Smart Talk: Expanding hi-speed internet in PA

What to look for on Smart Talk Tuesday, July 12, 2016:

What are the basic things you need to lead a happy, healthy, productive life? Water, food, clothing, and shelter: the age old list of necessities any human needs. But is it missing something? The UN would say so, stipulating in 2011 that a person’s access to the Internet should be classified as a human right.

Just looking around, the world certainly has come to understand the convenience and necessity of the web. And it isn’t just reserved for entertainment and distraction. Countless jobs now can only be applied to through online portals, numerous newspapers and print publications are failing, falling to the might of paperless publishing, making access to the happenings of the world continually more restricted to online spaces.

So, how is a person supposed to thrive if their Internet connection is too slow to be functional? Or, what if they don’t even have access to the internet? A 2013 survey found that 28% of Pennsylvania households didn’t have Internet access.

Joining us Tuesday to discuss the expansion of fast, stable, and reliable web access to a corridor through southeastern PA is Bernadette Reineberg, Director of Community Outreach and Special Projects for United Fiber and Data. Also on the show is Kelly Lewis, President and CEO of Lewis Strategic and Jonelle Darr, Executive Director of the Cumberland County Library System. Libraries serve as points of access to the Internet and countless other digital resources for the numerous Pennsylvanians without an Internet connection in their home.