Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
2010 Knowledge Exchange, a strategic convening and year-round project conducted in partnership
with Consumers Union (CU). Thanks to the staff of CU and CMJ for their planning, coordination,
and leadership of the Knowledge Exchange. Special appreciation goes to the Ford Foundation for
their support of this exciting project. This report was written by Aliza Dichter, based on extensive
note-taking by Michelle Schaefer. Much gratitude goes to the participants of the 2010 Knowledge
Exchange for their thoughtful conversations, to all the note-takers, and to the staff of CMJ and CU
for additional editing.
Published online and in print by the Center for Media Justice, March 2011.
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if you can, to let us know how you are using and reusing this material—we welcome your feedback.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0
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Table of Contents
1 INTRODUCTION
3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
23 APPENDIX A: Glossary
27 APPENDIX B: Resources
From September 13 through 16, 2010, fifteen leaders from organizations around the U.S. met in
Washington, D.C., for the fifth annual Knowledge Exchange, a strategy convening hosted by the
Center for Media Justice (CMJ) and Consumers Union (CU). Participants included representatives
from the Media Action Grassroots Network (MAG-Net), the Media and Democracy Coalition, and
other social justice and public-interest groups. (A full participant list is available in Appendix C.)
• New joint projects and campaign strategies to advance an agenda for Internet freedom,
subsidies for Internet access, and protections for Internet and mobile phone users
• A collectively identified set of best practices in collaboration and building constituencies
• Sharper skills in strategic framing and collaborative communications around Net Neutrality
• Stronger partnerships between regional, Beltway, and grasstops leaders
• Relationships with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and key members of
Congress
This report is a brief summary of the Knowledge Exchange, written for participants and to share
with the field. It reflects the open and frank discussions that took place during the convening,
Photo: Staff from Media and Democracy Coalition, Center for Social Inclusion, Free Press, Main Street Project,
Media Access Project, and Consumers Union discuss strategy in a breakout session.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 1
as well as the ease of communication among the group. The words in this report are quoted,
paraphrased, and combined from presentation and discussion notes. The document includes
ideas raised by individuals as well as collectively agreed-upon points. Overall, the 2010 Knowledge
Exchange reflects just one moment in time in the midst of ongoing, overlapping conversations on
these issues.
This document is one of several publication projects emerging from the 2010 Knowledge Exchange
that will be produced by CMJ. Strategy ideas, tools, case studies, and more will be available to our
network members online through the MAG-Net website, www.mag-net.org.
Facts, statistics, and other data are as of September 2010. For up-to-date media/telecom policy
and campaign information, visit www.centerformediajustice.org and www.mag-net.org. Convening
agenda, participant list, and other related information can be found in the appendices, included at
the end of the report.
Photo: Christopher Mitchell of the Minnesota-based Institute for Local Self-Reliance joins the Knowledge
Exchange participants for a Skype conversation about community broadband networks.
2
Executive Summary
The Knowledge Exchange 2010:
Major Outcomes and Results
The Knowledge Exchange 2010 produced several major outcomes, with related activities and
products. Below is a list of significant outcomes of this convening, and the specific activities that
emerged as a result.
Nearly twenty community members—including youth, elders, city council members, and
immigrants—offered testimony on the importance of an open Internet. An additional 100
people from across the country watched the webcast event and participated in an online
conversation.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 3
National Broadband Symposium
On December 7, 2010, the Center for Social Inclusion and the Center for Technology
Innovation and Community Engagement held a National Symposium on Community-Scale
Broadband Infrastructure in Washington, D.C. The symposium convened an interdisciplinary
group of nationally recognized scholars, practitioners, and policy advocates to discuss
strategies for reenvisioning the frames driving the national policy discourses on broadband.
Panelists included the Media Mobilizing Project’s Todd Wolfson, a previous Knowledge
Exchange participant. Other symposium participants included representatives of the Media
and Democracy Coalition, Media Access Project, and Center for Media Justice.
