EAS Test

W e should not be surprised. The government forces radio and television stations to purchase expensive equipment for the EAS - Emergency Alert System - and plans for a massive nationwide test. They had today's test planned for several months. The TV and radio stations sacrificed "commercial time" to air messages warning the public that "This is only a test." The result of the test, only some of the broadcast stations received the test. Where I live, at least one of the larger radio stations received and broadcast the test. Many smaller stations did not. To make matters worse, we hear this from the FCC, “The Test served the purpose for which it was intended – to identify gaps and generate a comprehensive set of data to help strengthen our ability to communicate during real emergencies. Based on preliminary data, media outlets in large portions of the country successfully received the test message, but wasn’t received by some viewers or listeners. We are currently in the process of collecting and analyzing data, and will reach a conclusion when that process is complete.”

Actually, "heads should roll" because of today's failure.  If this were 1931, I could understand equipment failure, but this is 2011!  With the money spent on this project and with the time given to perfect it, there is no excuse for even a partial failure

 So, it was a success, because they discovered that it did not work.?   We are not getting what we are paying for...but with the government, we seldom do.

 Hopeless.