Did the end of net neutrality really help narrow the digital divide? Big nope.

Last June’s end of net neutrality—the system that required internet service providers to treat all data equally—has helped narrow the digital divide, according to the FCC. Does that stand up? The news: Yesterday the agency released its annual report into the state of broadband access in the US. It showed that more people can get online. FCC chairman Ajit Pai—who thinks net neutrality is bad for consumers—has claimed this shows that “our approach is working.” Show me the data: This claim is doubtful, partly because the data has been heading in this direction for a long time. Plus there’s more to the digital divide than just internet access. How the FCC actually counts access to broadband is controversial, too. Politics: The issue is highly politicized; the FCC’s vote to end net neutrality was split along party lines, with the two Democratic commissioners opposing it and the three Republicans in favor. This will increase as the 2020 presidential race heats up. Read the full story here. —Angela Chen