[EAS] EAS message released for education

[Ed Czarnecki]

I took issue with the InsideRadio article because it made a logical leap
that may not be there.
Yes, FEMA created harmless sound-alike tones.
No, FEMA did not tell anyone to go forth and use these without guidance or
permission.
No, I don't believe the FCC has changed its position that use of such tones
in PSAs should be approved first, or at least passed by the FCC.

So I think the InsideRadio leaves a message that folks can go forth and use
these for whatever "educational" purpose they please, while the reality may
be quite different ...

From: EAS [mailto:eas-bounces at radiolists.net] On Behalf Of Dave Kline

Doesn't this send a mixed message?

It seems that we finally have gotten most everyone to a place where they
wouldn't even consider running a Euro style siren for fear of alarming
someone and incurring "the wrath."
Now we have sound alike alerts to explain to everyone what the September
test will sound like? 

It's a freakin' EAS test for cripes sake! 
99.9% everyone knows what they sound like. 
And more importantly 99.9% of everyone doesn't give two hoots about
listening to any more of it than they have to.

>From a testing standpoint, how is it helpful to start running a bunch of EAS
sound alike promos?
Does that not just serve to further dull our senses to that time when a real
alert happens?
We already have weekly and Monthly testing. We're adding one more test for
the year. 
Nobody listening cares enough to care.
Why go to any extra trouble to ram more of this down their throats?

And from a programming standpoint, who wants to be running enough of these
to actually be effective?
Especially when we have managers or PDs who complain that there is too much
of this on the air as it is with real alerts. 
I'm sure a bunch of phony ones will will just make their day.

In the car, my wife won't let five words get out of the mouth of a DJ before
she's changing to another station with some music.
She'd rather listen to music she doesn't like than to listen to the mindless
DJ blabber.
I'd bet she'd be punching the buttons before the second phony duck fart
jumps off the speaker cones.

When will the insanity stop?

----------------------------------------
Dave Kline   UNO-TV/Mav Radio/KVNO
University of Nebraska at Omaha
6001 Dodge St. Omaha, NE  68182  CPACS 200
----------------------------------------

On Aug 23, 2017, at 12:31 PM, Lamm, Dale wrote:

>Here's part of the announcement, taken from "Inside Radio":

>Using the Emergency Alert System tones outside of an actual test or an
activation is strictly off-limits. But the government has released a special
set of a "sound-alike" EAS tones for stations to use as part of the public
education effort leading up to this year's national test. The Federal
Emergency Management Agency says the audio file contains "non-functional
sound-alike EAS data headers" which most critically won't trigger any
station's EAS receivers.

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