History Main / EmergencyBroadcast

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[[caption-width-right:350:[[DoNotAdjustYourSet Do not adjust your set,]] [[ThisIsNotADrill this is not a drill.]]]]

* The first issue of ''Epic Illustrated'' has a three-page strip in which a couch potato is lazing in front of his TV set with a beer. A voice from the TV announces a test of the Emergency Broadcast System. The guy swigs a beer as the warning tone sounds, then starts to look uncomfortable and sweat, before finally writhing in agony and melting into a skeleton. In the final panel we see that the world outside has been incinerated. Meanwhile the voice on TV blithely announces "this was only a test."
* Very NSFW comedic ''Zoorama: Death'' is about a news anchor and a cameraman having sex in a news studio after hours, when some guy accidentally switches on international emergency broadcast. The title comes from their dialog on their last page: "WE'RE LIVE!" -- "WE'RE DEAD!"

* ''FanFic/AeonEntelechyEvangelion'' features an Emergency Broadcast broadcast in English and Nazzadi languages.
* In the ''Fanfic/NineteenEightyThreeDoomsdayStories,'' they're mentioned in passing. But such was the speed in which everything unraveled that at least in some cases, the messages weren't even finished with their ''first loop'' by the time the bombs fell.
* The premise of the ''WesternAnimation/EdEddNEddy'' FanFic ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7614248 The Ed Of The World]]'' is that Ed mistakes a test of the Emergency Broadcast System for a warning that the world will end.

* Subverted in the 2005 ''Film/TheWarOfTheWorlds'', when the standard American EBS announcement that it's "only a test", and not "an actual emergency", plays on the radio of the hero's car as he's driving through the decimated countryside. Presumably, as it ''is'' an extreme actual emergency, whoever was supposed to replace this generic transmission with warnings and/or instructions for the public is already dead. Also see the [[ShoutOut radio show below]].
* Used dramatically in the MadeForTVMovie ''Film/WithoutWarning1994'', which interrupts the opening of another, ostensibly unrelated TV movie to inform the viewer that a meteor is headed towards Earth.
* Used to let us know when passing into the DarkWorld in ''Film/SilentHill''. With a very creepy soundtrack, too...

* Appears briefly in ''Film/NightOfTheLivingDead1990''. Yes, The EBS can warn you of a ZombieApocalypse.
** And in ''Film/DawnOfTheDead2004'' on the car radio.
* Seen in ''{{Film/Legion}}'', but given how fast the apocalypse happens, the only thing transmitted is a still image stating "This is NOT a Test" and an [[HellIsThatNoise ear-piercing sound]].
* The M.U.T.O. ViralMarketing website for ''Film/Godzilla2014'' has one when you type in "[[Film/InvasionOfAstroMonster monster zero]]," "[[Film/GodzillaFinalWars monster x]]," or "monster island."
-->SCANNING....USER LOCATION ACQUIRED. [ALERT] THE UNIDENTIFIED NATURAL PHENOMENON IS APPROACHING YOUR AREA. PLEASE PREPARE ACCORDINGLY
** ...or if you type "run" or "escape."
--->PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LOCAL EMERGENCY SERVICES FOR EVACUATION ROUTES AND SURVIVAL PROCEDURES.
* ''Film/ThePurgeUniverse'' has a truly haunting one given the subject matter it is broadcasting:
--> ''[[ThisIsNotADrill This is not a test.]] This is your emergency broadcast system announcing the commencement of the Annual Purge sanctioned by the U.S. Government. Weapons of class 4 and lower have been authorized for use during the Purge. All other weapons are restricted. Government officials of ranking 10 have been granted immunity from the Purge and shall not be harmed. Commencing at the siren, any and all crime, including murder, will be legal for 12 continuous hours. Police, fire, and emergency medical services will be unavailable until tomorrow morning until 7 a.m., when The Purge concludes. Blessed be our New Founding Fathers and America, a nation reborn. [[GodHelpUsAll May God be]] [[ThisIsGonnaSuck with you all.'']] ''[[HellIsThatNoise *cue]] [[Franchise/SilentHill Silent Hill-esque]] [[HellIsThatNoise air raid siren*]]''
* ''Film/{{Twister}}'' had a couple of these, but the big tornado that hit's Jo's aunt's house came with no warning at all. And the end goal of all the storm chasers was to improve tornado prediction enough that these broadcasts could come sooner.
--> '''Aunt Meg:''' "Jo, it's got to stop. I didn't have any warning. The sirens sounded a few seconds before it hit. I didn't even have time to get down the stairs."
* [[TheStinger The final seconds]] of ''Film/AntManAndTheWasp'' [[spoiler:show an emergency broadcast playing in Scott's house, and presumably everywhere else, due to the events of ''Film/AvengersInfinityWar'', [[{{Bathos}} all while a man-sized ant is in another room playing the drums.]]]]
* Played for laughs in ''Film/ShaunOfTheDead'' where the authorities are broadcasting the outbreak of zombies on TV, but Shaun just sees it as a boring news show, and keeps flipping the channel.[[/folder]]

