Closing of 'digital divide' creates conflicting views

Researchers mining the data from their survey of 2,000 U.S. households recently came across an interesting fact about the "digital divide": There isn't one. Or, at least, the divide that once was clear seems to be disappearing.

A team from the University of California at Los Angeles found the gap between those who have Internet access and those who do not is closing when measured by the degree of education computer users have attained.

A separate government report showed the gap disappearing between urban and rural users, and the Pew Research Center said its analysis of Internet use found that the division is narrowing between whites and blacks.

The conclusions have prompted a political fight. The Bush administration has seized upon the findings as a reason to reduce funding for programs that bring computers to low-income Americans.

That has riled advocates for disadvantaged communities, who say reports that the digital divide has been closed are premature.

Each side accuses the other of twisting the statistics to support its position.

Inconsistent studies

Sen. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., and others argue that the studies are inconsistent. And even if more disadvantaged people have access to computers now than before, that doesn't necessarily mean they have the skills to use the Internet to do things like find jobs, medical information or information to help them make financial decisions, she said.

Last month, Mikulski joined 100 community, labor and professional organizations -- including the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the AFL-CIO and the National Education Association -- to fight for more funding to close the digital divide.

The government has proposed to cut two programs from the fiscal year 2003 budget that once called for a total of $110 million in funding: the Education Department's Community Technology Centers program, which builds labs for after-school and adult-education use, and the Commerce Department's Technology Opportunities Program, which helps local groups install computer networks.

The Bush administration argues that the programs no longer are necessary and that, since Sept. 11, the government has other priorities. Congress likely will decide this fall whether to resurrect the projects.

The Commerce Department program, which provided Internet consulting services, "was created when the Internet was not very understood," Office of Management and Budget spokeswoman Amy Call said. "It was a foreign land to most people. Obviously, now there has been a dramatic rise in Internet familiarity."

The national studies from UCLA, the Commerce Department and Pew all report evidence that the gap between the high-tech "haves" and "have-nots" is closing in three areas:

Education

The UCLA study shows that in 2001, about 65 percent of those who did not graduate from high school used the Internet, compared with 60 percent of high school graduates and 80 percent of those with some college education.

Geography

The Commerce study shows that about 54 percent of the total population had access to the Internet in 2001; in rural areas alone, 53 percent of the population had access. The statistics were taken from the U.S. Census Bureau surveys.

Race

A 1998 Pew study found that 23 percent of blacks and 42 percent of whites had Internet access. In 2000, the percentage of black adults who have Internet access grew 13 percentage points, to 36 percent; for whites, the online population grew 8 percentage points, to 50 percent. Pew surveyed 2,500 adults; the margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.

But the Benton Foundation, which is part of the coalition trying to save the government-funded digital divide programs, argues that the government is interpreting the studies with what it calls "a glass half full" approach: They are focusing on the gains made by certain groups rather than the gaps themselves.

Norris Dickard, a senior associate at Benton, said his analysis of the Commerce data shows that the gap in terms of race, income and education is widening, not shrinking. Dickard said a new digital divide is emerging between those with access to high-speed Internet and those with access only to slower dial-up services, with poor, rural and ethnic communities particularly at a disadvantage.

"Soon there will be all these exclusively broadband applications out there that will be really important for the growth of communities," Dickard said, citing telemedicine, in which doctors remotely diagnose and treat patients, as an example.

Mark Cooper, director of research for Consumers Union, said assertions the digital divide is fading are "simply wrong." Cooper said the government's conclusion was based on looking at numbers about people's computer use in the wider community when it should be focusing on the availability of access in the home.

"This is America and we do our business at home. This is not a cafe society," he said.

If you count computer use at home and at work, fewer than half of those with annual incomes of $15,000 to $25,000 can get onto the Internet, compared with about 90 percent of those with annual incomes more than $75,000, according to the Commerce survey. If you count Internet access only at home, less than a quarter of those with annual incomes of $15,000 to $25,000 have access, compared with more than 80 percent of those with incomes more than $75,000 a year.

Only 32 percent of Hispanics and 40 percent of blacks had Internet access at home in 2001, compared with 60 percent of whites.

Jeffrey Cole, head of the UCLA study, stands by his interpretation that the most basic divide -- access -- is narrowing by most measures. But he also believes a divide remains when it comes to how people use the Internet. For example, new users on average spend more of their online time on entertainment, while experienced users spend more time doing things such as banking and professional work. That, Cole said, suggests that some minority and low-income families haven't yet developed the skills to use the Internet as effectively as others.

"There are still significant differences between those who have been online five years and more and those who just went online," he said.