U.S. Commerce Secretary Tells Rural Broadband Leaders to Prioritize Starlink

Howard Lutnick, commerce secretary under President Trump, told leaders of the government’s rural broadband initiative to prioritize less reliable satellite connectivity over ground-based broadband—and specifically recommended Elon Musk’s Starlink. That is according to the Financial Times, which reports that Lutnick “mentioned Musk by name.” The comments came from Evan Feinman, who ran the rural broadband program until being pushed out last week. “The clear thrust of his directive was to increase the amount of satellite being used regardless of any other considerations,” Feinman told FT. Starlink uses satellites in low-earth orbit, offering faster speeds than older space-based internet services likes HughesNet. But Feinman has been an outspoken critic of using Starlink in place of fiber optic, as satellite-based internet cannot reach the types of speeds expected from ground-based infrastructure. Requests make a round-about trip to space and back, and consequently there is significant p ... Read full article.