Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Connect This!

Connect This! offers an irreverent and inside look at broadband tech and policy. Each week features people with direct experience building networks or working on policy to improve broadband access. We talk about current events and focus on a big topic for half of each episode.

Author

Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Category

Technology

Podcast website

connectthisshow.com

Latest episode

Apr 10, 2026

Where to listen?

Podcasts in the app Replaio Radio Coming soon

Podcasts are coming to the app soon. Install now and be the first to see a whole new take on podcasts

Get it on Google Play Install for free Android 5M+ downloads · 4.8 rating iOS soon

Episodes

Farewell to Connect This! 10.04.2026

After five and a half years, dozens of guests, two emergency episodes, and 124 shows, we’re saying goodbye to Connect This!. We want to thank you all, from the bottom of our collective heart, for joining us on this journey. Across the live stream and audio versions of this show, we’ve been delighted and surprised each year to get nearly 10,000 listens as we’ve talked about buildi...

Small Towns Building Broadband, Broadband Usage, and the Continued Retreat from Fiber | Episode 124 of the Connect This! Show 01.12.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (Tak Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print. Topics include: A new report from ILSR on 19 small towns in Massachusetts building public partnerships and new fiber networks. Mas...

The Retreat from Fiber, Local Government Inaction, and 8 Million Americans Offline | Episode 123 of the Connect This! Show 30.10.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (Tak Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print. Topics include: Now that final Benefit of the Bargain numbers are in on the BEAD program, the trend is clear : tens of thousands o...

Big Apple Connect, Pole Attachments, and DEA Lawsuits | Episode 122 of the Connect This! Show 03.10.2025

Edit: We encountered a technical issue with the streaming platform for the show; it resolves around 1:20. Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (Tak Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guest Angela Siefer to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to...

Secret Fiber Caps and Fiber Platforms | Episode 121 of the Connect This! Show 26.09.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter joined by regular guest Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guests Josh Johnson and Donny Smith, from Fibersmith –  an OSS/BSS design and management firm for operators around the country. Topics of discussion  include: Secret fiber caps from NTIA to push BEAD funds t...

Fiber Acquisitions and the New BEAD Numbers Are In | Episode 120 of the Connect This! 05.09.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print. Topics include: Starship launch success T-mobile buys USI Fiber in Minneapolis New BEAD numbers show a shifting of public dollars...

Digital C Goes to Detroit and the Tech Spread Coming to BEAD | Episode 119 of the Connect This! Show 05.08.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) is joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guests Gigi Sohn (American Association for Public Broadband) and Josh Etheridge (EPC) to talk about Mountain Connect, T-Mobile continuing to buy up ISPs, Digital C going to Detroit, antitrust, and more. J...

Who Benefits from this Bargain? | Episode 118 of the Connect This! Show 30.07.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guest Heather Mills (Tilson) to talk about the FCC giving out participation trophies to the monopoly providers, how state offices are responding to the BEAD guidance changes, di...

The Future of Active Ethernet | Episode 117 of the Connect This! Show Video 17.07.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about right-of-way fees, electric cooperatives, and the future of active Ethernet networks in the United States. Join us live on July 3rd at 2pm ET, or listen afterwards wherever yo...

California’s Affordable Broadband Play and Wi-Fi Under Threat | Episode 116 of the Connect This! Show 30.06.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband), Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guest Shayna Englin (California Community Foundation) to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print. Topics include: California’s attempt to enshrine...

BEAD Overhauled | Connect This! Show 10.06.2025

Catch an emergency episode of the Connect This! Show, with host Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) joined by Lori Adams (Nokia), Heather Mills (Tilson), and Blair Levin (Brookings) to talk about the raft of fundamental changes to the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Act (BEAD) announced by NTIA last Friday . States are required to rebuild and resubmit their proposals to the federal agency on a 90...

BEAD Falls Apart | Episode 115 of the Connect This! Show 10.06.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting), and special guest Josh Etheridge to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print. Bountiful, Utah and Oakland, California announce newsworthy milestones to improve co...

Charter and Cox Merge, Hotspots Under Threat, and the End of the Digital Equity Act | Episode 114 of the Connect This! Show 08.05.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guest Angela Siefer (National Digital Inclusion Alliance) to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print. Topics include: Charter and Cox announce agreeme...

Project Kuiper, Fixing Urban Mobile, and Kentucky Wired | Episode 113 of the Connect This! Show 28.04.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print. Topics include: The first launch of Amazon’s Project Kuiper Low-Earth Orbit Internet access satellite constellat...

The Future of Passive Optical Networks | Episode 112 of the Connect This! Show 18.04.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guest Shane Eleniak (Calix) to talk about: Comcast’s new five-year price lock A CNET pricing study that looks at the rising cost of access that hasn’t improved most...

The Most Consequential Year in Telecom History Since 1996 | Episode 111 of the Connect This! Show 28.03.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) with special guest Blair Levin (New Street Research) to talk about states asking the federal government for defaulted RDOF funds back, the Arielle Roth hearing, the future of the USF, and m...

The Revolving Door, the Limit of Public Dollars, and Whether the Maps Will Matter After BEAD | Episode 110 of the Connect This! Show 14.03.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about a grab-bag of topics including: The revolving door of government BEAD’s grant tax Ted Cruz going after hotspots Minnesota’s broadband workforce law Who will care a...

BEAD: The Metamorphosis | Episode 109 of the Connect This! Show 07.03.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about major changes coming to the BEAD program and a grab-bag of other topics, including: Amazon drone delivery pauses in College Station, Texas A new report shows the Affordable Co...

Advancements in Cable Networks – Connect This! Show Episode 108Coming up: Connect This! Show Episode 108 12.02.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guest Jason Livingood (Comcast) to talk how cable network operators are innovating to reduce latency, combat buffer bloat, and improve their networks around the county. Join us...

Frontiers in Fiber Optic Sensing | Episode 107 of the Connect This! Show 28.01.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Broadband) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) along with special guest Paul Dickinson (Dura-line, Fiber Optic Sensing Association, and Aii) to talk about the future of fiber optic sensing to do everything from avoid fiber cuts from con...

What We Expect in 2025 | Episode 105 of the Connect This! Show 06.01.2025

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Communications) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print. Join us live on  January 10th at 2pm ET,  or listen afterwards wherever you get your podcasts. Email us...

2024 in Review | Episode 104 of the Connect This! Show 13.12.2024

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Communications) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guest Jade Piros de Carvalho (Bonfire). Topics include: New York state can require a low-income plan option for ISPs  after the Supreme Court declines to hear arguments Loo...

What Comes Next | Episode 103 of the Connect This! Show 26.11.2024

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-host Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (TAK Communications) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guests Heather Mills (Tilson) and Lori Adams (Nokia) to talk about what comes next as we approach a new year. Topics include: A new anti-municipal network “study” that recently came out Conne...

Dear Rural America: Starlink and Mobile Wireless Are Not Coming to Save You | Episode 102 of the Connect This! Show 12.11.2024

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (UTOPIA Fiber) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) to talk about all the recent broadband news that’s fit to print.  Topics include: Verizon and AT&T  claiming that the FCC can’t stop them from selling your data Starlink...

Nice Knowing You, BEAD, and Building Better Middle Mile Networks | Episode 101 of the Connect This! Show 25.10.2024

Catch the latest episode of the Connect This! Show, with co-hosts Christopher Mitchell (ILSR) and Travis Carter (USI Fiber) joined by regular guests Kim McKinley (UTOPIA Fiber) and Doug Dawson (CCG Consulting) and special guest Matt Peterson (SFMIX). They talk about some of the sea changes we expect to see with the change in federal administrations with relation to BEAD before a long conversation...

Listen to the Connect This! podcast in Replaio

Radio and podcasts in one app - free, with no sign-up. Install today and do not miss the launch

Get it on Google Play

Replaio is not a podcast publisher; show names, artwork and audio belong to their authors and are distributed through public RSS feeds.