Axios

New, independent digital outlets and nonprofits have begun to fill some of the gap left by fading local newspapers. Limited resources and the pandemic have driven many toward providing community news, information and services rather than traditional accountability journalism. There are now more than 700 independent local news startups in the US and Canada, according to Local Independent Online News Publishers (LION), a trade organization. LION now has over 400 paying members, up from 177 at the start of the pandemic according to executive director Chris Krewson.

As technology's role in American life increases, people on both sides of today's political divide have grown wary of its influence. A majority of respondents to a survey by Axios and the Illinois Institute of Technology expressed concern about the use of artificial intelligence, the reach of algorithms, the state of their online privacy, the size of tech firms and dependence on smartphones. Three-quarters of those polled said tech companies are too big (80 percent of liberals and 83 percent of conservatives).

Lina Khan's first six months leading the Federal Trade Commission has shown she's either shaken up a sleepy bureaucracy or pushed long-standing norms too far, depending on who you ask. As President Biden's first year ends, many are watching Khan's FTC to see whether it really can fundamentally change how the US regulates big companies and how tech should treat consumers.

The $65 billion federal boost to expand broadband access in the US will be a boon to the women-run companies on platforms like Etsy and Airbnb, especially as they see an increase in rural businesses. Expanding high-speed internet access across the country will enable more women to participate in the online economy at a time when women

The internet has become necessary infrastructure during the pandemic, but ubiquitous 5G service has been slow to fully develop in the US. Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners (SIP) said it will invest $100 million to both acquire wireless infrastructure company Dense Air and use its small cell technology to build a "borderless classroom." SIP, which was spun out of Google-parent Alphabet, intends to work with an as-yet unnamed city to build a private wireless network for a school district so students can connect to the same network whether they're in the classroom, on the school bus or at home,