Reports that employ attempts to inform communications policymaking in a systematically and scientific manner.
Research
Why it's so hard for some Americans to get high-speed internet
The Federal Communications Commission's broadband map, which invites you to plug in street addresses to see which companies sell service there and at what speeds, is a failure. It’s built on old and fuzzy data filed by internet providers that sometimes don’t even know where they offer service. And this stunted cartography of connectivity doesn’t just sandbag house hunters researching their biggest expense; it also holds back government efforts to cover broadband gaps -- for instance, the 5G-broadband agenda the Trump administration outlined April 12 that FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said will incl
That Other Big Report
Digital provisions in the revamped trade agreement among the US, Mexico and Canada will give the US economy a modest boost, with the technology and telecommunications sectors being the biggest beneficiaries, according to an independent analysis from the US International Trade Commission. The report, a key step before Congress votes on the deal, echoes several points tech lobbyists have long argued. Jordan Haas, the Internet Association’s trade policy director, urged Congress to quickly pass the deal.
Reading between the redacted lines
The redacted Mueller report highlighted, at least from a tech perspective, much of what we’d already known since the indictments were first announced, including of course the top-line takeaway that Russia indeed sought to use Facebook and Twitter, largely through the St. Petersburg-based Internet Research Agency, to influence the 2016 election in then-candidate Donald Trump’s favor. Particularly noteworthy is that high-ranking members of the president’s inner circle including Kellyanne Conway, Brad Parscale, Michael Flynn and Donald Trump Jr.
Through email leaks and propaganda, Russians sought to elect Trump, Mueller finds
In what will stand as among the most definitive public accounts of the Kremlin’s attack on the American political system, the report of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation laid out in precise, chronological detail how “the Russian government interfered in the 2016 presidential election in sweeping and systematic fashion.” The Russians’ goal, Mueller emphasized at several points, was to assist Donald Trump’s run for the White House and to damage Hillary Clinton’s candidacy.
Unplugged: NTIA Survey Finds Some Americans Still Avoid Home Internet Use
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration's (NTIA) most recent Internet Use Survey depicts a rapidly evolving nation eager to take advantage of technological innovation. Mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets, and wearables are increasingly dominating the computing landscape, as more Americans than ever use the Internet. Yet a portion of the population still does not use the Internet at home, consistent with findings in previous NTIA and US Census Bureau surveys on Internet use.
22% of US broadband households have a service speed of 100-999 Mbps
New research from Parks Associates finds 22 percent of US broadband households have a service speed of 100-999 megabits per second (Mbps), the most common service tier, although 39 percent of US broadband households do not know their broadband speed. The report, Modern Broadband: Competition and Retention at Gigabit Speeds, notes only 6 percent of US broadband households have gigabit-speed services and interest in upgrading to that speed of service has declined over the past two years.
For many rural residents in US, local news media mostly don’t cover the area where they live
Roughly six-in-ten self-described urban residents (62%) say their local news media mainly cover the area they live in, while a majority of those who describe themselves as rural residents (57%) say the opposite is true – their local news media mostly cover some other area, a concern raised by many journalism watchers following newsroom cutbacks and media consolidation.
GAO Science, Technology Assessment, and Analytics Team: Initial Plan and Considerations Moving Forward
The 2019 Legislative Branch Appropriations Bill Conference Report encouraged the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) to reorganize its technology and science function by creating a new office within GAO and to report to the Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittees on plans for doing so. In January 2019, GAO created the Science, Technology Assessment, and Analytics (STAA) team to build on its decades-long track record of providing Congress with science and technology (S&T) analysis.
Algorithmic Accountability Act Introduced in House and Senate
Sens Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY) introduced the Algorithmic Accountability Act, which requires companies to study and fix flawed computer algorithms that result in inaccurate, unfair, biased or discriminatory decisions impacting Americans. The Algorithmic Accountability Act would: