When broadband fails to reach indigenous tribes, the result is not only a lack of connectivity but also a scarcity of data that essentially masks their needs from the government. The digital divide disproportionately affects underserved populations, and for Tribal communities, it is exacerbated by jurisdictional challenges, geographic coverage limitations, and a lack of affordability, said Traci Morris, executive director of the American Indian Policy Institute (AIPI). The absence of technology and even staff on Tribal lands restricts the amount of their information that can be gathered about native communities compared with other areas of the country, creating data divides. When American Indians and Native Alaskans are undercounted by the census, for example, their needs are too, according to the Center for Data Innovation’s recent report on the data divide. Despite funding from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to increase digital access and broadband on indigenous lands, “government officials cannot effectively grasp the scope of the problem,” because of inadequate data according to the report. There have been efforts to improve the situation, Morris said. In Temecula (CA) in the summer of 2021, representatives from various tribes met up to learn about broadband installation for the first tribal wireless boot camp. The session focused on building, maintaining, and troubleshooting wireless networks. Tribal broadband boot camps are slated to continue next year as well. Additionally, the US Department of Commerce announced the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program (TBCP), which will award nearly $1 billion in funds that would help “deploy broadband infrastructure, establish affordable broadband programs, and support digital inclusion across Indian Country to lessen the digital divide."

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) allocated $65 billion toward addressing disparities in broadband access across the nation. A key component of the legislation, the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), subsidizes broadband subscriptions for low-income households. However, participation in the program has been low so far, suggesting that the ACP may not yet be reaching many of the underserved households that the legislation targeted. This article explores the background of the Affordable Connectivity Program and its participation levels across the Fifth District of the Federal Reserve in its first year of operation. The challenges that small internet service providers (ISPs) face in enrolling people in the program and adhering to its regulatory requirements bring to light an opportunity: Reducing the administrative burden and providing additional training and advertising could enable higher participation in the ACP.

Unlike other advertisements for goods and services, there are no federally set standards for measuring broadband service speeds. This means there is no clear way to tell whether customers are getting what they pay for. To protect consumers, the FCC will need to invest in building a set of broadband speed measures, maps, and public data repositories that enables researchers to access and analyze what the public actually experiences when people purchase broadband connectivity. The FCC’s latest proposal for the creation of a National Broadband Map is already receiving criticism because its measurement process is a “black box,” meaning its methodology and data are not transparent to the public. Lack of transparency about these new maps and the methodologies undergirding them could lead to major headaches in disbursing the $42.5 billion in broadband infrastructure grant funding through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program. The FCC’s methodologies have been greatly inaccurate, which has hampered the nation’s ability to address the digital divide. Independent analysis is crowd-sourcing data collection of monthly internet bills from across the country. Efforts like these from consumer groups are crucial to shed more transparency on the problem that official measures differ from consumer experience.

[Sascha Meinrath is the Palmer Chair in Telecommunications at Penn State and director of X-Lab, an innovative think tank focusing on the intersection of vanguard technologies and public policy.]

American government civic leaders continue to prioritize digital inclusion and digital equity. In Boston (MA), elected officials, and tech leaders are collaborating to expand the scope of digital equity by making sure all residents have high-speed Internet, devices, and digital skills training. Additionally, Boston has a new focus; specifically, the City has broadened the scope of the work to also include looking at how technology can ease barriers toward equity for different groups. For example, looking at city programs that help older adults who have transportation issues receive coupons to use taxis or considering things like language barriers in that work, ultimately resulting in ensuring digital products are available in more languages. In Mesa (AZ), city leaders continue to use the tools available to local government to make high-speed Internet more affordable, doing so in ways specific to the needs of their community. Particularly, Mesa has looked to broadband affordability in rural communities, and, increasingly, awareness has grown in urban communities, especially as large-school kids in big cities were unable to participate in digital learning at the start of the pandemic. Oakland (CA) has focused on increasing access to a device and high-speed Internet at home; where 98 percent of low-income students have access, up from 12 percent at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Oakland was able to do this through a joint effort between the city government, the local schools, and other community partners, forging a very effective set of public-private partnerships.

On September 15, 2022, President Biden hosted the United We Stand Summit to counter the corrosive effects of hate-fueled violence on our democracy and public safety. Announcements from the tech sector at the summit took a step towards recognizing the important role companies play in designing their products and platforms to curb the spread of hate-fueled violence both online and off:

• YouTube is expanding its policies to combat violent extremism by removing content glorifying violent acts for the purpose of inspiring others to commit harm, fundraise, or recruit. YouTube will also launch an educational media literacy campaign across its platform.
• Twitch will release a new tool that empowers its streamers to help counter hate and harassment. Twitch will also launch new community education initiatives on topics including identifying harmful misinformation and deterring hateful violence.
• Microsoft is expanding its application of violence detection and prevention artificial intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) tools and using gaming to build empathy in young people.
• Meta is forging a new research partnership with the Middlebury Institute of International Studies’ Center on Terrorism, Extremism, and Counterterrorism. Meta will also partner with Search For Common Ground to equip community-based partners working locally to counter hate-fueled violence.