed broadband internet access is not equitably distributed
  • 1 in 6 rural teens do not have access to Broadband Internet
  • 22% of rural teens deal with an Internet connection that is sometimes reliable at best
• Lack of access to broadband internet interferes with teens’ confidence
  • They are less confident about graduating, finding a job, and financial success
  • They also feel less confident when comparing themselves to the average American their age
• Teens with broadband are more optimistic about their social mobility for higher education and their careers
  • 82% of teens with broadband feel they have more opportunities to be successful in life than their parents did.
  • Only 59% of teens without Broadband access say their school adequately prepared them with the digital skills they need to succeed compared to 74% of teens with broadband access.
• Teens with broadband access are more likely to reap the benefits of community and get invested in its future
  • They are more likely to feel a sense of belonging or empowerment from their community
  • Teens with access are more likely to be involved in social causes they care about

There’s no such thing as a “new” idea, said Mark Twain. In the Federal Communications Commission World there really isn’t because someone thought of almost every great new idea 50 years earlier. That someone was the FCC world’s Visionary-in-Chief, former FCC General Counsel and National Telecommunications & Information Administration Director Henry Geller. On April 7, at the age of 96, Henry passed away. Who in their field has matched what Henry accomplished in ours? Irving Berlin (songs). James Brown (dances). Abe Lincoln (oratory). Yes, he was that prolific. Consider this short and incomplete list of Henry’s Greatest Hits:

• Viewer and listener standing in broadcast cases (1966 – along with Dr. Everett Parker)

• Opening the FCC commissioners’ offices, and the Office of General Counsel, to minority lawyers and law clerks (1967)

• Prohibiting racial discrimination by broadcast licensees (1969)

• Minority media incubators (1969)

• Banning cigarette advertising on television (1970)

• Exempting presidential debates from the equal time rule (1975)

• Replacing comparative hearings with auctions (1977; implemented 1992)

• Spectrum fees paid by commercial broadcasters to underwrite noncommercial ones (1978 – but never implemented)

• The Children’s Television Act (1990).