We need to talk about Amber Alerts. If you don’t know what an Amber Alert is, here’s a short explanation: it’s a hue and cry-style public broadcast system meant to recruit the public into looking out for abducted children.
However, even if you don’t know much about the system, chances are good you know about the controversy it has generated. While built on good intentions, the current system is ineffective, poorly managed, and operated by people who seemingly have never heard the story of the boy who cried wolf.
What is the advantage of having a system which cannot be opted out of? The current Amber Alert system has caught lots of flack, mainly because it is mandatory.
In fact, the current system is technically not an Amber Alert at all. The current broadcast operates on the Presidential Alert setting meant for alerts to warn about grave or imminent danger, meaning it can’t be ignored. Why is this the case?
The group of people who will choose to opt-out of Amber Alerts does not have significant overlap with the people who are willing to help. Allowing for a simple opt-out or do-not-disturb compliant function will only serve to lower complaints, not actually harm the system.
Most people will not read the message or stand guard in the middle of the night, especially when the crime has happened on the other side of the province.
By nature, people get used to routine. You may be the exception. When you hear an Amber Alert, you may boldly grab your rifle, jump in your car, and ride through the night to Toronto.
But for most people, Amber Alerts have become a thing to ignore. You hear the noise, glance at your phone without reading the alert, and go back to sleep.
This creates a serious problem. What if there is an actual emergency? Of course, child abductions are awful. But, crime is an ugly part of our society which cannot be fixed by a bunch of random, unwilling conscripts getting an alert which lacks detail.
The Amber Alert system has seen a few successful cases. But, let’s be realistic. This system has ‘ignorability’ written all over it.
What if Canada experiences a national emergency? What if the government needs to tell people that an imminent threat is approaching?
They won’t be able to rely on the telephone broadcast system, because upon hearing the alert sound, people will assume a custody dispute has occurred in Toronto.
This problem has a simple solution. Make the Amber Alert voluntary, and pretty much all issues dissipate immediately.
But, say you ignore these issues. Can we talk about the absolute incompetence of the people behind Amber Alerts? Why is it that every alert must be sent multiple times in both French and English, often over an extended period of time?
It is a mystery what exactly is happening when you get an alert at midnight, and then the same alert in French at 2 a.m. If we’re going to have a mandatory alert system, we need to make an effort to ensure that it’s effective and usable.
As it stands, the alert system is fundamentally flawed. It is operated ineffectively and inefficiently, ignores the fact that people will grow accustomed to ignoring potentially important alerts, and relies on a centuries out-of-date policing tactic of the hue and cry.
There is no doubt the intention is in the right place. But unless we can make some fundamental changes to the system’s operations, it will continue to be nothing but a source of complaints from sleep-deprived citizens.
File photo.
