Printed courtesy of Poor News Network and authors Guillermo Gonzalez and Gloria Esteva
I am the co-teacher of the Voces program and a migrant scholar myself and as I heard Gloria speak I realized that her words and the fact that we were even there was the actualization of what POOR Magazine/PoorNewsNetwork(PNN) along with other individuals and organizations were fighting for through testimonies in the public comment portion of the meeting of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on net neutrality at Stanford University last Thursday. Gloria’s words resonated the powerful voice of migrant raza communities and other poverty scholars that otherwise would not be represented at this meeting. Continue reading The FCC Bus: One Person’s Story→
Update October 15, 2014: Only hours before a scheduled vote to authorize the California Public Utilities Commission to weigh in on the federal network neutrality debate and share the overwhelming opinions of Californians that the Internet should be re-classified as a public utility, the item was suddenly withdrawn from Thursday’s meeting agenda for undisclosed reasons. Continue reading CA Public Utilities Commission Buries Net Neutrality Vote→
Media Alliance joined 38 organizations to call for political debate moderators to ask candidates how they plan to improve high-speed Internet access.
The over three dozen signers include a diverse group of national civil rights groups, technology policy advocates, media advocates, and community organizing groups concerned with the fact that approximately 34 million Americans still lack access to high-speed Internet, and the consequences of this divide. Continue reading What Will They Do About The Internet?→
Crypto Wars 2 pit encryption advocates against the FBI which wants code written to break password protections in smartphones. Only weeks after the broad open letter was prepared: the issue broke when the FBI got a court order to compel Apple Computer to break its own smartphone encryption. Apple is fighting the order. Continue reading Don’t Undermine Encryption: Apple vs. NSA→
The Coalition for Local Internet Choice (CLIC) and the Benton Foundation teamed up to write this legal and business strategy guide for local municipal governments teaming up with private companies to provide high speed Internet alternatives.
As activism for police accountability, fair wages, just immigration, and more takes center stage — social justice movements of the 21st century are using technology to achieve greater scale and reach wider audiences. But are these digital strategies building power for long-term social change, or helping maintain the status quo?
A report from the Center for Media Justice says the answer depends on the strategy — and offers new approaches and recommendations, from a diverse cross-section of leaders, for building effective social movements in an age of big data and digital technology.
New America’s Open Technology Institute released this report examining the use of data caps on wired and mobile broadband service in the United States. The report analyzes the financial incentives that major Internet service providers have to implement these usage limits and research that demonstrates the behavioral effect of these policies on consumers.
This June Field Poll by CETF updates digital divide statistics in California. Specific demographic markers exist for lack of Internet usage and they are:
* Non-citizen status
* Lack of English fluency
* Disability
* Poverty
