Re: EAS(y)...not...

[Jason Roberts <argo@tiac.net>]

EAS is designed to work automatically if there is no operator
intervention. What you heard was the system working as it should... but
the station personnel obviously not.

The required monthly test came in today. Just as with EBS, stations are
required to rebroadcast this test, to keep the connections in the chain.
The difference is that while EBS required us to do the work, with EAS
the decoder will do it automatically. Because of this, many stations
have become very lax in making sure ops know what to do.

When the required monthly test or an EAS activation comes over it is
buffered and held for rebroadcast. Operators have the option (or
should!) of deleting it, forwarding it, or doing nothing. If they do
nothing, the decoder will forward it after a pre-set time limit has
expired. Since the decoder is downstream from the studio, it cuts off
all other audio and takes control. This is likely what happened to all
of the stations with the poorly timed tests.

On the other hand, the stations that handled the test properly paused
programming, dropped in the test, and resumed broadcasting.

Regards,

Jason Roberts
Operations Manager
WPLM, Easy 99.1

------------------------------