What you need to know about Wednesday's presidential alert

On Wednesday afternoon, almost every smart phone in America rang and vibrated with an emergency alert – the very first test of the national presidential alert system.

The presidential alert is similar to state-level systems that allow police and local authorities to send AMBER alerts and weather warnings. The biggest difference is its scale. Wednesday's national system was designed to get a message across all 225 million smartphones in the United States – and reach about 75% of the population.

The news of the presidential test Alert has prompted immediate criticism in some corners of social media. Some people have promised to turn off their phones, mistakenly believing that they would constitute a captive audience of President Donald Trump. Some have even thought – wrongly – that the system would allow him to tweet to every American.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and experts say the presidential alert will not be Trump's personal megaphone in America. Instead, they say, this is a necessary update of the 21st century emergency alert system, which has allowed the president for decades to allow broadcasts on all television channels. and radio in the country in case of national emergency.

Here's what you need to know about Wednesday's presidential warning system test.

When did the presidential warning test take place and what did he say?

At 14:18 ET on Wednesday, October 3, FEMA sent the first test message of the new wireless emergency alert to the national presidential level. The alert was transmitted to all smartphones in the United States lit and located within reach of a cell tower, with no possibility of withdrawal. Originally scheduled for September 20, the test was postponed to October 3 because of Hurricane Florence.

The presidential alert said:

The message for smart phones was followed by an emergency alert system message broadcast on each TV and radio at 2:20 pm. AND. This included a voice that said:

In the event of a real emergency, the presidential alert will include information on the urgency and instructions on how to react and stay safe.

What is the presidential alert system and how does it work?

The Presidential Alert – also known as the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) – is a new interpretation of existing emergency warning systems in the country.

FEMA said Wednesday's test was intended to assess the willingness to broadcast a national emergency message and determine whether improvements are needed.

FEMA said every American with a smart phone – which represents about 75% of the population – should have received the test alert. FEMA said the test was intended to allow managers to find a way to reach more people, including those who do not have access to a smartphone. The alerts were similar to extreme weather conditions or AMBER alerts, which include a powerful alarm followed by vibration. Wednesday's alert lasted for about a minute and did not require any action.

Only cell phones compatible with Wireless Emergency Alert that were on and within range of an active cell tower could receive the test alert. 100 mobile operators participated, including the largest providers.

The obvious difference between a wireless emergency alert and a text message lies in the strong special tone and a vibration that repeats itself twice, according to FEMA. A separate dialog box containing a wireless emergency alert message also appears on the home screens of phones.

In the future, the President of the United States will have sole responsibility for determining when the national emergency alert system will be activated, but FEMA will be responsible for testing and exercising the system.

Will President Trump now be able to send a personal message to every US phone?

In short, no.

Nicknamed Presidential Alert, some have claimed that Trump himself would now be able to send all Americans personalized messages.

However, FEMA said the alert system was meant to be used in an emergency and that Wednesday's presidential alert contained only a brief text directly related to the test.

There is also a law prohibiting Trump or any president from abusing the system. The 2015 Law on Modernization of the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System specifies that the warning system should only be used to alert the public of a potential disaster. Therefore, if Trump was using the presidential alert for purposes other than those for which it was intended, breaking the law.

"Except to the extent necessary to test the public alert system, this system shall not be used to convey a message that is not related to a natural disaster, terrorist act or to another disaster or threat of human origin. to public security, "states the law.

The process is also much more complex than simply writing a tweet and clicking Submit. There are very specific guidelines for the content of the message and the President himself will not write the message, he will simply authorize a staff member to send it on his behalf, according to FEMA.

"The message does not come directly from the president," FEMA spokesperson told TIME. "The message will be sent on behalf of the president. The staff or chair designated by it will be informed by the staff to activate the warning and then disseminate it to the public. At that time, the designated person would contact FEMA at our operations center and tell us to activate the warning.

Why did people threaten to turn off their phones to avoid the test?

Trump's messages to his 54.8 million followers on Twitter are often impetuous and full of his own opinions. The misconception that the personalized message would look like his tweets would have prompted some online people to protest the planned test, even going so far as to turn off their phone to avoid receiving the presidential alert.

The # Godark103 was used by Twitter users who protested against the presidential alert by turning off their phone.

Tim Groeling, a professor of communication studies at the University of California at Los Angeles, said he was convinced that the presidential alert system was an inevitable extension of the warning systems. existing emergency. She says that the hashtag # Godark103 on Twitter has more to do with Trump's aversion to some people than the slightest reasonable fear that the alert will be abused.

"The paranoia that people have engaged in is quite shocking for something that is a natural extension of the national broadcasting system in a situation where people do not consume live media," Groeling told TIME.

"If Trump wanted to abuse this system, he might already have abused the TV channel, which has been in effect since he took office.

"I think people's phones are very personal devices, they carry them off all the time, so the level of concern is higher. But, conversely, if there is an earthquake or another disaster, it is a good way to let people know, because in these situations, the second counts. "

Why is the presidential alert system important?

FEMA said Wednesday's national test would provide valuable information on the government's ability to broadcast a national emergency message.

The IPAWS Modernization Law, promulgated in 2016, requires FEMA to conduct at least one national test every three years. According to FEMA, national tests should ensure, under all conditions, that the president, federal agencies and local and tribal state governments can alert and warn the civilian population in areas threatened by natural disasters, acts of terrorism and other acts of man-made disasters and threats to public security.