Diversity

The rules repeatedly affirm our decision to spend that money in ways that advance our digital equity goals. I am proud that my colleagues adopted my recommendation to commit to deploying the new tools Congress gave us with 'particular emphasis on reaching people of color, persons with disabilities, persons who live in rural or Tribal areas, and others who are or have been historically unserved, marginalized, or adversely affected by persistent poverty or inequality.' I intend to make sure we follow through on that commitment.

Federal Communications Commissioners Nathan Simington and Brenden Carr have used their positions as leaders of a federal agency to dehumanize and disrespect the immigrant community. At the National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC), we believe that no human is illegal and that every person deserves dignity and respect. As such, we condemn the Commissioners’ comments and statements following the release of the Affordable Connectivity Program rules and call for higher standards of morality, empathy, and humanity from those who sit on the FCC.

To commemorate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves, Sens Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), and Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott (D-MD) joined Historically Black College and University (HBCU) presidents and representatives at a roundtable to discuss digital equity. The January 15 roundtable in Baltimore (MD) focused on closing the digital divide as a part of President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which provides $65 billion dollars to expand broadband to unserved and underserved areas.

Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has appointed the individuals listed here to serve as members of the three working groups of the Communications Equity and Diversity Council (CEDC). The working groups include members of the CEDC, additional working group members, and independent subject matter experts.

A bevy of witnesses elucidated the longstanding challenges Native American communities face in overcoming the digital divide before the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on January 12, calling attention to the inadequate basic telecommunications infrastructure.

Twitter’s early shift to a “work from anywhere” model during the pandemic, as well as the implementation of a requirement to add more people of color to final job candidate slates, helped the social media company post significant gains in 2021 in hiring Black and Latinx employees.

Living here in many tribal and rural parts of Washington state, even on the fringes of cities including Seattle, Spokane and Leavenworth, means it’s often difficult or impossible to connect to the online world. When the pandemic largely turned the online world into the world for many urbanites, hundreds of thousands of people in Washington were shut out. The federal government has spent billions trying to solve the digital divide — a project many say is as big and necessary as it once was to get electricity into every home — and is on the verge of spending more than ever.

US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo announced that the Department’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) is awarding a $3.2 million grant to the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Towaoc (CO) to construct broadband infrastructure. The project will provide high-speed internet service connecting the Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation and the city of Towaoc to the city of Cortez, increasing access to distance learning and telemedicine, supporting public safety, and allowing for business and entrepreneurial growth across the reservation and region.

The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) has awarded two additional grants as part of the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program. These grants, totaling nearly $1 million, are being awarded to the Yavapai-Apache Nation in Arizona and the Lac Courte Oreilles (LCO) Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians in Wisconsin.

While the logjam of Biden administration nominees is slowly loosening, Democrats say that it’s not happening equitably. Progressive activists and party officials are accusing Republicans of disproportionately delaying women and nominees of color in their quest for confirmation to the executive branch. Jeff Hauser, the executive director of the Revolving Door Project, said, "There are some very slow nominations.