GSN_Nov-Dec_FINAL_Yumpu

Mass Notification/Disaster Response
What the FCC revamping of the
Federal Alert System means to you
By Nelson Daza
In the wake of the New York City
and New Jersey bombings that took
place recently, big changes
are on the way for the
FCC’s Wireless Emergency
Alert (WEA) system. Sen.
Chuck Schumer expressed
dissatisfaction and frustration
with the current
system after the WEA was
used to send a brief 90-character
message to cellphone users in NYC
alerting them to look out for a suspect
by the name of Ahmad Khan
Rahami. The message had no links,
photos or embedded media which
caused many citizens to panic.
While clearly not the intention of
the FCC, their mass communications
technology caused more panic
than it alleviated and the organization
is looking to make upgrades to
ensure this type of situation doesn’t
happen again.
Since the EAS system is vital to
our national security and public
safety, it should undoubtedly be a
state-of-the-art system. There are
some EAS devices and protocols
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that seem to be out of place in our
modern era. For example, broadcasters
have to purchase and maintain
on-premise hardware that has
very limited functionality
and is very complex to
use. Television broadcasters
can still only broadcast
text information in
the form of a ticker tape
across the top or bottom
of a television set. However,
more and more incident information
contains richer content,
such as images or video, that are not
handled by the devices that are currently
used. The federal government
– and subsequently, all broadcasters
– need to start taking steps that will
allow them to stop depending on
these outdated devices and start using
the Internet to deliver emergency
messages to television and radio.
Not to mention, there are fewer and
fewer people left who know how to
configure, maintain or use these antiquated
appliances.
The ripples of the EAS upgrade
will soon be felt at a municipality
near you. There’s no denying that we
live in a dangerous world today. Active
shooter situations and extreme
weather conditions seem to be happening
with increasing frequency,
so mass communications have never
been more important. During a
crisis, the ability to quickly direct
large groups of people can be the
difference between life and death.
To do that effectively, however, there
are key capabilities government officials
must have in place prior to a
major event. While the FCC hasn’t
provided any specifics around what
standards it will use for its upgrade,
here are three key capabilities that
should make the cut.
Multi-Modal Outreach is Critical
The first step in any mass communications
strategy is to recruit the local
population to join the program.
After all, it doesn’t do anyone any
good to have a cutting-edge, ultramodern
communications system
that can’t reach anybody. Today’s
citizens have come to rely upon a
wide range of Internet-connected
devices, which makes it particularly
difficult to lock in on one specific
method of outreach.
The most successful government