[EAS] The way is sounded

[Adrienne Abbott]

>So now the tone of the message has to also suggest high urgency?
>If they're ignoring the Duck Farts and the two tone ATTENTION signal, we've
lost them before the announcement ever starts.

We lost them a long time ago...I received this email last month from a
frustrated cable TV subscriber after an afternoon when the local NWS office
issued 12 activations within an approximately four hour period, all of which
were carried by the cable provider. These activations were for one county. 

Ms Abbott
I write to you frustrated with the frequency of EAS broadcasts generated
from what are otherwise common weather occurrences and certainly pose no
EMERGENCY as intended by the system.  I will not argue a thunderstorm can
cause damage.  But a chance of damage and/or isolated flash flooding, should
not be sufficient criteria to active the EAS.  Users must be mindful the
activation causes a forced disruption of a cable broadcast-something I pay
good money to obtain and something I nor the cable company have the option
to "de-select".  

Today, for example, I was tortured, as is too often the case this time of
year, by an EAS message roughly every 10 minutes for over two hours during
prime time viewing, warning of thunderstorms and at times the predictable
isolated flash floods that accompany them.  Even as the thunderstorm moved
well off to the North of the city, posing no threat to 99%+ of the EAS
broadcast community, EAS messages continued unabated.  

Could we not have short 2-3 second alarm followed a simple banner along the
screen as we did previously?  Is it necessary to completely disrupt the
broadcast, repeatedly, providing the same information, to those unlikely to
be affected and/or benefit? ... The EAS system is a valuable program.
However, it is being abused.  Please work for some controls.  The old banner
system along the bottom of the screen has now been replaced by the complete
interruption of programming.  A better way of doing business is needed and I
ask for your assistance.  A classic thunderstorm is not an "Emergency" and
the audience the EAS message reaches is not the very small audience at risk.

Adrienne Abbott
Nevada EAS Chair
NVBA  ABIP  Inspector