Having just read the New York Times story "Most of U.S. is Wired, but Millions Aren't Plugged In," I was reminded that even the top mainstream telecom journalists really have little understanding of what they write. This is a bit ranty but comes back together constructively at the end. I just read that "nearly 98 percent of American homes now have access to some form of high-speed broadband." Really? Just what exactly does that mean? It is definitely not the current FCC minimum standard speed required to engage in basic Internet activities: 4 Mbps downstream and 1 Mbps upstream. Not even close. To get 98%, I can only assume that the author has started with flawed stats from the FCC that are comprised on systematically overstated DSL availability in rural areas by carriers like Windstream, Frontier, CenturyLink, and others. He likely then included satellite Internet access availability, which is explicitly not broadband due to the inevitable lag of a 50,000 mile roundtrip to geosynchronous orbiting satellites. But we don't know. We just know that Edward Wyatt knows that by some definition, nearly everyone in America has "high speed" broadband. This is news to the vast majority of rural communities I hear from, who see maps paid for by their tax dollars claiming they can get broadband in their homes. But when they call the company to get it, they find it is not actually available, even though that company had just told the government that it is available there. These are the statistics that are now apparently official, without any need to even note where they come from. Note that this comes after the New York Times repeatedly erred in claiming few Europeans have access to high speed networks. Wyatt goes on to laud the Obama Administration's stimulus effort to expand broadband networks:

The Obama administration allocated $7 billion to broadband expansion as part of the 2009 economic stimulus package. Most of it went to build physical networks.

Before Josh Levy and five other activists met with Yvette Clarke (D-NY), she had signed a letter of support for the AT&T merger with T-Mobile. After a one hour meeting, just after the Justice Department came out against the merger as anti-competitive, she agreed "This deal must be stopped." This is a great story that goes far beyond AT&T's attempt to monopolize the airwaves. It is a refreshing story for those of us who have been watching in despair, wondering if the vast funds of big companies will doom our democracy. It is a reminder that we cannot give up but have to make sure we are still reaching out to elected officials to ensure they hear from real constituents rather than only from inside-the-beltway lobbyists. On our key issue, community networks, elected officials too rarely hear from constituents. It is a technical issue that intimidates many. But we must take some time to reach out, educate, and make sure they know how impmortant it is to all of us that local communities maintain self-determination in the digital age. We cannot wait to reach out until the bad bills are pushed into the light of day -- we need to contact elected officials early in order to build relationships and being the education process. Elected officials are also intimidated by the technology, something that lobbyists use with their "just trust us" approach while bad-mouthing any alternative. Take heart, write in, talk to your reps, and if you are so bold, set up face to face meetings. Feel free to ask us for advice if you want -- and if you are in Minnesota, feel free to invite us along.