Promoting locally rooted, democratically accountable broadband networks that provide fast, affordable, and reliable Internet access to all Americans.
This week, The Verge published an in-depth piece – “Elon Musk and the plot to hijack America’s broadband” – authored by our own Sean Gonsalves and ILSR contributor Karl Bode that examines the BEAD program from its inception to where it is now.
The piece details how the once-in-a-generation program meant to solve America’s digital divide has devolved into “a flaming mess.” It begins with the recent explosion of Blue Origin New Glenn rocket and how that is “an unintentionally perfect metaphor for a once-in-a-generation attempt to fix the creaky US broadband system.”
It goes on to explain how under President Donald Trump and a coalition of MAGA-allied tech moguls, the BEAD program has been transformed into ‘tear down quickly’ program, leaving states mired in bureaucracy and delays, and how five years later, only a handful of the millions of Americans slated for an internet access upgrade actually got one – with little accountability in sight.
Read the Article
Chris and Doug Dawson unpack a new survey of rural Americans, the lawsuit over the Digital Equity Act, and what the FCC's latest satellite decisions...
Broadband surge is the result of Tribal Nations’ mission to establish "network sovereignty," says census researcher Jessica Auer.
With tax day as a backdrop, the ILSR Community Broadband Networks Initiative and the National Digital Inclusion Alliance convened its quarterly Building for Digital Equity...
New Mexico becomes first state to step up in absence of federal action to support households that can’t afford to pay for monthly Internet service.
A community broadband network, we define, as a publicly-owned, locally-controlled broadband network, which can include public-private partnerships. The most common kinds of community networks are municipal networks and cooperatives.
There are more than 1000 localities across the nation served by a community broadband network with many more in the planning or construction phase.
Having tracked and documented broadband developments for nearly 20 years, we have amassed the nation’s largest storehouse of information on community-driven efforts to solve local connectivity challenges.
We invite you to explore our trove of information on the birth and development of community broadband and portal into CommunityNetworks.org where we offer free access to over 4,000 stories, nearly 600 podcasts, dozens of reports, policy briefs, case studies, instructional videos, and other resources.
CommunityNetworks.org
The Verge published an in-depth piece authored by our own Sean Gonsalves and ILSR contributor Karl Bode that examines how BEAD became a billionaire boondoggle.
In The American Prospect, Sean Gonsalves reports on a recently filed bill in California that aims to strip telecommunications oversight authority away from the CPUC.
Three ILSR staffers talked to Liberation in a Generation and The Forge about the many dimensions of fighting corporate power — and building local power.
ILSR's Sean Gonsalves has a new piece in ProMarket on the continuing consolidation of telecommunication markets and why municipal broadband is a better option.
