Struggles over educational access to new communications technologies in the age of U.S. radio and television provide insights into current struggles of educational access to the "information superhighway." Findings from an historical analysis of these earlier periods show that educational access to new communications technologies is often constrained or marginalized in four primary ways: (1) definitional distinctions in law and policy; (2) high costs and technical operating standards; (3) technical ghettoization in low-power, low-reach technologies, and (4) mid-stream legal and policy modifications including challenges to regulatory jurisdiction. Similar methods of constraint are identified in the current context of universal service e-rate discounts for K-12 access to the National Information Infrastructure (NII). It is suggested that educators should be excited about NII service discounts, but wary of regulatory constraints. (Contains 20 references.) (Author/AEF)