Digital divide or digital opportunity in the Mississippi Delta region of the US |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Radio-TV-Film, College of Communication, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA;2. Community and Regional Planning Program, School of Architecture, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA;1. Department of Neurosurgery, Rhode Island Hospital, The Warren Alpert Medical School at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA;2. Department of Health Services, Policy, and Practice, Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, Rhode Island, USA;1. Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA;2. Virginia Water Resources Research Center, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 210 Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA;3. Department of Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Smyth Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA;4. Department of Geosciences and Natural Resources, Western Carolina University, 336 Stillwell Building, Cullowhee, NC 28723, USA;1. School of Economics, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, China;2. Key Laboratory of Mathematical Economics (SUFE), Ministry of Education, Shanghai, China;3. Department of Economics, The Ohio State University, 475 Arps Hall, 1945 N. High Street, Columbus, OH 43210, USA |
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| Abstract: | This study analyzes the interdependence of telecommunications manufacturing, services, and user industries in the Mississippi Delta region of the US to understand the social and economic prospects of poorer rural areas of the US as advanced technologies rapidly proliferate. An underlying assumption is that telecommunications industries should not be viewed only by the employment they directly support; they should also be analyzed in terms of their linkages to other industries and how those linkages influence the competitiveness and growth prospects of businesses and public institutions in the region by building a capable community of technology users. The absence of leading telecom manufacturing and service firms in rural Delta counties together with low levels of connectivity suggest that digital divide problems are very real for the region. The central economic development challenge should be to ensure that rural businesses, government, health care, education, and non-profit institutions gain access to an advanced telecommunications infrastructure and that they develop the capacity to leverage this access to enhance their performance and expand their reach. |
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