MAPPING NEW YORK CITY'S DIGITAL DIVIDE

New York, USA

By Jakob Winkler
digital divide, internet access, race, class, new york city

My project uncovers the digital divide in 21st century New York City.

Access to high speed internet has become a crucial resource in the 21st century, decisive for access to jobs and economic mobility, information and education, and participation in the social and political spheres. Yet, as with access to other types of infrastructure such as the public transit system, or streets, access to the internet, too, is characterized by socio-spatial disparities. Access to high-speed internet is differentiated based on geographies, class, race, and ethnicity, perpetuating existing forms of exclusion. But since the physical infrastructures that the internet relies on remain hidden in our everyday lives, buried below our feet, so do the inequities in its access.

This map aims to uncover the digital divide in 21st century New York by mapping the “invisible” internet infrastructure that is required for access to the internet and relating it to demographic and internet use data. Due to the limited data available, the map is only a first step in doing so. However, I hope that it contributes to ongoing efforts of making visible the invisible (such as the crowdsourced New Cloud Atlas).