The visit took place on December 8, 2010, just before the Net Neutrality sunset rules went
into effect, and provided a final opportunity for Strategy Tank members to speak directly
with the FCC regarding our core concerns with the proposed Net Neutrality rules, and to
advocate for stronger wireless protections.
To date, the Media Literacy Project, New Mexico, has met with with Representative Martin
Heinrich; the Media Justice League, Texas, with Representative Charles Gonzalez; Media
Alliance, California, with staff of Representatives Barbara Lee and Nancy Pelosi; Reclaim
the Media, Washington, with Representatives Rick Larsen and Norm Dicks.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 4
Internet Strikes Back Collaborative Action
Based on ideas formed at the Knowledge Exchange, together with Public Knowledge and
others, the Center for Media Justice supported the Internet Strikes Back online campaign
with the goal of mobilizing constituents to tell Congress to stand up for Net Neutrality.
Through a national day of action on February 17, 2010, the Internet Strikes Back website
received 5,790 unique page views and 8,640 total views; 1,160 individuals went on to view
the Public Knowledge mobile action alert sign-up page, and 83 percent successfully called
their member of Congress.
Based on the recommendation of Geoffrey Blackwell, Chief of the FCC’s Office of Native Affairs
and Policy, amalia deloney of the Center for Media Justice was invited to apply to join the FCC
Consumer Affairs Bureau Advisory Board.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 5
Connecting the Issues:
Life, Inequality, and Telecommunications
This panel provided a forum to connect issues of broadband equity to larger issues of democracy,
social justice, and economic empowerment. Below are brief summaries of the key discussions that
took place.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 6
color, these resources are not sufficiently available and affordable. Instead of providing quality
access at reasonable rates, corporations are deepening the disenfranchisement of major
sectors of the population.
Without better Internet and telecommunications policies, poverty and disparity will grow
The U.S. functions in a knowledge economy, where digital inclusion equals social and economic
inclusion; poverty rates ratchet up in offline populations. One in seven Americans lives in poverty,
and poverty rates in communities of color are substantially higher: 25 percent in African-American
communities and 22 percent in Latin@ communities. With an absence of equity-based Internet
regulation, market-based racism is restructuring many communities and creating the biggest
increase in poverty this country has seen in decades.
Economic and community development requires rules of the road for broadband providers
To strengthen communities and support opportunity, the U.S. needs to ensure that an equity
framework for broadband is incorporated into economic development plans—that is, that
social goals are part of the macroeconomy (the economy as a whole). Subsidies to low-income
communities for communications need to be expanded. Subsidy criteria in programs such as
the Universal Service Fund need to be updated in terms of eligibility and affordability, as well as
Photo: Knowledge Exchange participants were hosted by the new Office of Native Affairs and Policy at the FCC.
Traci Morris, Native Public Media and Geoffrey Blackwell, Chief, FCC Office of Native Affairs and Policy Consumer
and Governmental Affairs Bureau.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 7
which communication forms they cover. Communities need widespread, affordable broadband
networks to attract jobs. Neighborhoods and municipalities need to be able to cultivate
innovation and local networks. This requires openness and Net Neutrality.
Research shows that African-Americans and Latin@s use texting extensively. Currently, 88 percent of
African-Americans use cell phones, 20 percent of which are smartphones. Latin@s are a $257 billion
telecommunications services market. Thirty percent of Latin@s do not have a landline and rely only
on mobile phones. English-speaking Latin@s use mobile Internet at a higher rate than whites.
But corporations are not yet required to provide affordable rates, fair billing, or open, unrestricted
mobile networks. Wireless and mobile networks can bridge gaps where there is no other
broadband access, but only if those networks are truly accessible.
Native communities have the worst telecommunications services in the U.S.; radio is still a lifeline.
Thirty five percent of people on tribal lands don’t have access to 911 service, and that number
increases to closer to 50 percent in the Navajo Nation. Only 69 percent of tribal members have
Internet access. Although Native communities are among the highest adopters and users of
technology and rely heavily on wireless networks, they pay double the national average for their
services.
Disenfranchised people and their families find problems compounded by communication limitations.
