David Elliot Berman
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davidberman.bsky.social
David Elliot Berman
@davidberman.bsky.social
96 followers 110 following 2 posts
A professor. Enjoyer/spreader of misinformation. Platforms, policy, political economy of the media.

Posts Replies Media Videos
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
bricolageyumyum.bsky.social
Looks awesome @ppopiel.bsky.social www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
The network dialectic: the digital divide and the contradictions of Philadelphia's digital equity strategy
This study examines the political economy, discursive legitimations, and effectiveness of the primary U.S. policy response to narrowing the digital divide: public subsidies for internet service. Us...
www.tandfonline.com
October 8, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
victorpickard.bsky.social
Important new research into the contradictions of US broadband policy by two leading political economists.
ppopiel.bsky.social Pawel Popiel @ppopiel.bsky.social · Oct 6
🚨 New article out, great colab w/ @davidberman.bsky.social, assessing the primary U.S. response to the digital divide: the corporate subsidy. Using mixed methods, we show how networked "digital equity" reinforces network monopoly. @miccenter.bsky.social
www.tandfonline.com/eprint/2BPFG...
ABSTRACT This study examines the political economy, discursive legitimations, and effectiveness of the primary U.S. policy response to narrowing the digital divide: public subsidies for internet service. Using Philadelphia as our case study, we analyze municipal efforts to enroll low-income communities in low-cost commercial broadband plans supported by the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Like many other U.S. cities in the neoliberal era, Philadelphia sought to organize its digital equity initiative as a decentralized network of public agencies, commercial broadband providers, and nonprofits. Drawing on expert interviews, focus groups with ACP-eligible subscribers, and policy documents, we find that despite the city’s goal of achieving universal service, the networked initiative ultimately advanced the economic interests and market position of Comcast, the city’s monopoly broadband provider – with only minimal gains in connectivity. We argue that the evolving relationship between Comcast and the city of Philadelphia exemplifies what we refer to as the dialectic of the network. While often assumed as opposing forms of economic and social organization, the monopoly – centralized, vertically organized, hierarchical – and the network – decentralized, horizontal, leaderless – actively reinforce and legitimize one another as part of the neoliberal conquest of America’s communication infrastructure.
October 6, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
ppopiel.bsky.social
🚨 New article out, great colab w/ @davidberman.bsky.social, assessing the primary U.S. response to the digital divide: the corporate subsidy. Using mixed methods, we show how networked "digital equity" reinforces network monopoly. @miccenter.bsky.social
www.tandfonline.com/eprint/2BPFG...
ABSTRACT This study examines the political economy, discursive legitimations, and effectiveness of the primary U.S. policy response to narrowing the digital divide: public subsidies for internet service. Using Philadelphia as our case study, we analyze municipal efforts to enroll low-income communities in low-cost commercial broadband plans supported by the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP). Like many other U.S. cities in the neoliberal era, Philadelphia sought to organize its digital equity initiative as a decentralized network of public agencies, commercial broadband providers, and nonprofits. Drawing on expert interviews, focus groups with ACP-eligible subscribers, and policy documents, we find that despite the city’s goal of achieving universal service, the networked initiative ultimately advanced the economic interests and market position of Comcast, the city’s monopoly broadband provider – with only minimal gains in connectivity. We argue that the evolving relationship between Comcast and the city of Philadelphia exemplifies what we refer to as the dialectic of the network. While often assumed as opposing forms of economic and social organization, the monopoly – centralized, vertically organized, hierarchical – and the network – decentralized, horizontal, leaderless – actively reinforce and legitimize one another as part of the neoliberal conquest of America’s communication infrastructure.
October 6, 2025 at 1:15 PM
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
soashworth.bsky.social
I agree with one caveat: once you go down the strategic route, it is 100% in bounds for your interlocutors to be suspicious of your motives when you are trying to tell the truth.

This is becoming a problem for the abundance program I think.
September 30, 2025 at 2:37 PM
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
ppopiel.bsky.social
New piece from me and @davidberman.bsky.social, previewing our research on the rollout, implementation, and experience of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) before and after its end
www.benton.org/blog/lived-b...
Lived Broadband Policy: Experiencing the Affordable Connectivity Program
Quantitative data gleaned from surveys and other sources can illuminate how connectivity initiatives perform
www.benton.org
August 19, 2025 at 3:17 PM
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
jamellebouie.net
the same administration screaming at universities about “merit” is also elevating unqualified hacks to critical positions, which makes you wonder about what they mean by “merit”
wsj.com The Wall Street Journal @wsj.com · Aug 10
Exclusive: The Trump administration is interviewing candidates to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics, including at least one longtime critic of the agency, according to a senior administration official.
Trump Administration Considers Longtime Critic to Lead Bureau of Labor Statistics
Officials are looking at E.J. Antoni, chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation, among others, to head jobs-data agency.
on.wsj.com
August 11, 2025 at 12:48 AM
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
bakerdphd.bsky.social
If you won't believe me, here's Paul

musgrave.substack.com/p/at-the-coa...
Screenshot from blog post that reads: Nor, especially, can they be addressed by American researchers moving abroad. When someone suggests that researchers just move abroad, I smile wanly, because I know that whoever is suggesting it has no idea of the scale of U.S. higher education relative to other markets nor of the difficulties other countries are facing. (What, just move to the many financially secure institutions of the United Kingdom? If you don’t keep up with UK higher ed news, then you may not recognize that’s a darkly bitter joke.) Some folks will find moving abroad attractive but it is simply not possible for the 1.4 million U.S. post-secondary instructors to just move to Canada.
July 17, 2025 at 12:15 AM
davidberman.bsky.social
Thrilled that my article “On Optimization: Cultural Labor in Platform Capitalism” has just been published in New Media & Society. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
May 15, 2025 at 1:35 PM
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
ppopiel.bsky.social
New piece out with @davidberman.bsky.social giving a preview of our study of post-pandemic efforts to address the digital divide in Philadelphia, especially Comcast's central role in it

www.benton.org/content/digi...
The Digital Divide in Comcast Town
First post from Philadelphia Equitable Broadband project
www.benton.org
February 28, 2025 at 9:56 PM
Reposted by David Elliot Berman
sydneyforde.bsky.social
So proud of the big things happening at our Pennsylvania Broadband Research (PBR) Institute!

@christopherali.bsky.social @saschameinrath.bsky.social @davidberman.bsky.social @victorpickard.bsky.social @abbysimmerman.bsky.social +Aaron Hyzen @mic-center.bsky.social @bellisariograded.bsky.social
Penn State professors partner on digital equity grant to benefit Philadelphia | Penn State University
Two Penn State faculty members recognized for their expertise in broadband and digital access helped shape an effort that secured a five-year, $11.9 million grant that will benefit residents of the ci...
www.psu.edu
January 23, 2025 at 12:17 AM