I promised you a SURPRISE today...and here it is:

SURPRISE !!!!

Okay, that doesn't really qualify. Here's the real scoop: I don't make any secrets about receiving PR announcements now and then. When I use them, I acknowledge where the content came from. It's probably not generally known but for every ONE PR announcement I post, I have 10 or 20 others that I don't post about. Sometimes there isn't time, sometimes I don't feel connected to the topic.

Just the other day I received information about AT&T - an announcement that made me sit up and take notice. The reason I took the time to read the PR, was because this announcement said AT&T was taking broadband into rural America. The brought up thoughts of all the talk over the years about the "digital divide" - you know, where the haves (folks with the $$) were dominating technology, and the have-nots (people who didn't live in high-trafficked areas with easy access to broadband) were being left behind.

I'm one of the 'haves'. I've always had access to broadband. But, I know people who live in rural America who pooh-poohed the whole Internet thing for just so long - then, openly complained when they couldn't get it. To no avail. It just wasn't available.

Hurray for AT&T! That's what I thought. And still think. I think this bears announcing because it's a turning point. It's a way to disintegrate that digital divide. Yes, I can accept that not everyone cares about being on the Internet - lots of people thought phones and TV were conversation killers, too. But, in reality, computers and the Internet are vital additions to the American social scene - AND, they're more and more crucial to our educational system.

While it's true that you need a computer to access the Internet, but you don't need the Internet to have a computer, in America's schools, computers were little more than word processors or fancy calculators, before the advent of the Internet. Today, all aspects of the Internet (well, not all...let's leave gambling and porn out back under a rock, where they belong), are important connecting tools - bringing different cultures together in ways that weren't possible years ago.

But, in reality, computers and the Internet are vital additions to the American social scene - AND, they're more and more crucial to our educational system, today. It's only right that the technology be made available to everyone. So, I see this influencing more than just teenagers wanting to have a MySpace site, or chat on IM. I see this opening doors in rural America to help the Moms and Dads who still want that small-town, country-folk way of life for their families, still know that their kids will receive as good an education as any citified-kid in downtown ILOVEMYHOMETOWN, USA. Because, they'll be able to give their kids access to the universe of knowledge found on the Internet...in their own home, where their parents can monitor its use.

It just makes sense that today all aspects of the Internet (well, not all...let's leave gambling and porn out back under a rock, where they belong), are beneficial in a school setting. Computers and the Internet can give our kids a better understanding of the world they live in - the WHOLE world, not just one continent. Isn't that what blogs do - help educate folks? Well, without broadband connection, that knowledge is drifting off into - America's suburbs. AT&T is making it possible for everyone to have access. Listen up, this is how they're doing it:

Q & A with Claudia Jones, AT&T Spokesperson

Details the Availability of Project Lightspeed to Low-Income Households

1.) AT&T just announced a series of new initiatives that will provide consumers and businesses, regardless of income or location, with much greater access to advanced broadband networks and services in its 13-state local service territory. How exactly will this plan benefit those living in low-income and inner-city neighborhoods?

A: Because it will offer a competitive alternative to cable TV, whose rates rose by 86 percent from 1995 to 2004. AT&T is affirming its intent to makes its next-generation video services available – within three years as part of its initial deployment – to more than 5.5 million lower-income households, making them among the first in the nation to receive these new IPTV services.

2.) Who will benefit from today’s announcement and when can consumers and businesses in specific states expect to see the positive effects of AT&T’s investment?

A: Satellite-based broadband Internet access service will be starting later this month in selected rural markets throughout AT&T’s traditional 13-state residential service territory, most of which are not served by DSL or cable broadband services today. New deployments of WiMAX and other fixed wireless technologies will begin later this year in Texas and Nevada, joining existing AT&T fixed wireless service offers and deployments in Alaska, Georgia, and New Jersey.

3.) AT&T will also be bringing the benefits of broadband Internet access and IP-based services to more consumers and businesses in rural areas. How will increased access improve the lives of those living in traditionally hard-to-serve areas?

A: High-speed Internet access helps residents work more productively and efficiently and helps the community in its evolution to a high-tech town. With a high-speed connection, residents and businesses are better able to compete by having high-speed access to the Internet. Satellite and fixed wireless broadband technologies hold strong promise for delivering AT&T broadband Internet access services in remote, rural or hard-to-serve areas, many of which have no DSL or cable broadband service today. In the AT&T traditional local service area, these initiatives could help bring broadband Internet access to as many as 11.5 million additional homes and businesses.

4) AT&T has made a strong commitment to serve low-income neighborhoods and make sure that they have competitive access to emerging technologies. What is the philosophy behind AT&T’s dedication to this type of equality?

A: AT&T believes broadband should be widely available. The company has always been committed to serving its customers with video and has defined aggressive fiber network deployment plans to reach them. Again, AT&T is affirming its intent to make its next-generation video services available to more than 5.5 million lower-income households in 41 Project Lightspeed markets. Project Lightspeed will bring fiber closer to AT&T customers’ homes. More fiber in the ground, closer to customers, will make it possible for AT&T to provide new, next-generation Internet Protocol (IP)-based services over its existing network. These services will include AT&T Yahoo! High-Speed Internet, IP telephony (VoIP) and a new IP-based TV service called AT&T U-verse TV, allowing customers to enjoy features such as hundreds of television channels, movies on demand, electronic program guide, music and more.

But, wait...there's more! I was allowed to ask Claudia a few questions myself (you know me, I can't help butting in...). Read on to see what I asked and what Claudia answered...