* ''Literature/DiaryOfAWimpyKid: The Deep End'': A flash flood warning is issued for the RV park right before the climax.
* The Literature/GauntsGhosts novel ''Necropolis'' takes this and runs with it. When Vervunhive is initially attacked, it not only broadcasts warnings on all local media channels, and activates alert sirens, they also ''ring the church bells'' in time with the sirens.

* Any time a car radio is on in a 60s or 70s TV drama, chances are good that an EBS test is being broadcast. That's because the text of the EBS test is a work of the federal government and therefore in the public domain, so producers didn't have to pay royalties or license fees if they used it. Eventually, though, Washington asked the networks to cut down on the practice so that prime-time TV viewers wouldn't become overly used to the noise and simply tune it out.

* ''Series/{{Being Human|UK}}'': the [[spoiler: Devil]] gets his hands on these in the finale.
* Radios and [=TVs=] air a number of emergency warnings shortly before the attack sequences in ''Film/TheDayAfter''. The broadcasts downplay the danger the public is in and are often ignored; one couple blithely sneaks upstairs to have sex as their young children watch an announcer struggle through an EBS alert. The last EBS announcement, broadcast as the sirens blare in Kansas City and residents downtown succumb to helpless panic, reassures listeners that there is no immediate danger but suggests that travellers in the metropolitan area take a moment to locate a nearby shelter. The first bomb explodes over the city in the middle of the broadcast.
* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'': In "[[Recap/TheTwilightZone1959S3E3TheShelter The Shelter]]", the Stocktons and their neighbors learn from a CONELRAD broadcast that unidentified objects believed to be missiles have been detected heading towards the United States. [[spoiler:A later CONELRAD broadcast reveals that they were satellites which pose no danger.]]
* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1985'':
** The premiere episode of the 1985 version was the apocalyptic "A Little Peace and Quiet", which at the end features a live announcer trembling through an EBS alert, losing his attempts to keep calm as nuclear war breaks out between the Soviet Union and the United States. Unlike ''Film/TheDayAfter'', this EBS underscores the very real danger the public is in and cannot be ignored (as the screams from a panicked public can be heard outside). At one point, the announcer says listeners should take shelter but then – suggesting that doing so is fruitless and everyone's going to die anyway – states, "What's the point? It's over! We're finished! We're ... " after which his voice trails off as he receives a bulletin noting that Russian missiles have entered American airspace. As the radio is broadcasting the EBS, a graphic on a TV has a large "Emergency Broadcast ALERT" (with "ALERT" boldfaced and flashing). At the very end, an explosion can be heard in the distance ... but the main protagonist (a harried housewife who had lost control of her household, and was also disinterested in world affairs) manages to use a pendant she had found to freeze time ("SHUT UP!!!!!"), a split second before the airburst disables everything and seconds before the explosion envelops everything. At that moment, the action – except for her – freezes, and one of the stills shows the TV with the frozen "Emergency Broadcast ALERT" graphic on the screen.
** In "Shelter Skelter", Harry Dobbs and Nick Gatlin watch a television report about an escalating crisis in the Middle East. According to the report, the President and First Lady have left the White House by military helicopter and Russian cities are being evacuated. They later hear a radio report stating that the aircraft carrier ''Nimitz'' is in position in the Gulf of Sidra, the armed forces have been placed on red alert and an emergency Cabinet meeting is taking place at an unknown location. It is also reported that the President has issued a statement saying that he would not hesitate to use force to prevent the situation in the Middle East from escalating any further.
* The Protect And Survive announcements in ''Film/{{Threads}}'' as well as the attack warning.

** Secretary of Education Laura Roslin, aboard a chartered space passenger liner, is in the cockpit as the pilots pick up an emergency broadcast,"[[http://en.battlestarwiki.org/wiki/Case_Orange Case Orange]]," designed to go off in case their president and most of the government is believed dead or missing. She is the only government official that responds and becomes the new president of the Colonies by default.
* ''{{Series/Babylon Five}}'' would have Sheridan or Ivanova use the [=BabComm=] System to put out announcements to the station population to seek shelter or stay in their homes whenever a major crisis struck. In the fourth season, Ivanova would use the system to announce on the [[ApocalypseHow progress]] of the [[spoiler: Vorlon and Shadow Planet Killers]] and the locations of any colonies that were taking on refugees (some which would be added to the list of [[spoiler: destroyed planets]]). This lead directly to her role later in the season as the VoiceOfTheResistance.
* ''{{Series/Medium}}'': in the season 7 episode "Where Were You When?", an Emergency Action Notification interrupts a cartoon on television, causing Allison [=DuBois=] to [[OhCrap scream in fear]] and to [[SlowMotionDrop drop a glass of milk on the floor]] when she sees it. Turns out it was actually one of her numerous nightmares.
* When he launched Creator/CableNewsNetwork in 1980, Ted Turner promised that the 24-hour news network would never go off the air (at a time when most stations still went dark overnight): "We won't be signing off until the world ends. We'll be on, and we will cover the end of the world, live, and that will be our last event ... [[UsefulNotes/RMSTitanic we'll play 'Nearer, My God, to Thee' before we sign off]]." He wasn't kidding. In 2001, the New York Daily News reported that [[CrazyPrepared CNN does have a tape prepared for that scenario]], a [[https://jalopnik.com/this-is-the-video-cnn-will-play-when-the-world-ends-1677511538 recording of "Nearer, My God, To Thee"]] over footage of a waving American flag. It's in CNN's video archive system as "Turner Doomsday Video" with the specific instruction "HFR (hold for release) till end of the world confirmed."
* Parodied on ''Series/WKRPInCincinnati''. The station has no warning script for tornadoes, so when when a tornado touches down in Cincinnati, Les is forced to make do with a Soviet invasion script.
-->'''Les:''' The city of Cincinnati has just been attacked by the godless...tornadoes. Citizens are advised to arm themselves immediately!
* Parodied in an episode of ''Series/{{Roundhouse}}'', where instead of using a machine of some sort to imitate the Emergency Broadcasting System's screeching noise, two cast members decided to ''scream'' the screech's normal duration.
* PlayedForLaughs in the ''Series/{{Frasier}}'' episode "The Matchmaker". Frasier and Roz sit in their radio booths, looking incredibly bored, as the EBS "BEEP" is heard. Once it has finished, Frasier addresses his listeners.

* Music/{{Negativland}} used the WHEN/Syracuse jingle version of the EBS script in their live performance "It's All in Your Head FM".
* The song "This is Only a Test" by American punk rock band Pennywise opens on distorted television sounds and the line "This is only a test of the emergency broadcast system, this is the product of hysterical mass confusion."
* Prong used an EBS test message in the song "Test" on their 1994 album ''Cleansing''.

* In a possible coincidence, the intro to ''Stab Me In The Back'' by Music/XJapan sounds ''very much'' like the now-disused NHK war bells signal (3 from the link listed above) converted to a guitar solo.
* The radio edit/commercial version of ''Blind Dance'' by Music/VioletUK (the one that isn't the 18 minute IntercourseWithYou song) is Emergency Broadcast + ApocalypticLog as an ambient electronic sound piece. No actual tone is included, though, possibly due to Japanese broadcast regulations
* Music/{{Fishbone}} mentions it in "? (Modern Industry)", which is a ListSong where they rattle off the call numbers of various radio stations.
* ''[[https://soundcloud.com/seth0et0holth/the-emergency-beat The Emergency Beat]]'' is an ElectronicMusic piece by the indies producer Seth consisting of what happens when the EAS tone is edited, altered, and mixed with a heavily effected stock dubstep loop.
* Main/{{Deathcore}} band ''Traitors'' made an album named ''The Hate Campaign'' about civil disobedience, which featured a song simulating a realistic Emergency Alert called ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMHC-g6gNec Curfew]]''.
* "Four Minute Warning" by Mark Owen of {{Music/Take That|Band}} is a reference to the UK emergency warning system of the same name. Every time the chorus repeats a minute is removed from the countdown.

