Two people are completing the same kind of online task, but their circumstances could hardly be more different. One woman works from her car, navigating paperwork and a smartphone screen outside a public library. Another person sits comfortably at home with a laptop and reliable broadband. Both are connected, yet their ability to participate in the digital economy is unequal. Pew Research Center reports that 91% of American adults own smartphones, but 16% depend on them without a home broadband subscription. The illustration captures a widening definition of digital inequality: owning technology does not guarantee equal opportunity to use it.
Read the full SSC story: Nearly Every American Has a Phone. That Doesn’t Mean Everyone Has Equal Access.