Homeless people used as 4G wireless hotspots in Austin, Texas

By Celia Graham-Dixon | Posted: March 14, 2012

The New York based advertising agency BBH has launched an initiative called ‘Homeless Hotspots’, which uses homeless people as wireless hotspots at South by South West festival in Austin, Texas.

The interactive branch of the festival, which ended yesterday, hosted a “charitable innovation initiative”, which attempts to modernise the buying and selling of street newspapers and support the homeless. The project equips 13 homeless people around Austin with 4G MiFi services and t-shirts that say, “I’m a 4G hotspot”. People that want to use the internet are encouraged to introduce themselves to the “homeless hotspots” and log on to their 4G network using their phone or tablet. Donations are left to the customer’s discretion, and go directly to the person who sold the access. BBH provide a $20 salary to volunteers regardless of sales.

With the growth of digital media, street newspapers face increased pressure. By taking the street paper model and modernising it, BBH say they are “offering homeless individuals an opportunity to sell a digital service instead of a material commodity”. “The model isn’t inherently broken” say BBH “It’s simply the output that’s archaic in the smartphone age.”

The “experiment” has received considerable interest and speculation. BBH say the initiative gives “homeless people an unedited voice so people can understand their lives”, but Twitter and blog responses have been mixed, with critics labeling the experiment “disturbing” and “dehumanising”.

In an article for The Guardian John Bird, co-founder of the Big Issue wrote:

“What BBH is advocating, and I hope it stays true to its words, is that this could be the beginning of a new form of work for the homeless that is not demeaning.”

But Bird was not unreserved in his appraisal of the scheme. He continued: “we should not see the homeless as simply immovable pieces of the background, open to exploitation. Rather we should see them as guardians, guides and informers who understand the local area in a completely different way.”

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  • http://twitter.com/_INSP INSP

    Since the first street paper launched 20 years ago, the model has been based on working, not begging. BBH’s interest in supporting homeless people is really commendable. But it misses a couple of crucial elements specific to the street paper model. Homeless vendors buy their copies for half the cover price, then sell them on and keep the profits. The buy and sell element is crucial in the process, as it is the transaction that makes the vendor a salesman, not the recipient of a donation. Street papers offer vendors not just an income, but a sense of self-respect and dignity. At the same time, they put a face on homelessness by offering quality, independent journalism.
    Read INSP’s full response to the initiative here: http://www.street-papers.org/digital-street-newspapers.

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