* There have been several hacks of various Emergency Broadcast systems - though doing so is ''highly illegal'' in most countries (in the sense that doing it will often lead to a severe prison sentence). Two of the more famous that can be found on Youtube are the Czech Republic TV traffic cam "nuke attack," and the US state of Montana's "zombie apocalypse" alert.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCwffUO4C5E This tribute]] to ''{{WesternAnimation/Superfriends}}'' starts with a reporter in the middle of a catastrophe calling out for heroes.
* Website/YouTube is full of uploads of EBS/EAS tests (as well as those for other systems outside the US). There are also clips where the sound is used as a screamer, as well as plenty of parodies, remixes, mockups, and YouTubePoop.
** One terrifying but wholly unrealistic Website/YouTube original horror creation is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWt4Di6zr14 this.]] It's the use of the NOAA weather radio emergency tone, civil defense sirens, and voiceover work to create a very simulated Emergency Broadcast of a [[UsefulNotes/NuclearWeapons nuclear attack]]. This is of course nothing like how a real attack would occur, but it's still scary. Of note: the 3-letter code in this video, EAN (short for Emergency Action Notification), is the one that applies if, and '''only''' if, a nationwide threat exists that is a big-enough national emergency to warrant immediate shutdown of '''all''' non-news broadcasting on '''all''' channels. It's also the only one to have its own dedicated all-clear code, EAT for Emergency Action Termination.
** Other simulated EAS alerts on Website/YouTube highlight other non AtomicHate hazards it is sometimes used for (with the alert-type 3 letter abbreviation for said type added afterwards in parentheses), including some that are recordings of actual EAS activations such as:

* ''WebVideo/OddityArchive'' has [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aErMc_wkH0Q an episode]] on weather warnings and videos on the old EBS.

* Famously used as part of a radio show in the 1938 broadcast of ''Radio/TheWarOfTheWorlds''. The broadcast was formatted as a series of news alerts, and many listeners (reportedly up to a quarter of them) thought that the show was reporting an actual alien attack -- or a Nazi gas attack made to look like an alien invasion. As a result of the chaos that ensued, it is rumored that CBS is, to this day, forbidden to use the words "We interrupt this broadcast" for dramatic purposes.
* NBC used its "C-E-G" chime to this effect during World War II. In the event of some great emergency, the chime would be played as "C-E-G-C" to alert listeners and to recall all broadcasting employees back to work. The C-E-G chime still plays at the beginning of special report broadcast interruptions.

[[folder:Recorded Comedy]]
* On the album "Take-Offs And Puts-Ons," Creator/GeorgeCarlin interrupts his "Wonderful WINO'' radio show:
-->Bulletin bulletin bulletin! Bulletin bulletin bulletin! Bulletin bulletin bulletin! Here is a bulletin bulletin bulletin...the sun did not come up this morning, huge cracks have appeared in the Earth's surface and giant rocks are falling from out of the sky. Details twenty-five minutes from now on Action Central News, kids!

[[folder:Stand-Up Comedy]]
* A Creator/BillEngvall comedy bit has him on the verge of a FreakOut because of a weather warning in Texas--which turns out to be for an inch of snow. He then compares this to states like Michigan, where "in an inch of snow, you can still find your golf balls."
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Theme Parks]]
* At Ride/DisneyThemeParks:
** In the queue for ''Monsters, Inc. Mike and Sully to the Rescue!'' at [[Ride/{{Disneyland}} Disney California Adventure]], a TV plays several ads for businesses in Monstropolis, along with an EBS-type test broadcast from the Child Detection Agency (CDA) whose alarm noise is a monster screaming for thirty seconds.
* At Ride/UniversalStudios:
** The former ''Ride/{{Kongfrontation}}'' attraction at had an Emergency Broadcast System notice appear on the [=TV=]s the queue line, notifying everyone to stay indoors due to what was lurking outside.
** The also defunct ''Ride/TwisterRideItOut'' attraction had a tornado warning broadcast playing on a [=TV=] as guests entered the main show.
[[/folder]]

