Re: Amber Alert & WBZ

["Aaron [Bishop] Read" <aread@speakeasy.net>]

At 02:43 PM 1/2/2003, Dave Faneuf wrote:
>Just off the top of my head I would think passing it along to Metro would
>get the information to the greatest number of stations the quickest since
>every station that has traffic has to use Metro/Shadow/SmartRoutes and
>Metro provides news and teletype information to a large number of
>stations in the state.
>I'm not slamming the way it is set up but I am just commenting that in
>the so-called competative business that we are in that other groups would
>allow a competitor any advantage.   Even if Mark passes the information
>along immediately without making a side comment to anyone down the hall,
>the alert is first broadcast by WBZ giving the newsroom a few minutes
>head start prior to the alert being repeated on other stations.
>df


If your newsroom is relying on EAS for news updates...you SERIOUSLY need to 
re-think your news gathering techniques!!!  :-)

EAS is not really a news service either...I can't think that there's even 
been a time in CONELRAD, EBS or EAS history where an alert ever came before 
any news reports had already aired about the emergency in question.   I 
could see Amber possibly changing that record, maybe.

EAS is primarily for all the music stations that AREN'T paying any 
attention to news...the alert is like a "heads up" that they need to 
broadcast info about something ...and while they're at it, they ought to go 
dig up some info on the subject so they can make an intelligent 
broadcast.   For example, if a Winter Storm Warning is in effect and an EAS 
alert comes out from NOAA about it for X, Y and Z counties...that really 
doesn't tell the listener much.   So a station ought to go look up the 
weather forecast for their area so they can give an intelligent weather 
update to the listeners that includes snow totals, wind speeds, 
temperatures, etc etc.

Your analogy is a little flawed, too...if Mark transmits the alert 
immediately, without telling the newsroom...all stations - including WBZ - 
get the information at the same moment.  That is to say, if the WBZ 
newsroom is listening to their own AM signal on 1030, they'll hear the 
alert at the same time all the other stations are hearing the alert on the 
same AM signal.   The point is that everyone is listening to the same exact 
signal, so they'll all hear it at the same time.  Granted, perhaps WBZ 
could react a little quicker as Mark could tell "shout down the hall" that 
the alert is something they should pay attention to...but that's a pretty 
small advantage.

I'd have to ask my friends at Metro about it but I would assume that Metro 
Networks monitors stations like WBZ for, among other things, EAS alerts for 
precisely the reason you suggest.

____________________________________________
Aaron "Bishop" Read     aread@speakeasy.net
FriedBagels Technical Consulting / Boston, MA
www.friedbagels.com   AOL-IM: ReadAaron