The U.S. has 2.4 million people incarcerated in prisons, mostly in rural areas. Extremely high prison
phone costs and restrictions on Internet uses make it difficult to communicate with family, make job
contacts, and get parole. People held in immigrant detention centers face similar obstacles.
These digital divides represent an enduring gap in participation in democracy and communications.
Simply having access to the technology, with no control over its use, and without a regulatory
framework that ensures equity and freedom of use, will only codify and entrench gaps in wealth
and education.
While full adoption of broadband, affordable services, and open networks won’t solve these
problems, this policy agenda is essential if there is to be progress. For a stable, healthy society,
everyone needs the ability to access and use communication networks.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 8
Policy Breakdown:
What’s Hot, Why It Matters
Presenters: Gigi Sohn, Public Knowledge; Joel Kelsey, Free Press; Mark Cooper, Consumer
Federation of America; Parul P. Desai, Consumers Union; Ben Lennett, New America Foundation;
Christopher Mitchell, Institute for Local Self Reliance; Traci Morris, Native Public Media. Strategic
discussions included visits with the USDA Rural Utility Service, the FCC, and congressional offices.
Reclassification
For up-to-date What it means: How to categorize broadband Internet so the Federal
fact sheets and Communications Commission has regulatory authority over Internet
resources, visit access. This could be a major policy overhaul to recognize that the
mag-net.org. Internet is now as essential to the public as phones and electricity, but
the industry and political opponents of equity are fighting to prevent the
FCC from reestablishing its authority to oversee communications.
Net Neutrality
What it means: The Internet should be open—companies providing access (ISPs, telcos)
should not be allowed to control or limit how people use their networks. There is a very well-
organized industry effort using a combination of scare tactics and donations to persuade people,
governments, and traditional civil rights groups to believe—incorrectly—that requiring Net Neutrality
would hurt jobs and investment and be bad for the public.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 9
Consumer protections
What it means: Having rules and enforcement to protect against corporate abuses by cell phone
and mobile device companies. Industry pushes the claim that “self-regulation” works and thus
consumer protections are unnecessary.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 10
• New economic opportunities, self-reliance for local communities, better job availability,
revitalization of rural areas
Community networks
What it means: Co-op groups and nonprofits working with municipalities to provide local
broadband infrastructure, and neighborhoods using technology innovation to support community
development.
Photo: Khalil Shahyd, Center for Social Inclusion, and Shireen Mitchell, Digital Sisters, discuss
Internet access in the African-American community.
11
Taking Action:
Current Projects, Strategic Opportunities
Below are some of the projects that Knowledge Exchange groups are working on and planning.
This list is to help participants follow up with each other and reach out to partners.
Center for Media • Creating a shared calendar for KE and MAG-Net groups
Justice • Holding meetings with vulnerable consumers, stakeholders, allies
(national) (including on USF)
• Doing advocacy and movement research
• Continuing to file federal policy comments
Color of Change • Mobilizing online members to speak out in favor of Net Neutrality
(national)
Latin@s for • Building and mobilizing Latin@ leaders committed to the shared agenda
Internet Freedom and narrative
(national) • Strengthening existing infrastructure and collaboration within organized
Latin@ communities for long-term progressive advocacy on media policy
Main Street • Doing more local-level recruitment of other organizations, especially labor
Project • Focusing on state policy opportunities and relationships
(Minnesota) • Helping out with the “propaganda machine”
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 12
Media and • Working with MAG-Net on D.C. meetings with congresspeople
Democracy • Doing outreach to small businesses that received BTOP grants
Coalition • Continuing to file policy comments with FCC and communicate policy
(national) goals to Congress
• Helping coordinate USF convening, webinar on USF for local groups,
eligibility filing
• Organizing groups on model state legislation on cell phones
• Researching economic effects of policies and talking points
Media Access • Filing comments in favor of setting a federal floor for low-income
Project subsidies
(national) • Executing community ideas
• Convening to build relationships, especially with new groups
New America • Looking for partnerships; want to be tech resource for non-Beltway
Foundation groups
(national) • Working in coalitions on transparency and truth in billing
• Collaborating on a USF convening
• Continuing work on tribal issues around broadband
• Collecting data regarding broadband speeds
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 13
Thousand Kites • Improving prison communications with some sort of toll-free or Skype
(Kentucky and line
national) • Using Flip cameras to make videos of people who have loved ones in
prison
• Producing a caller-driven radio show that is broadcast into the prisons
• Creating more hip videos to push the agenda
The Utility • Working to increase public participation at public utility commission and
Reform Network business meetings
(Callifornia)
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 14
Speaking Out:
Messaging Tips for Telecommunications
Policy Advocacy
1. Feel more confident about being advocates even though not all of us have law degrees
2. Realize that the more powerful you become the more weight your information carries
3. Involve communities and tribes in all aspects of policy making and decision making
4. Focus not only on what is politically possible but also on rearranging existing political institutions
5. Unearth the power of relationships and constituency
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 15
emphasize race, gender, and income disparities and when to use an approach that foregrounds
access versus non-access.
• We need to improve communications about consumer protections and public safety. Show that
consumer protections help people to be less vulnerable and more comfortable online, leading
to wider adoption.
• Emphasize compelling local stories with follow-up solutions—for example, when there’s a few
hundred yards separating haves and have-nots, and municipalities could bridge those gaps but
aren’t allowed to.
Photo: Knowledge Exchange participants meet with Jonathan Adelstein, head of the USDA Rural Utility Service.
Working Together:
Collaborating for the Long Haul
Kristen Zimmerman and Julie Quiroz-Martínez from the Movement Strategy Center led a session
on collaboration. Steven Renderos, amalia deloney, Ana Montes, and other Knowledge Exchange
participants reflected on best practices from their work. These are merged and briefly excerpted
here. More of the collected principles and practices will be made available at www.mag-net.org.
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 17
Strategic Communications:
Turning Connections Into Action
Piper Kerman of Spitfire Strategies, James Rucker of Color of Change, and KE participants shared
best practices. Spitfire’s tools are available online, along with other KE resources. See Appendix B
for further information.
Photo: Members of the Center for Media Justice Strategy Tank participate in a racial justice delegation to the FCC, where they
met with Commissioner Mignon Clyburn and John Giusti, Commissioner Michael Copps’ Chief of Staff; left to right: Joe Torres,
Ivan Roman, Jessica Gonzalez, Joaquin Guerra, Steven Renderos, and Khalil Shahyd.
Research and Policy Making:
Data Needs, Racial Impacts
7. Get data regarding impact of Net Neutrality and broadband legislation on jobs/employment
to address the problem that online/mobile networking is seen as a social activity and not as
furthering the economy/jobs.
8. Survey mobile Internet use among Spanish-speaking Latin@s.
9. Generate more information, research, and data on tribal telecommunications.
10. Conduct research for equity impact statements (see page 20):
• Document patterns of discrimination over time to create space for more regulation
• What are the requirements for government contracts? Are there fines that go to support
better enforcement to expand the growing public infrastructure?
• Assess FCC impact statements for small businesses
Photo: Knowledge Exchange participants meet with FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski and his chief of staff, Rick Kaplan.
Racial Equity Impact Statements:
A Tool for Policy Making
Presented by Makani Themba-Nixon, Praxis Project. Related materials on why, when, and how to
use the tools are online at www.mag-net.org and www.transforming-communities.org.
20
State-Level Policy Action:
Opportunities, Challenges, Strategies
Fabiola Carrion of the Progressive States Network and Ana Montes of TURN led these discussions.