* Played for drama in ''VideoGame/ModernWarfare2'', where the intro sequence to the mission "Of Their Own Accord" is an emergency broadcast system alert containing evacuation instructions for residents of Washington, D.C and its commuter belt. It also warns citizens to "remain alert" because the Ultranationalist troops assaulting the East Coast are killing any civilians they encounter in revenge for the FalseFlagOperation at the start of the game.
** Counts as a bit of nightmare fuel for those in the US playing the game. The start of the mission has no music, no sound, only the Emergency Broadcast. It's designed to sound and seem like it's a REAL emergency broadcast, as if [[spoiler:the Russians are invading your suburban neighborhood for real.]]
* Is played with in the ''VideoGame/{{Emergency}}'' series of PC games, as you are the one who has to clean up the mess.
* ''VideoGame/GoneHome'' has the player's character return to an empty house, with the TV living room having a flood warning on a loop. This is a red herring to why nobody is in the house.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oss18nLxJOk&feature=related Played for laughs]] in the 1996 PC game ''VideoGame/StayTooned''.
* In ''VideoGame/TheSims 3'', you will hear the US EAS tone sometimes when turning the TV to the weather. No emergency actually ever happens (the game, unlike ''VideoGame/SimCity'', is disaster-free aside from house fires and burglars, unless you are playing the firefighter career.)
* The intro to ''VideoGame/XCOMEnemyUnknown'', showing the first alien abduction, ends with a shot of many, many dead people, and the sounds of the US emergency broadcast system in the background[[note]]Given that the first mission canonically takes place in Germany (the tutorial mission), it raises some questions about how bad the situation is[[/note]].
* Referenced briefly in the ''VideoGame/TonyHawksProSkater'' series. In Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2, as you're skating through the hallway of electronics in the Mall level, you will hear feint distorted EAS tones playing from the TV monitors on display. It's purely cosmetic, though, so nothing actually happens with it.
* Parodied in ''VideoGame/TotalDistortion''. Your radio aquarium can at one point pick up a test of the "Emergency Distortion Broadcast", followed by a shrill, sustained guitar riff, then ended with, "In the event of an actual emergency, you would have been instructed where to shred."
* ''VideoGame/BlackMesa'': One of the changes between the mod release and the Steam release was the addition of one heard on a radio after the resonance cascade. It was also used on an ominous webpage foreshadowing the game's release on Steam. After it was released, the webpage became [[http://www.bmrf.us/ a still-ominous advertisement video]] both for the Black Mesa Research Facility and the game itself. The EAS can be heard [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBQ8rPg7UaQ here]]. A similar variant released closer to the game's release can be heard [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLQJ4b1AQJk here]].
** There are 3 emergency broadcasts in Black Mesa. All of them can be heard [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8sWF-7NVSE here.]] The 3rd one [[spoiler:has the United States government issuing an evacuation for '''all of New Mexico''' while they bomb Black Mesa and the areas to combat the hostile alien threat.]]
** An upcoming fan-made sequel called "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWy2e9P1AV8 Operation Black Mesa]]" by Tripmine Studios has one additional emergency broadcast about an unidentified aircraft, as well as expanding the [[spoiler:Civil Danger Warning from New Mexico to the states of Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Texas, Nevada, California, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska.]]
* ''VideoGame/TheNewOrderLastDaysOfEurope'': An Emergency Action Notification is one of the images displayed in the [[Main/MutuallyAssuredDestruction thermonuclear war superevent]].

[[folder:Web Video]]

* Naturally, this is the basis for WebVideo/EASScenarios, which feature a wide variety of stories played out through the medium of emergency broadcast messages.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': In "[[Recap/TheSimpsonsS3E5HomerDefined Homer Defined]]", when Homer's inattention to warnings that the core temperature is nearing dangerous levels results in a near meltdown, Channel 5 immediately goes on air with a news flash alerting residents to the situation and that only a couple of minutes remain before a sure nuclear explosion. Kent Brockman interviews Mr. Burns, who – despite the wail of the sirens and the imminent danger to Springfield – hides his nervousness as he nonchalantly assures the public that the problem will quickly be resolved and that there is no danger to the town. Reaction around Springfield is, of course, varied (for instance, the students at Springfield Elementary are huddled under their desks in anticipation of a powerful explosion while the residents at Springfield Retirement Castle turn the channel to watch ''Series/WheelOfFortune'' [and a humorous missolve of "THREE COINS IN THE FOUNTAIN"]).
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Freakazoid}}'' parodied the EBS in an episode shown in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfgZnBaHbt8 this clip.]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory,'' Dexter's favorite show [[ShowWithinAShow Action Hank]] was cut by a test of the EBS. Not knowing it was a test, Dex began solving every emergency he could find to get it to stop before realizing it was just a test. When the test finally stops, it shows the final minute of the Action Hank episode, where [[OffscreenMomentOfAwesome Hank remarks he just had the greatest fight of his life]], and Dexter cries in frustration.
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/TinyToonAdventures'', Hamton imagines himself being subjected to 60 seconds of the Emergency Broadcast System as a form of CoolAndUnusualPunishment.
* The National Film Board of Canada short ''The Big Snit'' takes place during a nuclear war and a TV is shown playing a parody of nuclear attack warnings.

