Report:

Ten Premises

Premise One:
Focus on Narrowing Social — Not Digital — Divides
It is time to stop focusing so intensively on the technology divide, for the real differences we should seek to narrow are America’s core social divides: the grave disparities in economic opportunity, education, health, safety, housing, employment...

Premise Two:
Concentrate on Achieving Concrete Outcomes
Efforts to help low-income communities gain the benefits of technology must be directed toward achieving specific outcomes — in other words, tangible improvements in people’s standards of living...

Premise Three:
Work Through Trusted Leaders in the Community
No matter how impressive the technology or how well-intended the motives, technology initiatives imposed on a community by outsiders are often ineffective...

Premise Four:
Support Efforts by Communities to Strengthen Their Capacity
The hard truth is that until at least a basic level of community capacity is in place, large-scale technology initiatives have little hope of success...

Premise Five:
Apply Technology to Help Build Capacity
Once a community has achieved at least a basic level of capacity, technology can be a powerful tool for the next stage of capacity-building efforts...

Premise Six:
Recognize that Technology Requires Its Own Capacity
Investments in technology must go far beyond funding for hardware, software, and wires...

Premise Seven:
Make the Case for Applied Technology
The truth is that most people, especially those in low-income communities, see little reason to embrace technology...

Premise Eight:
Make Major Changes in Public Policy
Although public officials have been quick to grasp the importance of helping low-income communities participate in the digital revolution, public policies have lagged behind public pronouncements...

Premise Nine:
Dramatically Expand the Availability of Capital
To address a social challenge of this size, the sheer magnitude of available capital must increase exponentially, and that capital must be invested strategically...

Premise Ten:
Dramatically Broaden the Scope of Efforts
Anything less than a massive mobilization of resources, financing, talent, and innovation is destined to produce only incremental and isolated victories...

To Premise One>>