Why and how to work at the state level on media and telecommunications issues
• State policies (e.g., telecom deregulation) have broad impact and can drive the national agenda
• Policies and public utility commissions influence federal developments and other states
• All the federal work comes down to state implementation and state campaigns
• Local organizing builds people power at the state level
• There is more potential influence at state level; smaller scale, smaller staff to deal with
• Can propose/pass model legislation in states to push the FCC
• Advance state laws for transparency in billing
• States have their own Lifeline and Link-up programs
• There is room for regulatory authority in the states
Challenges
• States are facing huge deficits, making it hard to push for broadband investment
• The only input to state telecom policy is from business; state legislatures are lobbied as heavily as
Congress, and state task forces are often loaded with industry people
• Legislators may not be sympathetic on positions/issues
• States are strategizing on how to test the Constitution
• State-level issues become tribal issues when a state tries to assert power
Strategies
• Look beyond legislators who are interested in telecom to those who work on other potentially
related areas or who have a similar line of thinking; e.g., in New Mexico, MLP reached out over
shared goals in financial rights, then moved to digital literacy issues
• Connect with small business people to inform them about Net Neutrality and reclassification, then
build relationships to work together on state policy
• Beltway allies can help guide what legislation to push at state level
• Build relationships with local officials who work on telecom
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 21
Working with Public Utility Commissions (PUCs)
Opportunities
• PUCs regulate energy, telecom, and transportation; protect consumers from fraud and promote
state economic health; and deal with broadband implementation
Challenges
• Community and advocacy groups think they cannot do the policy work
• The board of directors for a nonprofit group may not want them to do state policy advocacy
• Time constraints
• Funding issues
• Utility companies will influence groups
Strategies
Photo: amalia deloney, Center for Media Justice, and Steven Renderos, Main Street Project, share the community-building
process they used to plan the Minnesota Future of the Internet Town hall.
22
Appendix A: Glossary
Beltway: A term used to characterize parts of the U.S. political system. It is meant to invoke
matters that are important primarily within the offices of the federal government, its contractors,
lobbyists, and the media that cover them.1
Broadband: Broadband or high-speed Internet access allows users to access the Internet and
Internet-related services at significantly higher speeds than those available through “dial-up” Internet
access services. Broadband speeds vary significantly depending on the particular type and level of
service ordered and may range from as low as 200 kilobits per second (kbps), or 200,000 bits per
second, to six megabits per second (Mbps), or 6,000,000 bits per second. Some recent offerings
even include 50 to 100 Mbps. Broadband services for residential consumers typically provide
faster downstream speeds (from the Internet to your computer) than upstream speeds (from your
computer to the Internet).2
BTOP: The Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) is a grant program associated
with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The grant program was created to
promote the development and adoption of broadband throughout the United States, particularly in
unserved and underserved areas. BTOP will oversee disbursement of $4.7 billion in a number of
categories. The program is expected to create jobs, advance technology and boost the economy.
Most projects involve wireless broadband technologies, which are easier and less expensive to
deploy in areas of sparse population.
Digital divide: A term coined for the disparity between the haves and the have-nots in the area of
access to technology. Many have feared grave consequences for those unable to access the power
of the Internet; however, recent reports suggest that this divide is narrowing, rather than expanding.4
E-rate: The E-rate program is administered by the Schools and Libraries Division of the Universal
Service Administrative Company. The program was set up in 1997 when the FCC adopted a
1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inside_the_Beltway
2 http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/highspeedinternet.html
3 http://searchmobilecomputing.techtarget.com/definition/Broadband-Technology-Opportunities-Program-BTOP
4 http://www.ntia.doc.gov/ntiahome/fttn00/contents00.html
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 23
Universal Service Order implementing the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The order was
designed to ensure that all eligible schools and libraries have affordable access to modern
telecommunications and information services. Up to $2.25 billion annually is available to provide
eligible schools and libraries with discounts for authorized services.5
Farm bill: In the United States, the farm bill is the primary agricultural and food policy tool of the
federal government. The comprehensive omnibus bill is passed every five years or so by Congress
and deals with both agriculture and all other affairs under the purview of the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Flip cameras: The Flip is a small, user-friendly, and relatively affordable battery-operated video
camera with features that allow for quick uploading to the web.
