Why Hundreds of Millions of People Just Got a FEMA National Alert, WSJ

Today FEMA is testing its ability to send emergency alerts to cellphones, TVs and radio on a nationwide scale. The test is a chance to make sure the federal government can alert the entire country in the event of a nationwide emergency. Since 2012, local authorities have sent over 86, 000 messages through the wireless alert system to mobile devices. WSJ looks at why this alert happened and gives a background on the tech behind emergency alerts. 0:00 National emergency alert system 0:47 Background on emergency alerts 1:30 How the alert works 2:42 Whats next News Explainers Some days the highspeed news cycle can bring more questions than answers. WSJs news explainers break down the day s biggest stories into bitesize pieces to help you make sense of the news. , FEMA, FCC, WSJ