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Fast, affordable Internet access for all.
Christopher Mitchell in Ask Me Anything Seat
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Last week, our own Christopher Mitchell, Director of ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks Initiative, was the featured guest on the Broadband.Money “Ask Me Anything” series.
The one-hour live program, which invites leading minds in the broadband industry to talk candidly about their knowledge and perspective on broadband-related matters, was moderated by Drew Clark, editor and publisher of the online news outlet Broadband Breakfast.
Evolution of Community Broadband Networks Initiative
The discussion began with Christopher sharing why he joined ILSR over 15 years ago and how the Community Broadband Networks Initiative has evolved over the years.
The core mission of the initiative, he said, “has to do with research and telling stories; seeing what is working for communities … to solve these problems around making sure everyone has high quality Internet access, and they can use it. Every few years, I feel like we change our focus a little bit just based on what is needed. And the way that we do that is, we are constantly talking with people that are out doing the hard work,” Christopher explained.
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And while the focus of the CBN team has been on research and publishing stories about the birth and development of publicly-owned, locally-controlled broadband networks across the nation, Christopher noted that ILSR “is not pro municipal network, necessarily.”
We are pro-strong communities. We want communities that are economically and politically able to chart their own course in life. And if we have failing municipal broadband networks – that’s not going to help the community. We are seen as being pro-municipal (broadband), but we are very cautious in wanting to make sure that communities are making this decision in an informed way and taking it seriously.
Meeting the Moment
After discussing the origins and philosophy behind the initiative, Drew and Christopher delve into the “Astroturf” campaigns funded by Big Telecom that are designed to sow doubt about the viability of municipal broadband.
Christopher shares his nuanced perspective on examples of municipal networks that have struggled and those that have been wildly successful – from the municipal networks in Chattanooga, TN and Wilson, SC, to Longmont, CO and EC Fiber in Vermont.
The pair go on to discuss everything from the differences between big national Internet service providers and a “small, scrappy company,” how a once-in-a-generation federal investment to expand broadband infrastructure might play out in local communities, fiber versus wireless technology, and the emergence of open-access networks.
Watch the full discussion below:
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