The Federal Communications Commission announced a plan last week to auction off a portion of the public airwaves for Free WiFi usage. The costs of the broadband access would reportedly be offset by advertising over the network and subscriptions to faster service. The initiative comes on the heels of an FCC report which found such a plan would not interfere with other signals across the spectrum.
While many local governments across the nation have attempted to provide free wireless access to their citizens, their efforts have been continually stymied by major players across the cable and telecommunications industry who, not surprisingly, see such public services as a threat to their Internet Service Provider businesses. It’s time for this to stop. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries governments and private philanthropists realized the need for an equality of access to information throughout our society in order to secure a viable democracy. This realization lead to the introduction of library systems throughout the United States to provide the public with that information, for free.
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Katie Halper:
Nicole Hughes: 
Andy Kondrat:
Jon Popham: 
Giulia Rozzi:
Gina Telaroli: 
A group in Santa Fe, NM is suing the city government there under the claim they suffer and allergy to WiFi Internet frequencies. The group contends that the city is discriminating against them by using WiFi in public buildings and demands the removal of the wireless technology therein. Plaintiff Arthur Firstenburg claims he is extremely sensitive to various types of wireless technology including WiFi and cellular phones. “I get chest pain and it doesn’t go away right away¨he says. He and his fellow plaintiffs claim the use of WiFi in public places is a violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act. 