Children and Media

Getting internet to the school is just one piece of the puzzle in closing the digital divide and the growing “homework gap” in which students lack residential and community broadband access. Even in communities with exceptional broadband in their schools, how are student experiences affected when nearby institutions and establishments, including libraries, churches and other public facilities, have limited digital resources and connectivity?

On July 29, 2019, Reps Grace Meng (D-NY), James Clyburn (D-SC), TJ Cox (D-CA), Ro Khanna (D-CA), and Cindy Axne (D-IA) wrote to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai to express strong disapproval of the FCC's elimination of the educational requirements for the Educational Broadband Services (EBS) in the "Transforming the 2.5 GHz Band" Report and Order.

Reps Bobby Rush (D-IL) and Tim Walberg (R-MI) introduced the Preventing Real Online Threats Endangering Children Today (PROTECT) Kids Act. This bipartisan legislation modernizes the Child Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) to better protect our nation’s children from the myriad of threats posed by an ever-evolving digital landscape. The PROTECT Kids Act:

Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph Simons said that the FTC was still investigating Facebook for antitrust violations, and that the FTC's $5 billion settlement with the company is the thing he is most proud of over the past year. The other was the $170 million settlement with Google/YouTube over kids privacy. Chairman Simons renewed his call for Congress to pass comprehensive privacy legislation, but does not favor a Democrat-backed proposal to create a new, separate, privacy enforcement agency.

YouTube said it is rolling out new protections for children viewing videos on its site, an effort to satisfy federal regulators who in 2019 fined the company tens of millions of dollars over alleged privacy violations. The changes, which include limitations on data collection and advertising, are a step toward addressing concerns from advocacy groups who have complained the Google-owned company has run afoul of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which forbids tracking and targeting users 12 and under.

Advocacy groups are urging the Federal Trade Commission to step up enforcement of a federal privacy law that prohibits website operators from knowingly collecting data from children younger than 13 without their parents' permission.

Only a third of rural California households have internet access, compared to 78% of urban households, limiting the number of students who can finish online homework assignments, according to an EdSource analysis analysis of California Public Utilities Commission data. While low-income families are the most likely to lack internet access because the additional payment is too much, there's also a lack of service providers and options.

Pediatricians and consumer advocates are calling on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate practices for collecting online data about children, amid concerns advertisers might be manipulating children with targeted ads.

Rep Grace Meng (D-NY) announced the introduction of the Closing the Homework Gap Through Mobile Hotspots Act, which would create a $100 million grant program for schools, libraries, US territories, and federally recognized Indian Tribes to purchase mobile hotspots to help close the nation’s homework gap. They would use the funds to create mobile hotspot programs for students to have internet access to complete their homework. As many as 12 million students in the US lack broadband at home.

The State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA), the principal membership association representing the US state and territorial educational technology leaders, announced the release of the Broadband Imperative III: Driving Connectivity, Access and Student Success. This report advocates for equitable, reliable, robust broadband access both on and off campus to prepare all students for life and work. This report builds upon SETDA’s earlier work, including the groundbreaking Broadband Imperative series of reports and State Broadband K12 Leadership reports.