Comments on proposed rules designed to make it easier for emergency managers to send alerts to those who do not understand English over the nation’s broadcast airwaves are due by the end of Monday (4/8).
On Friday, the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC) chimed in, and it likes what it sees.
PS Docket No. 15-94 would authorize the Commission to mandate emergency alerts in some 13 commonly spoken non-English languages for broadcast radio and television stations in the U.S.
This, proponents argue, would remove what the Commission viewers as “a key barrier” to sending multilingual messages through the Emergency Alert System, which could in turn spur more alerts that are accessible to more people—and potentially save lives.
To resolve the matter, emergency managers would be presented with pre-scripted, template alert messages and prerecorded audio files in non-English languages as an option for initiating alerts over the Emergency Alert System.
This led MMTC President/CEO Robert Branson to commend the Commission “on its comprehensive proposal to improve access to lifesaving information during and the immediate wake of an emergency.”
Branson added that the MMTC recommends the inclusion of two important ways of ensuring the widespread reach of critical emergency information.
First, it recommends the designation of an EAS participant in each market to provide non-English alerts during an emergency. Second, the MMTC recommends the FCC move toward requiring live operators and speakers.
“Pre-scripted alerts are an important tool in meeting the needs of a multilingual population but cannot account for the inherent unpredictability of emergencies,” Branson said.
