"I have been calling my local phone company numerous times, asking, “When is [Internet] coming?” "Well it’s coming, it’s coming, it’s coming and this has been going on for three years now." (Watch the interview)
In North Carolina alone, nearly 5 million residents don’t have high-speed Internet. According to a July 2007 study, 30 percent or more of the state's population in 21 rural counties did not have high-speed Internet connectivity. In many cases, telephone and cable companies have refused to provide service to people living in the remote and rural areas of the state, while some people are simply priced out of buying expensive broadband service.
It’s becoming increasingly clear, however, that Internet connectivity is key to a sound economy and could help revitalize local communities hit hard by the economic downturn. North Carolina is the second-largest textile employer and the third-largest apparel employer in the United States, and it has suffered numerous plant closures over the last decade. The state has continued to hemorrhage jobs in the face of our current economic recession, losing 34,900 jobs in December 2008 alone. Over the past year, 120,200 jobs have vanished, and the state’s unemployment rate is high at 8.7 percent. (more...)
Day One: Pembroke, N.C.
Doug Locklear and Rhonda Locklear, members of the Lumbee Tribe, say people where they live in Robeson County simply can’t afford the high-speed Internet connections that could lead to other opportunities. (more...)
Day Two: Person County
One hour north of Durham in rural Person County, farmer Jay Foushee is stuck on dial-up, using a slow connection to check market prices and sell his crops. His teenage daughter Julie has to leave the house each night in search of a broadband connection to do her homework. (more...)
Day Three: Smoky Mountains
Living in the Smoky Mountains outside of Asheville, writer Brooks Townes was forced to give up his freelance career because his dial-up service made him uncompetitive. And bed-and-breakfast owner Martha Abraham fears that her slow and unpredictable satellite connection hurts her small business. (more…)
Day Four: Spring Creek
In remote Spring Creek, residents are trying to revive their town by building a community center that offers a computer lab and space for local businesses. But longtime resident Layten Davis says their attempts are futile without high-speed Internet. (more...)
Day Five: Rutherford County
In Rutherford County, Sam Adams, a senior IBM researcher, spent thousands of dollars to erect his own broadband tower so he could continue working. But he knows not everyone has that luxury, and that widespread broadband access in the area could jumpstart a local economy that has been decimated by the disappearing textile industry. (more…)
