[EAS] Handle SQW code

[Gregory Muir]

I think it becomes a question of semantics.  Each person can interpret  requirements and procedures in different ways.  I have seen the same subject spoken by the FCC in various ways that leave the reader guessing what they are trying to explain.  And I am sure that there are others who have tried to interpret nebulous statements with questionable success.

 

My main concern about presidential national alert transmissions in our present day is if they will properly convey the alert message or wander off into the ditch about some anomalous subjects that we all are now accustomed to on a daily basis.

 

Greg

On Sat, 31 Jan 2026 Bennett Kobb wrote:

"The word left out of that phrase is "national" as in "actual national emergency".

Because no other kind of emergency requires a station to forward an alert. And no national alert has ever been sent. 

Aliens could invade or a tornado about to hit, and stations would be perfectly free to continue blasting Hits of the 80s without interruption.

Should the National Emergency Message (EAN) be sent, and station fail to forward it, enforcement could be moot because some of us might not be around.

As my FEMA chief explained on my first day at work, "The mission of [this unit] is to keep the country running after half of us are missing or dead."