Digital Divide

I do believe that the digital divide is surprisingly large, despite it feeling like technology like iPhones and laptops are basically commonplace. I feel like if something substantial isn't done to combat this divide, it may never go away or possibly get even worse. According to the graphic on the Politico article, it looks like at least half of the USA has little to no access to rural broadband, and the places that have lots of access are more or less located around big name cities and counties. Also, many of the places in the US only have access to mediocre speeds in terms of internet speed, which can be a big pain for a rapidly advancing technological society where many jobs are taking place online. Even in places where they get 100mbps, it can still be an issue for some since some jobs can require big quantities of bandwidth. I do think that this digital divide is an important issue to focus on because many people in different countries as well as our own struggle to get what is seen as a normal thing to have in society today. Schools and universities continue to move more and more towards the internet for assignments, projects, and other kinds of work. Slow internet speed is already an issue for some, causing trouble for submitting assignments and contacting professors, but the fact that there are people who can't even afford the technology needed for these different classes prevents them from getting a proper (or at least simpler) learning and educational experience. It's an extreme struggle to do an online project when all you have is a phone and no internet access. I do think that programs providing laptops and other technologies to less fortunate groups is a good step in the right direction, and I feel that more effort should be put into these kinds of programs because I feel it could help shrink this divide drastically and help everyone get the education that they deserve.