FEMA Promotes Its Wireless Emergency Alert System
THE Federal Emergency Management Agency is releasing new public service advertising this week, created in conjunction with the Advertising Council, to educate Americans about its wireless emergency alert system.
Public service announcements explain the alerts, which are displayed on most wireless devices.
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The system, which enables local, state and federal authorized government
authorities to send emergency messages through wireless carriers’
networks, started two years ago, but has not been publicized through
advertising.
The release of the campaign coincides with Hurricane Preparedness Week,
which began on Sunday and runs through Saturday. The week, an annual
effort coordinated by several government agencies, including FEMA, is
intended to inform the public about hurricane hazards and steps to take
to prepare for them. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1
through Nov. 30.
Peggy Conlon, president and chief executive of the Ad Council, said it
was “particularly timely and appropriate to launch the new advertising
at the beginning of the hurricane season, and in light of the terrible
tornadoes in the Midwest and wildfires in California.”
Wireless emergency alerts — issued for extreme weather like hurricanes,
tornadoes or flash foods; Amber Alerts; or alerts from the president
about catastrophic disasters — come as text messages that feature a
special tone and vibration. No longer than 90 characters, the message
discusses the type and time of the alert, action individuals should
take, and the issuing agencies.
Over 100 wireless carriers offer the free alert service; no subscription
is necessary. Alerts are broadcast from cell towers and warn everyone
in range who has a device that is capable of receiving a wireless
emergency alert. Many new cellphones and smartphones can transmit these
messages.
The new advertising is in English and Spanish and was created by the
Oakland, Calif., office of Free Range Studios, a graphic design and
digital storytelling agency. It includes a 60-second television spot
that features a montage of lifesaving objects like a life preserver,
defibrillator and seat belt, and then shows a wireless device delivering
a message and a family taking shelter after receiving a tornado alert.
The voice-over says, “With a unique sound and vibration, you’ll be in
the know, wherever you are,” and the Web site for the campaign, www.ready.gov/alerts, is flashed.
A 60-second radio ad contains sounds “in your day-to-day life,” like an
alarm clock, a baby laughing, and a cheering crowd. After a voice-over
states “there are some sounds that can alert you to danger, and can help
save lives,” the sound of the wireless emergency alert is played. Then a
description of how the alert works is given, and listeners are directed
to the campaign’s Web site. Digital ads run similar messages and images
from the TV spot.
“Many people do not realize that they carry a potentially life-saving
tool with them in their pockets or purses every day,” said W. Craig
Fugate, administrator of FEMA. He added that as hurricane season
approaches, alerts that these devices can deliver could help people
“take appropriate preparedness steps when facing potential man-made and
natural disasters.”
The Department of Homeland Security and the Ad Council introduced the
“Ready” campaign — whose latest messages are the emergency alert-related
advertising — 10 years ago, after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The
Ad Council began working with FEMA on the campaign in 2008, when
administration of the emergency preparedness program was moved to FEMA,
which is part of Homeland Security.
“Ready” advertising initially urged the public to prepare for
emergencies with special kits and also promoted a preparedness Web site.
President Obama mentioned the site, Ready.gov, in a speech in Asbury Park, N.J., on Tuesday at the reopening of New Jersey shore boardwalks in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.
He urged people to educate themselves and prepare for a hurricane or
other disaster by visiting the site. “Make a plan. It’s never too
early,” he said.
The new ads focusing on the alert system are a “much simpler call to
action” than previous advertising, Ms. Conlon of the Ad Council said,
adding that their message is, “if you have a cellphone, you’ll always
get an alert, you should pay attention.”
She said the “Ready” campaign so far had been run in $1 billion worth of
donated time and space, which she said is “probably three times” the
worth of time and space donated, on average, for all Ad Council
campaigns.
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