"Tracking the digital divide - We can't close it without first documenting it "
"OVER THE PAST YEAR, schools, workplaces, health care providers, and other basic services have moved online. In doing so, the centrality of the internet to modern life became crystal clear to everyone in the country. But for people and families without broadband access, the pandemic has only exposed and exacerbated the digital divide—putting resources like telework, virtual learning, and telehealth out of reach for millions of people.
Even before the pandemic, many people lacked access to high-speed broadband across Massachusetts. According to the ACLU of Massachusetts Data for Justice project, Census estimates show that more than 1 million Massachusetts residents—about 15 percent of the state’s population—do not have a fixed broadband internet connection. Our Census analysis also shows that internet and computer access correlate with income, such that lower income communities are disproportionately left unconnected."
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"Long-awaited arts funding finally arriving"
"MASSACHUSETTS ARTS appear to be big beneficiaries of $16 billion in federal relief aid that is finally starting to be released after a delayed start and an arduous review process.According to federal data on the Shuttered Venue Operators Grant program, 123 Massachusetts arts organizations have received more than $100 million so far, the seventh-highest amount of any state in the country."
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