MMTC Hosts Black Churches Leading
Digital Equity Conversations Panel
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Black Churches 4 Digital Equity builds a movement of Black church leaders advocating for digital equity and how their communities can get connected with the Affordable Connectivity Program, Emergency Connectivity Fund, and low-cost internet options. Visit the Black Churches 4 Digital Equity website here.
On March 14, 2022, MMTC hosted the Black Churches Leading Digital Conversations panel. Watch the video here. Panelists included:
- Rev. Dr. Renita Weems, Co-Pastor, Ray of Hope Community Church;
- Rev. Dr. Leslie Callahan, Pastor, St. Paul's Baptist Church;
- Rev. William Lamar, Pastor, Metropolitan African Methodist Episcopal Church;
- Scott Woods, Senior Broadband Program Specialist, National Telecommunications and Information Administration; and
- Dr. Nicol Turner Lee, Senior Fellow, Governance Studies and Director, Center for Technology Innovation, The Brookings Institution.
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Comcast's Affordable Connectivity
Program Webinar Discusses
Black Churches 4 Digital Equity
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In March 2022, Comcast hosted the Affordable Connectivity Program webinar to provide more information and service options available through its Internet Essentials program. Watch it here. MMTC Vice President Dr. Fallon Wilson discussed the Black Churches 4 Digital Equity program.
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MMTC Law and Policy Initiatives |
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Learn About MMTC's Recent Law and Policy Efforts |
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MMTC joined the EducationSuperHighway’s coalition to urge NTIA to ensure states can accurately identify unserved households in MDUs when deploying funds from the infrastructure bill. Read more here.
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MMTC and ALLvanza filed an amicus brief challenging the New York’s Affordable Broadband Act. Read it here.
- Go here to read MMTC's Reply Comments on the Report on the Future of the FCC’s Universal Service Fund.
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Read MMTC Vice President Dr. Fallon Wilson's article, “Public Policy to Support Black Women Leading in Public Interest Technology” that was published in The Black Women’s Roundtable Report here (page 88).
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Read Black Press USA article, "National Support Grows for FCC to Adopt Rule Change to Empower Minority-Owned Media Businesses" here.
- On March 3, 2022, MMTC Tech and Telecom Policy Counsel Danielle Davis participated in the LGBT Tech’s Encryption and Marginalized Communities panel discussion.
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MMTC President Emeritus and Special Advisor David Honig led a Legal Redress Training that addresses how complaints should be received, investigated, and processed when they are brought to the NACCP on March 17, 2022.
- MMTC Vice President Dr. Fallon Wilson joined the “Imagining a Digitally Equitable Future: Lessons from Nashville’s Past and Present” panel. Panelists discussed the state of digital equity in Nashville and highlight recent efforts. Vanderbilt University hosted the event on April 2, 2022.
- On April 2, 2022, MMTC President and CEO Robert Branson served as a panelist for the Connecting Communities: Digital Equity & Closing the Digital Divide discussion at the 2022 FCBA Annual Seminar. Panelists included Diana Eisner, VP of Policy and Advocacy, USTelecom – The Broadband Association; and Anna Gomez, Partner, Wiley Rein LLP. Elizabeth Cuttner, Attorney Advisor, Wireline Competition, FCBA, served as the moderator.
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MMTC Vice President Dr. Fallon Wilson spoke at the HTTP Digital Inclusion Summit panel on “Expanding Digital Opportunity to Every Home, Everywhere: A Three-Pronged Strategy for Success (Affordability, Adoption, and Digital Skills) on April 12, 2022. Watch the video here.
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MMTC Vice President Dr. Fallon Wilson spoke at the Brooking’s “How Close is the United States to Universal Broadband?” webinar on April 21, 2022. Watch the video here.
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Learn About Recent Initiatives by AT&T, Charter Communications, Comcast, National Association of Broadcasters, National Urban League,
T-Mobile, Verizon, and Wireless Infrastructure Association
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The Access from AT&T program now provides faster internet plans with up to 100 Mbps of symmetrical speeds for $30 per month, an increase from the 10 Mbps maximum provided in our original Access from AT&T plan. In addition, there’s no cap on data usage with the new $30 Access from AT&T plans. Learn more here.
Charter Communications is now offering Spectrum Internet 100 across virtually all of its entire 41-state service area. It is available exclusively to households eligible for the FCC's Affordable Connectivity Program, and all Spectrum Internet and legacy plans. Read more here.
Charter Communications also expanded its carriage of African American-themed networks including REVOLT TV, TV One, and CLEO TV. Learn more here.
Comcast is expanding its Affordable Connectivity Program offers with its Internet Essentials Service and Xfinity Mobile. Read more here.
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Board of Directors recently voted unanimously to approve an on-air campaign to educate listeners on the significant harm of a performance fee on broadcast radio. Learn more here.
Read the National Urban League's digital equity white paper entitled, “From Page to Progress: Bringing the Latimer Plan to Life Through Infrastructure and Job Act Funding" here.
Click here to learn about the virtual reality career simulations powered by T‑Mobile 5G that help Kansas City area students to dream big and pursue their goals.
Verizon is offering free Internet through its Fios Forward program to customers who qualify for the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program. Go here to learn how Verizon's Fios Forward is helping to bridge the digital divide.
The Wireless Infrastructure Association is hosting its Connect(X) conference on May 23-26, 2022, at the Colorado Convention Center. Get more information here. |
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Support MMTC's Social Justice
and Digital Equity Policy Program
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MMTC seeks your support to officially launch MMTC’s Social Justice and Digital Equity Policy Program (DE Policy Program), a think tank comprised of innovative thought leadership and tech, media, and telecommunications (TMT) advocacy to provide a greater impact on the discussion of how to support our nation’s most vulnerable communities as they face TMT issues such as the digital divide; social justice; essential communications and technology access; employment, leadership, and ownership; and more.
Through this initiative, MMTC would like to fund the development of a think tank of experienced thought leaders in three focus areas in the TMT sectors:
- Technology, Privacy, and Civil Rights
- Infrastructure, Connectivity, and Digital Inclusion
- Media Competition and Multicultural Media Content Diversity
MMTC’s DE Policy Program will provide a forum for innovative thinking, data-driven knowledge dissemination, and consensus-building among those on multiple sides of the major TMT policy issues impacting communities of color.
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About MMTC
The Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC) is a non-partisan, national nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting and preserving equal opportunity in the tech, media, and telecom (TMT) industries, and closing the digital divide on behalf of its members and constituents, including owners of radio and television broadcast stations, programmers, prospective station owners, and others involved in the TMT industries.
MMTC is generally recognized as the nation's leading advocate for multicultural advancement in communications. We strongly believe that the breathtaking changes in communications technology and the new global forms of media partnerships must enhance diversity in the 21st century.
About MMTC Media & Telecom Brokers
MMTC Media & Telecom Brokers was founded in 1997 by communications lawyer David Honig. He is also one of the co-founders of our parent organization, the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC).
MMTC Brokers is the nation's only minority owned brokerage firm. Our goal is to open up opportunity for media ownership for all minorities. We have been working in the media brokerage space for more than 23 years and are involved in all aspects of radio, television, towers & telecom. We are widely recognized for our work on behalf of minorities and women to gain ownership. Our commitment to this cause includes every aspect of a transaction, including:
- Business planning
- Coaching new entrants
- Market research
- Assisting with due diligence
- Best practices for negotiation
We pride ourselves as being the conduit that connects the buyer and the seller. Our role is to bring two parties together, and assist each of them to view a potential transactions from a wider perspective. Our goal is to make is sure each party will come to terms to paper a deal and see it through to a successful closing.
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