Research

The mortality rate from COVID-19 was about 50% lower in U.S. counties with higher internet access in the summer and early fall of 2020. A new University of Michigan study found that broadband connection was a key factor in reducing mortality and incidence during the early months of the pandemic. The average county with high internet access had 48%-53% fewer new COVID-19 deaths and 19%-34% fewer new COVID deaths per 100,000 residents than the average county with low internet access.

Digital skills and access to educational materials at home are critical for preparing students for the future. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic put into sharp focus the divide between students with and without consistent, reliable broadband and device access.

The fifth installment of USTelecom’s Broadband Pricing Index (BPI) shows that prices for high-speed broadband internet services continue to decline— even as upload and download speeds rapidly advance. Thanks to the world-leading pace of broadband infrastructure investment by the U.S. private sector1 and an intensive focus on fiber deployments, consumers have never had a stronger value proposition for their connectivity dollar. Key findings from the report include: 

A look at the impacts of universal service support mechanisms and the method used to finance them. Section 1 of the report provides an update on industry revenues, universal service program funding requirements, and contribution factors. Sections 2 through 5 provide the latest data on the low-income, high-cost, schools and libraries, and rural health care support mechanisms. Section 6 presents recent U.S.

A cache of statistics about Americans’ usage of the internet and their thoughts about its value are highlighted in a new report titled “Internet Statistics in 2025” from HighSpeedInternet.com. The statistics cover internet access, speed, cost, reliability, connections, and more, based on data gathered in 2024. Nearly ubiquitous, 333.1 million people (97 percent of Americans) said they use the internet. This number has increased by 51 million in roughly 10 years. Almost 25 percent of internet users said the longest they can go without needing internet access is four hours.

In 2022, Color Of Change pioneered the first Black Tech Agenda, which aimed to foster racial equity within technology by dismantling entrenched racism and promoting greater Black representation in technological decision-making roles.

Due to rapid changes in the digital landscape, the first decade of the new millennium paved the path for technology-enabled teaching and learning. However, the COVID-19 pandemic entirely reshaped the national conversation in K–12 from one strictly focused on at-school connectivity to one that considers “universal connectivity,” even outside of school grounds, as a required component of a modern education system.

The National Telecommunications Administration (NTIA) awarded the Connecticut Department of Administrative Services (DAS) Commission for Educational Technology over $9 million in Digital Equity Capacity Grant funding towards implementing the state's Digital Equity Plan.

A comprehensive and ongoing assessment and celebration of states’ digital inclusion work. This new evaluation reflects a broader focus on other components of digital inclusion and reflects a range of activities that state governments can engage in:

Public libraries play a critical role in addressing the digital divide and advancing digital equity in their communities. However, little is known about their participation in digital equity coalitions and what this information might tell us about public libraries as partners in community-wide efforts to advance the public good. This paper seeks to address this gap in the literature by presenting findings from a pilot study of public libraries working with digital equity coalitions in the U.S.