Picking Up the Broadband Pace

High-speed broadband has been called the infrastructure challenge of the 21st Century, and the United States is often portrayed as trailing behind many other nations.

How fast does Internet access need to be? Is providing it a government role, a marketplace question or something in between? How should people be encouraged to use it? How does it affect a community? The federal government is heavily involved; should the state be?

Fast Internet access has given some Minnesotans a new economic lease on life, and others have reached education goals and attained health care benefits. Lack of it has led some to miss business opportunities and feel the world is leaving them behind. And intense battles are brewing as phone companies, cable companies, cooperatives, local governments and others jockey over the best way to serve people efficiently.

Broadband access issues are felt particularly keenly in outstate Minnesota and residents have tackled them in a variety of ways, so Ground Level has compiled this topic page to provide insight and resources for how the state is moving forward.

TOP STORY

Who should build broadband networks?

Across Minnesota, broadband projects are bringing high speed Internet to rural areas that until now have been underserved. The question of who should build these networks – the government or private corporations – has touched off a vigorous debate and thrust the seemingly innocuous topic of the Internet access into a knock-down, drag-out ideological fight. Read more »

Telecommuting levels the field in rural MN

Rural communities are betting big that broadband will make it feasible for more people to live and work farther from the city, thus reversing a pattern of out-migration that has drained young people from their towns and farms for a century. There are plenty of examples to show it could happen. Read more »

How a new fiber network could transform Cook County

At least by some measures, Cook County in far northeastern Minnesota, has the worst Internet service in the state. Thanks to federal stimulus dollars, this is poised to change. But residents hope high-speed won’t change everything about this remote, beautiful county. Read more »

PLACES TO WATCH

Broadband 7

Check out these seven communities that are trying different ways to expand broadband access.
Part One »
Part Two »

July 2011 update
Part One »
Part Two »

VIDEO

Clay Coyote Pottery finds success online

Tom Wirt and Betsy Price live in rural Minnesota, but easy access to broadband internet has allowed them to build a thriving business that has customers all over the country and the world. Watch now »

WHITE PAPER

What is broadband?

Straight-ahead answers to key questions about high-speed Internet. Learn more »

UP CLOSE

Broadband players in Minnesota

Short takes on people making a difference in the broadband debate. Read more »

Should local governments ensure citizens have access to broadband?

A Facebook forum discussion. Read more »

FORUM

The Arrowhead, the economy and broadband

Join a forum to discuss the future of Minnesota's Arrowhead region, the economy and broadband availability.

COMMENTARY

North Shore communities discover a frightening vulnerability

When a fiber optic line — the only line to the North Shore — is severed, Cook County discovered a frightening lack of communication. Read more »

Rural Renville-Sibley fiber project gets down to brass tacks
Residents from Sibley and Renville Counties asked tough questions of presenters at a community meeting about a fiber network last night.
Jan. 20, 2012

Map shows co-ops lead charge on rural broadband
A report by Minnesota's new broadband task force provides an overview of where the state stands in terms of high-speed Internet availability and adoption and what the important topics of discussion are.
Dec. 30, 2011

Minnesota households with 'real' broadband access: 57 percent
A new Connect Minnesota report says that 57 percent of Minnesota households have access to broadband speeds that the state wants to achieve for everybody by 2015.
Dec. 21, 2011

Broadband task force gears up
Minnesota's new broadband task force has held its first meeting.
Nov. 29, 2011

Broadband rewards go to the well-organized
The real action for expanding broadband use lies, not in Washington, D.C., but in communities like those in Minnesota that are tackling things at the local level, says Tom Koutsky of Connected Nation.
Nov. 17, 2011

Maps and Reports

• Map of providers and service levels in Minnesota

• 2009 Minnesota Ultra High-Speed Broadband Report

• 2010 Minnesota internet task force report

• 2011 Connect Minnesota, Commerce Department report

• National Broadband Map

• FCC’s National Broadband Plan

• Schools and broadband availability

• Broadband speeds in schools

Blogs

• Blandin on Broadband — Minnesota blog focusing on broadband developments in the state, sponsored by the Blandin Foundation, which has financed a variety of broadband projects in Minnesota.

• BroadbandBreakfast.com — Washington, D.C.-based news organization focusing on broadband.

• Community Broadband Networks — A project of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance and a proponent of community operated broadband networks.

• Telecompetitor.com — A division of a telecommunications research firm.

In The Spotlight

Sound Learning
Looking for ways to ensure your students are doing quality research from credible sources? Sound Learning is a launching point to Minnesota Public Radio's content on the Web.
The Current Music Blog
Your daily note for good music, news and pop culture. With attempted jokes.