[1st-mile-nm] Obama commits to creating a national broadband cabinet-level CTO

[Randy Burge]

The Short List for U.S. Chief Technology Officer
Barack Obama has pledged to name a cabinet-level CTO to oversee a
job-creating national broadband buildout if he's elected. Big names abound

By Tom Lowry

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/oct2008/db20081019_25815
5.htm

Barack Obama says that the U.S. is not doing nearly enough to create jobs
through technology. Shortly after he launched his campaign, the Illinois
Senator promised that if elected, he would create the first-ever
Cabinet-level post of chief technology officer. The economic crisis has
since made it certain that a White House CTO would become one of Obama's
most important advisers, should he triumph in November. "Obama sees greater
broadband penetration as an enormous economic engine, much like the
railroads were a century ago," says Andrew D. Lipman, a veteran
communications lawyer in Washington. "That is why the CTO will play such a
critical role in any recovery plan."

Among the candidates who would be considered for the job, say Washington
insiders, are Vint Cerf, Google's (GOOG) "chief internet evangelist," who is
often cited as one of the fathers of the Internet; Microsoft (MSFT) chief
executive officer Steve Ballmer; Amazon (AMZN) CEO Jeffrey Bezos; and Ed
Felten, a prominent professor of computer science and public affairs at
Princeton University. An Obama campaign spokesman did not return phone calls
seeking comment about potential CTO candidates.

Obama‹who has effectively used the Internet and social networks throughout
his campaign to raise funds, engage voters, and put forward policy
positions‹has long criticized the Bush administration for not doing more to
increase broadband penetration in the U.S., particularly in rural areas. The
country ranked 15th among industrial nations in penetration, with a mere 23
out of 100 Americans having access to broadband service, according to a
report released earlier this year by the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development.

A White House CTO would be expected to help create incentive programs to
expand broadband's reach, particularly tax credits for smaller carriers. But
the tech czar would almost certainly be deeply involved in overseeing a
federally-backed $50 billion venture capital fund that Obama has proposed to
develop more environmentally friendly technology.

[snip]

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/oct2008/db20081019_25815
5.htm