Future of the Internet (FOI) Town Hall: In 2005, Free Press hosted a series of large town hall–
style meetings across the country on the future of media. These events, with average attendance
of 300 to 400 people, provided an opportunity for FCC commissioners to hear directly from
community members about the impact of media consolidation. In 2010, Free Press and the Center
for Media Justice, working together with MAG-Net anchor organizations, recreated these large-
scale meetings, focusing on the future of the Internet. Given the heated debates around Network
Neutrality, as well as threats to the FCC’s ability to regulate broadband providers at all, it was
essential for the FCC to hear directly from U.S. residents about the role of Internet in their lives, the
barriers they face to getting online, and the broad support that exists for an open Internet.
Grasstops: Individuals or small groups of constituents whose voices and influence is particularly
critical on a specific issue. Unlike grassroots—or mass—mobilization, grasstops organizing focuses
outreach and advocacy to engage the most influential stakeholders for a specific effort.
Internet service provider (ISP): A company that provides Internet services, including personal
and business access to the Internet. The ISP connects to its customers using a data transmission
technology appropriate for delivering Internet Protocol packets or frames, such as dial-up, DSL,
cable modem, wireless, or dedicated high-speed interconnects.7
Lifeline and Link-Up: These programs, supported by the Universal Service Fund, help low-
income people access phone service in their primary residences. Lifeline provides discounts of up
to $10 off basic monthly phone service fees; Link-Up covers one-half (up to a maximum of $30)
toward and initial installation or activation fees for telephone service. The FCC, with the help of the
Universal Service Administrative Company, administers the USF. Both programs use income as the
criterion for eligibility.8
5 http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oii/nonpublic/erate.html
6 http://www.fcc.gov/aboutus.html
7 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_service_provider
8 http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/lllu.html
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 24
Market-based racism: A term used by scholars and organizers to show how racial outlooks have
shifted from more overtly racist Jim Crow attitudes—which endorsed segregation and government-
imposed discrimination—to a more subtle rationalization of ongoing racism in the United States by
asserting (and constructing) ideologies of “equal opportunity regardless of race” to justify social
inequalities. Market-based racism asserts that poverty and other socioeconomic conditions are
largely the result of lack of ambition and effort on the part of individuals and communities, rather
than of structural and institutional racism and a history of state-sanctioned discrimination.9
Net Neutrality: Net Neutrality is the guiding principle that preserves the free and open Internet.
Net Neutrality means that Internet service providers must not discriminate between different kinds
of content and applications online. It guarantees a level playing field for all websites and Internet
technologies. Net Neutrality is what has driven economic innovation, democratic participation, and
free speech online. It protects the consumer’s right to use any equipment, content, application, or
service without interference from the network provider. With Net Neutrality, the network’s only job is
to move data—not to choose which data to privilege with higher-quality service.10
Power analysis: A tool used by community organizers and movement builders to gain a better
understanding of power and the ways in which unequal power relationships are related to the
problems faced by their communities. Various tools can be used to conduct a power analysis,
which is then used to develop plans for building a community’s power base and/or to develop an
effective strategy for an issue campaign. The goal is a deeper understanding of the key players,
issues, constituencies, and opposing agendas that affect a community or an issue.11
Skype: Skype is a software application that allows users to make voice calls over the Internet. Calls
to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones
and mobile phones can be made for a nominal fee using a debit-based user account system.
Technologically, Skype is a peer-to-peer voice over Internet protocol (VoIP).13
Smartphone: A mobile phone that offers more advanced computing ability and connectivity than
other cell phones. Smartphones run complete operating system software providing a platform for
application developers. Thus, they combine the functions of a camera phone and a personal digital
assistant, and generally allow their users to access the Internet.14
9 http://phobos.ramapo.edu/~jweiss/laws131/unit3/bobo.htm
10 http://www.savetheinternet.com/frequently-asked-questions
11 http://www.scopela.org/article.php?id=128
12 http://news.cnet.com/8301-30686_3-20004392-266.html
13 http://www.skype.com/intl/en-us/home
14 http://cellphones.about.com/od/smartphonebasics/a/what_is_smart.htm
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 25
Subsidies: A range of government interventions, usually a form of financial assistance paid to a
business or economic sector, to continue an enterprise that benefits the public.15
Telemedicine: Telemedicine is the use of medical information exchanged from one site to
another via electronic communications to improve patients’ health status. Closely associated with
telemedicine is the term “telehealth,” which is often used to encompass a broader definition of
remote health care that does not always involve clinical services. Videoconferencing, transmission
of still images, patient portals, remote monitoring of vital signs, continuing medical education, and
nursing call centers are all considered part of telemedicine and telehealth.17
Universal Service Fund (USF): The USF is one fund with four programs. The four programs are:
• High Cost: This program ensures that consumers in all regions of the nation have access to
and pay rates for telecommunications services that are reasonably comparable to those in
urban areas.
