This message got a LOT of unwanted attention on October 7, 2024 after it was issued to the entire state of Texas at 4:53am. Reading through social media commentary posted to X and Reddit, a person could quickly see the impact it was having on people who were still asleep that Monday morning before dawn. Suggestions included how to file complaints to the FCC or to contact public safety officials, and Google reported public searches for "how to turn off WEA" spiked that day.
The impacts from this message have reached beyond state boundaries and permeates the entire WEA ecosystem.
Blue Alerts are issued when a law enforcement officer has been seriously injured or killed and the perpetrator represents an imminent threat. You can read more about the Blue Alert here . They are designed to help law enforcement agencies, the media, and the public to aid in the apprehension of violent criminals. They function in a way similar to AMBER Alerts, with an intent to activate citizens in searching/reporting activity for an individual who is missing.
The message issued in Texas came with a problem of bad timing.
It also came with some content problems, such as descriptors of the suspect that were generalizable to many people across the state (blue t-shirt and blue jeans). It also YELLED AT PEOPLE by using all CAPS (an emphasis that is not lost on those who were first yelled at by their phones).
I cannot help but wonder what the impacts have been on the nationwide WEA system post-Blue alert. Texas was already the state with the highest number of opt-outs (see this report from the Rand Corporation); did this increase that number? Unfortunately, another consequence is that when those Texans (who have opted out of WEA due to the Blue Alert) travel to other states, they wont have access to local imminent threat messages via WEA.
Does your organization have policy on when alerts for different types of hazards will be issued? Do you take into consideration how pressing the threat might be for all parties? Do the WEAs you plan to issue require an immediate action? Does it NEED to be issued in the early morning hours?
Just a few things to think about before you push the button on your next Blue Alert.
There are plenty of resources available to help you and your organization to write effective messages in a pinch. Be sure to bookmark and download The Warning Lexicon - it's free and offers step-by-step instructions on how to write a better warning message.
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