[EAS] EAS and CMAS

[Clay Freinwald]

Seattle is Market # 13 - There are perhaps 4 (as Tim has mentioned) stations
that will air the followup to CMAS Message...The rest will not.
Remembering that most stations are either automated or under strict
instruction to do nothing with EAS messages (Except for RMT's and EAN'S).
Then, as Lowell points out, most FM Radios in Cellphones are going to be
non-functional (unless you are right next to the transmitter) due to their
lack of FM Antenna.   

Broadcasting has a golden opportunity here to be ready to provide this
information to (in a big market) a million people who are, all at once,
looking for the answer of how does this emergency apply to me.    My fear is
that that way too many will continue to focus on their cookie-cutter formats
at the exclusion of saving lives.

I'd love to be proved wrong !!

Bet your IPod has ear buds....and your Cellphone does not.    

Clay 

Am I missing something, Clay? Is there no way to tune the stations you
receive on your cellphone? I can tune the FM radio in my iPod.

Most people aren't stupid...most will react to the "Check Media" note on
their cell phones with the FM chips the same way they react now if they
don't like what they're hearing on their car radios--they tune around to
find what they want. Most markets now have FM news-talk stations...we have
two here in Market 124. Those stations will be heavily involved in covering
any local emergency. And there are even some FM entertainment stations that
still have live staff most of the time if not 24/7 and if those stations are
like some in our market, many of those jocks--pardon me, air
personalities--have been around forever and have seen everything and know
more about how catastrophic events affect their community than some of those
shiny new TV reporters who've never even heard of EAS, much less understand
the relationship to CMAS or WEA. 

The question still is--why do we broadcasters put up with the current Public
Warning situation when it is within our capability to change it?

Adrienne Abbott
Nevada EAS Chair