When 20 organizations representing the communities most impacted by the Digital Divide issued a joint letter to the FCC last week, they added a new and much-needed element to discussions about net neutrality.

In recent weeks, legislators, ISPs, online application providers, mainstream advocates and ivory-tower digirati have fueled and shaped well-funded discussions about net neutrality into a din of vociferous rhetoric.

Guest blogger, Gus West, from the Hispanic Institute, stresses the importance of mobile broadband to the Latino community.

One key demographic that has been underrepresented in policy debates regarding the Digital Divide is the Hispanic population. The fact that Hispanics are now the largest minority population in the US and also among the most digitally underserved means that our community’s needs and perspectives must be taken into account as the FCC develops the National Broadband Plan for America.

Six Hispanic nonprofit organizations, among them several HTTP members, have joined the Broadband for America Coalition. The coalition, which was announced last week, will educate policymakers and stakeholders about how the Internet and wireless networks work; drive policy discussions about how to achieve broadband everywhere and will work with the President, the Federal Communications Commission and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration and Congress to develop and promote policies that maximize broadband access and adoption.

Today, Chairman Ed Towns of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform announced a summary of findings from the Committee’s review of information subpoenaed from the Media Ratings Council regarding Arbitron’s Portable People Meter. The PPM is a device that was developed by Arbitron to measure radio station listenership.

Last week’s Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) conference had to have been the best event that CHCI has ever held. As if a visit by President Obama and the First Lady was not enough, luminaries such as Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, numerous Hispanic legislators, renowned journalists Soledad O’Brien and Maria Hinojosa, and stars such as Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez attended the gala to support CHCI’s educational initiatives.

The Hispanic Institute (THI) released a white paper today at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute Conference in Washington, D.C. Hispanic Broadband Access: Making the Most of a Mobile, Connected Future reports on an important telecommunications trend that has exciting implications for closing the Hispanic Digital Divide. While overall, the percentage of Hispanics that have access to broadband in the home is among the lowest of all demographic groups, some segments of the Hispanic population are among the most active users of mobile broadband technologies, even when compared to non-Hispanic populations.

The National Telecommunications Infrastructure Administration (NTIA) and the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) expanded the functionality of their www.broadbandusa.gov portal with a searchable database of Broadband Technology Opportunity Program (BTOP) and Broadband Infrastructure Program (BIP) applications. The public can use the database to find out which organizations submitted proposals in the first funding round, read brief overviews of the proposed projects, and learn how much funding is being requested for program implementation. Organizations who are considering applying for future rounds of BTOP / BIP funding will find this database invaluable as they develop their proposal strategies.