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b"Another $10 billion from the Treasury Department for broadband! But will urban broadband flourish as a result?\\n\\nIt depends.\\xa0Lobbying forces tend to swing to rural, so city leaders must insist on urban equity in government's broadband funding, and community stakeholders must keep local and state politicians' feet to the fire. This Gigabit Nation\\xa0session explores ways to bring accountability into the broadband buildout processes.\\n\\nThe 800-pound gorilla in the room is accountability in rural broadband funding. For nearly a decade $5 billion a year has been spent on rural broadband, but where's the beef!? More importantly, what can communities do to bring accountability for all of these billion of dollars in\\xa0both rural and urban areas?\\n\\nToday's digital equity warriors are:\\n\\nLori Sherwood is Director of Commercial & Market Development at Render Networks, and her managerial experience covers the both the client and the vendor side. Besides managing and facilitating broadband deployments, Ms Sherwood has also worked for county government as a broadband program director and cable administrator. \\xa0 \\xa0 \\xa0 \\xa0\\n\\n\\nDr. Christopher Ali is an Associate Professor in Department of Media Studies at the University of Virginia.\\xa0Ali's latest book,\\xa0Farm Fresh Broadband: The politics of rural connectivity,\\xa0examines the complicated rural broadband policies in the U. S., and analyzes\\xa0the politics surrounding these policies.\\n\\n--------------------\\n\\nGet info about telehealth deployservices\\xa0that\\xa0help save lives, reduce cost, and improve efficiency of public health."