Research

In 2018, Common Sense conducted a national survey and focus groups to understand the challenges and promise of technology use in the classroom for learning. Teachers across the US were asked about the use of educational technology with students in their classrooms, and issues of access emerged:

What if you held a Congressional hearing and consensus broke out? As strange as that proposition may appear to be in Washington these days, there does seem to be general consensus that the Federal Communications Commission isn't doing a good enough job collecting data on where broadband internet access service is available -- and where it ain't.

The digital divide is not exclusively or even most significantly a rural problem. Three times as many households in urban areas remain unconnected as in rural areas. And regardless of geography, access isn’t the main reason these homes are without Internet service. The vast majority of US homes without broadband service could have it today, but they don’t want it.

A majority of US adults believe their local news media are doing well financially (71%), even as only 14% say they have paid for local news themselves in the past year, either through subscribing, donating or becoming a member. Some key findings about who pays for local news in the US:

Key findings about the way Americans get news online – as well as how digital newsrooms in the US are faring:

The Fiber Broadband Association and strategy consulting firm Cartesian released a study that explores the costs associated with deploying all-fiber networks to all households across the entire US. More than 19 million Americans lack access to broadband — and the vast majority live in rural communities. In fact, 24% of rural Americans lack access to 25 Mbps service, but less than 2% of urban Americans lack this same broadband access. Deploying fiber in rural communities will be a key step to solving the digital divide in the United States.The study finds that:

Local newspapers have always been the epicenter of local news ecosystems. While communities may have other sources of journalism, such as TV and radio stations and online-only outlets, the bulk of the reporting serving local communities has traditionally been provided by local newspapers. we conducted a study that explores which types of outlets are the most significant producers of journalism in 100 randomly sampled communities across the US.

Millennials have often led older Americans in their adoption and use of technology, and this largely holds true today. But there has been significant growth in tech adoption since 2012 among older generations – particularly Gen Xers and Baby Boomers. Some findings:

Does municipal broadband stimulate broadband adoption or employment growth? I conduct an empirical study of American towns that have built municipal networks to answer this question. Using data from the FCC’s Form 477 and the US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, I track broadband deployment, adoption, and employment statistics for these towns from 2013 to 2017. A town’s decision to install a municipal network in the first place is not random, however.