First Nationwide Emergency Alert System Test Hits Glitches

Problems were reported across the country during the first-ever nationwide test November 9 of the Emergency Alert System, designed to allow the president to address the American people during a national emergency. Some television and radio stations did not air the planned 30 second test at all. Some that aired it stayed with the signal longer than others. There were anecdotal reports of TV stations failing to air the message in Washington D.C., Atlanta, New York, California, and elsewhere. The message did not air on a cable channel being monitored in a Capitol Hill office and in the Capitol’s radio and TV gallery. The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Communications Commission, which ordered the test, stressed it was designed to find flaws, and scoffed at reports the system had failed. By late November 9, a FCC official said about one-third of the test participants had filed preliminary reports, and those showed that 80 to 90 percent of the stations received the alert, and were able to rebroadcast it, which was the major criteria of the test. The official called the failure rate of more than 10 percent not insignificant, but said identifying problems “is why we have the test.” Stations must report the results to the FCC within 45 days. The FCC said it will not release specific test data to the public because broadcasters worry that potentially embarrassing results could discourage participation in future tests, and test data could reveal security vulnerabilities.