• Low Income: This program, which includes Lifeline and Link Up, provides discounts
that make basic, local telephone service affordable for more than 7 million low-income
consumers.
• Rural Health Care: This program provides reduced rates to rural health care providers
for telecommunications and Internet services so they pay no more than their urban
counterparts for the same or similar telecommunications services.
• Schools and Libraries: This program, also known as E-rate, provides affordable
telecommunications and Internet access services to connect schools and libraries to the
Internet. This support goes to service providers that provide discounts on eligible services
to eligible schools, school districts, libraries, and consortia of these entities.18
15 http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/181627/us_lawmakers_propose_changes_in_telecom_
subsidies.html
16 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telephone_company
17 http://www.americantelemed.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3333
18 http://www.usac.org/about/universal-service/
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 26
Appendix B: Resources
Tools including a Racial Equity Impact Statement guide, Spitfire Strategies’ messaging
guides, and other useful materials from the Knowledge Exchange
• Policy briefs
http://www.mag-net.org/policy-briefs
• Mobilizing Our Resources: How Nationally Focused Media Policy Groups Can Help Organizers
Build the Base
http://www.mag-net.org/content/mobilizing-our-resources-how-nationally-focused-media-
policy-groups-can-help-organizers-buil
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 27
Appendix C: Knowledge Exchange Attendees
Participants
Andrea Quijada, Media Literacy Project
Ben Lennett, New America Foundation
Beth McConnell, Media and Democracy Coalition
Carlos Pareja, People’s Production House
Chance Williams, Media and Democracy Coalition
Gigi Sohn, Public Knowledge
Harold Feld, Public Knowledge
Jessica Gonzalez, National Hispanic Media Coalition
Joe Torres , Free Press
Joel Kelsey, Free Press
Khalil Shahyd, Center for Social Inclusion
Mark Cooper, Consumer Federation of America
Matt Wood, Media Access Project
Nick Szuberla, Thousand Kites
Rachel Colyer, Media and Democracy Coalition
Steven Renderos, Main Street Project
Traci Morris, Native Public Media
Guest Presenters
Ana Montes, TURN
Christopher Mitchell, Institute for Local Self-Reliance
Fabiola Carrion, Progressive States Network
Geoffrey Blackwell, Chief of the FCC’s Office of Native Affairs and Policy
Irene Flannery, FCC Wireline Bureau
James Rucker, Color of Change
Joel Gurin, FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau
Jonathan Adelstein, USDA Rural Utility Service
Julie Quiroz-Martínez, Movement Strategy Center
Kristen Zimmerman, Movement Strategy Center
Makani Themba-Nixon, Praxis Project
Mark Hugo Lopez, Pew Hispanic Center
Piper Kerman, Spitfire Strategies
Shireen Mitchell, Digital Sisters
Steve Savner, Center for Community Change
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 28
Appendix D: Summarized Agenda
Monday, September 13, 2010
Future of the Internet: Perspectives on Race, Poverty, and Democracy
• Welcome and KE10 Overview
• Participant Introductions
• Opening Panel: Perspectives on the Economy, Race, and the Digital Divide
• Reflections: Digital Access, Rights, and Power for Twenty-First-Century Democracy
• Presentations and Discussion: The Current Policy Landscape
• Visit to Representative Rick Boucher’s Office, and Energy and Commerce Committee Offices
Building an Equity and Justice Movement for the Internet, Mobile Phones, and Future Networks 29