Benton Institute for Broadband & Society

A new chapter in our ongoing COVID-response drama began this week when a bipartisan, bicameral group of lawmakers unveiled a $908 billion emergency relief plan. For many vulnerable people in the U.S., the lack of affordable broadband connections continues to hinder online learning and remote work. Will Congress finally pass economic relief and target support to reduce the digital divide? 

Residential and small-business customers have too few options for fixed, robust broadband service, what we refer to as “High-Performance Broadband.” Solving our deployment and competition problems requires the construction of new broadband networks. In other words, we need more competition, and we need more broadband deployment. Our new policy brief concentrates on one solution—the construction of open-access, middle-mile networks.

We’re not going back to broadband circa 2019. Every aspect of life is going to have a significant virtual component from here on. That’s the lesson we’ve learned in 2020 about the use of broadband networks by people in their homes. Residential broadband access has become crucial to work and learn, to schedule and attend remote visits with a doctor, and to remain connected with family and friends—especially with multiple members of the household online at the same time.

The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society welcomed David Dodson to its Board of Directors. Dodson is the former president and a current Senior Fellow at MDC, a North Carolina-based nonprofit “think tank with muddy boots,” focused on helping the South become a place where all people can thrive. "For nearly forty years David has worked to advance economic opportunity and social mobility for people and communities struggling to realize the American Dream," said Benton Executive Director Adrianne B.

COVID-19 has turned the floodlights on digital inequality in rural, tribal, and urban communities across the United States.

Proposals to help guide our nation to realize the democratic potential of our media and communications ecosystem. 1) A National Strategy to Connect Everyone to Broadband Now, 2) Restore Net Neutrality, 3) End Rampant Industry Consolidation, and 4) Start on a National Discussion on How to Make the Internet Work Better for the US. So, let’s range widely. There are no silver bullets or magic cures or partisan solutions.

Joseph R. Biden Jr. was elected the 46th president of the United States in voting that ended November 3, 2020. He will take office on Wednesday, January 20, 2021. Although we won't know the makeup of the 117th Congress until January, we can start thinking about changes in federal agencies, like the Federal Communications Commission. President-elect Biden has identified four "Day One" priorities for his administration: battling the COVID-19 pandemic, facilitating economic recovery, facing racial inequity, addressing global climate change.

On November 10, the Senate Commerce Committee convened to consider the nomination of Nathan Simington for Federal Communications Commissioner. President Donald Trump nominated Simington after withdrawing the re-nomination of current FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly this past summer. Simington has been a Senior Advisor for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) at the Department of Commerce since June of 2020.

Federal Communications Commission policies geared towards improving rural broadband deployment have failed in meaning, money, and mapping.

2020 has been so dark. In the throes of a pandemic, we know so much has been lost – is still being lost. But for just a few moments, let us celebrate the achievements of digital equity advocates. Because 2020 only proves how essential our work is. Millions in the US have lost jobs this year. But digital equity advocates have helped people find new employment because of their connections to and expertise with the internet.