Editing Emergency Alert System (section)

=== IPAWS ===

Under a 2006 executive order issued by [[George W. Bush]], the U.S. government was instructed to create "an effective, reliable, integrated, flexible, and comprehensive" public warning system. This was accomplished via expansions to the aforementioned PEP network, and the development of the [[Integrated Public Alert and Warning System]] (IPAWS)—a national aggregator and distributor of alert information using the [[XML]]-based [[Common Alerting Protocol]] (CAP) and an internet network. IPAWS can be used to distribute alert information to EAS participants, supported mobile phones ([[Wireless Emergency Alerts]]), and other platforms.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.govtech.com/em/disaster/Impact-IPAWS-Public-Alerts-Warnings.html|title=The Impact of IPAWS on Public Alerts and Warnings|website=www.govtech.com|date=January 17, 2011|language=en|access-date=August 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190824071200/https://www.govtech.com/em/disaster/Impact-IPAWS-Public-Alerts-Warnings.html|archive-date=August 24, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> IPAWS also allows the audio portion of an EAS message to utilize higher quality [[digital audio]], rather than needing to carry the audio off-air from the originating station.<ref name=":12" /><ref name=":11">{{Cite web |last=Winslow |first=George |date=2022-09-29 |title=FCC Updates Emergency Alert Rules |url=https://www.tvtechnology.com/news/fcc-updates-emergency-alert-rules |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930010925/https://www.tvtechnology.com/news/fcc-updates-emergency-alert-rules |archive-date=September 30, 2022 |access-date=2022-09-30 |website=TVTechnology |language=en}}</ref>

Under an FCC report and order issued in 2007, EAS participants would be required to migrate to digital equipment supporting CAP within 180 days of the specification's adoption by FEMA. This was originally scheduled for September 30, 2010, but the deadline was later delayed to June 30, 2012 at the request of broadcasters.<ref name=":3" />

The FCC has established that IPAWS is not a full substitute for the SAME protocol, as it is vulnerable to situations that may make internet connectivity unavailable. Therefore, as a backup distribution path, broadcasters must also convert CAP messages to SAME headers to enable [[backwards compatibility]] with the existing "daisy chain" method of EAS distribution.<ref name=":3">{{Cite news|url=https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=385a5fb7-aa83-431d-80a1-3aa45296e3db|title=FCC revises emergency alert system rules; reminds participants of June 30, 2012 CAP compliance deadline|last1=Oxenford|first1=Davis Wright Tremaine LLP-David D.|last2=Tol|first2=Jennifer|newspaper=Lexology|language=en|access-date=August 24, 2019|last3=Frewer|date=February 10, 2012|archive-date=March 19, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319103359/https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=385a5fb7-aa83-431d-80a1-3aa45296e3db|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{cite web|url=https://www.broadcastlawblog.com/2010/09/articles/fema-adopts-digital-message-format-for-eas-cap-standard-triggering-180-day-clock-for-compliance/|title=FEMA Adopts Digital Message Format for EAS CAP Standard, Triggering 180-Day Clock for Compliance|date=September 30, 2010|website=Broadcast Law Blog|language=en-US|access-date=August 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190824071200/https://www.broadcastlawblog.com/2010/09/articles/fema-adopts-digital-message-format-for-eas-cap-standard-triggering-180-day-clock-for-compliance/|archive-date=August 24, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

In December 2021, the FCC issued a notice of proposed rulemaking seeking to prioritize the display of alert audio and text from CAP messages, in order to provide higher quality alert audio, improve parity between the visual display and audio for the benefit of the [[Hearing loss|hearing impaired]], and to reduce the amount of technical [[jargon]] contained within the visual display.<ref name=":13">{{Cite web |last=George |first=Winslow |date=2023-11-29 |title=FCC Delays Implementation of New Emergency Alert Rules for Some Broadcasters |url=https://www.tvtechnology.com/news/fcc-delays-emergency-alert-implementation-for-some-broadcasters |access-date=2024-11-22 |website=TVTechnology |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":12">{{Cite web |date=2021-12-15 |title=FCC Seeks to Improve Accessibility & Clarity of Emergency Alerts |url=https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-seeks-improve-accessibility-clarity-emergency-alerts-0 |access-date=2022-09-30 |website=Federal Communications Commission |language=en |archive-date=September 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220930010931/https://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-seeks-improve-accessibility-clarity-emergency-alerts-0 |url-status=live }}</ref> The rules were enacted in September 2022, with a deadline of December 12, 2023, for compliance;<ref name=":11" /> the FCC later granted an extension to some broadcasters due to a delay in the release of associated software updates by EAS decoder vendor Sage.<ref name=":13" />