* The ''WesternAnimation/WoodyWoodpecker'' cartoon "Termites From Mars" invokes this. Woody's TV show is interrupted for a flash that, as the title implies, termites are invading. In a scene later, a termite attaches two electric wires to Woody's beak and turns a pupil in his eyes. Woody's eyes suddenly show the guy from TV who interrupted for the news flash.
* ''WesternAnimation/{{Visionaries}}'': As Prysmos's advanced technology fails in the opening minutes of the first episode, an emergency news flash states that, though scientists are unable to explain the disruption to technology, "authorities warn against panic." However, it's unclear how many people would have heard this message before their televisions, radios etc. ceased to operate. Also, the technological failure inevitably spreads to the TV studio, causing the monitors to go blank.

* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Britain}} The United Kingdom]]:''' The British emergency broadcast is limited to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_minute_warning "Four-Minute Warning"]], so called because its sole use was to warn the public that [[UsefulNotes/FromRussiaWithNukes the Soviets were attacking]], and the Soviet Union was close enough to Britain that they only had four minutes' advance notice before the bombs started dropping. The system was dismantled in 1992, not long after the Soviet Union was. Weather warnings and emergency messages are typically done through special news reports. The networks are particularly prepared for special broadcasts announcing the death of a member of UsefulNotes/TheBritishRoyalFamily. They rehearse it for pretty much every member, each of whom has a protocol named [[ThemeNaming after a bridge]] (''e.g.'' "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_London_Bridge London Bridge]]" for the late Queen, "Forth Bridge" for Prince Philip, "Menai Bridge" for the King). The government retains the legal right to take over the broadcasting of the two biggest networks (the Creator/{{BBC}} and Creator/{{ITV}}) in the event of a national emergency but has not to date used this power. As a general rule of thumb, if the BBC ever interrupts programming with the phrase "This is the BBC from London," it's either because of the above or because something horrible is happening or is about to happen - these include natural disasters, the death of the Prime Minister, terror attacks or even in the unlikely event of a nuclear strike. In addition, the UK adopted a Wireless Alert System similar to that used in the USA, which sends emergency alerts as notifications to compatible phones.

** Many people know the "J-Alert" from the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and the accompanying tsunami. Videos on Website/YouTube of TV broadcasts at the time showed them warning of the earthquake before it happened and sometimes showing the shaking if it was broadcasting something live (NHK was showing the [[UsefulNotes/JapanesePoliticalSystem Japanese Diet]] discussing something and appearing annoyed that [[UnusuallyUninterestingSight they were being interrupted by an earthquake]]), then showed a studio announcer with an update (with the shaking still going on), before switching to the emergency alert system showing the map of Japan and which bits were about to get hit by a massive tsunami. Some versions show emergency instructions in English and Japanese being given simultaneously, so [[NiceJobBreakingItHero you can't understand either one]].

''"[[WebVideo/OddityArchive This concludes this test of the Emergency Broadcast System. If this had been an actual emergency, you would have been advised to crawl under a desk or table, grab your ankles, put your head between your knees, and kiss your ass goodbye]]."''

** An upcoming fan-made sequel called "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWy2e9P1AV8 Operation Black Mesa]]" by Tripmine Studios has one additional emergency broadcast about an unidentified aircraft, as well as expanding the [[spoiler:Civil Danger Warning from Arizona to the states of Colorado, Utah, Texas, Nevada, California, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska.]]

* ''Series/TheTwilightZone1959'': In "[[Recap/TheTwilightZoneS3E68TheShelter The Shelter]]", the Stocktons and their neighbors learn from a CONELRAD broadcast that unidentified objects believed to be missiles have been detected heading towards the United States. [[spoiler:A later CONELRAD broadcast reveals that they were satellites which pose no danger.]]

* ''Film/ThePurge'' has a truly haunting one given the subject matter it is broadcasting;

** Canada would begin dabbling in alert systems when the province of Alberta implemented its own warning system, the Alberta Emergency Public Warning System, following a devastating tornado that tore through Edmonton on July 31, 1987. Alerts could be disseminated through radio and [=TV=] to warn of threats like severe weather, wildfires, terrorist threats, and other threats to human safety. Several federal government backed attempts to develop a national alerting system in the 1990s and 2000s never came to fruition. The system was replaced by Alberta Emergency Alert in October 2011, which uses a distinctive two-tone alarm and, in addition to television and radio alerts, can also give alerts via social media, apps and messages sent directly to phones, in October 2011.
** The [[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alert_Ready National Public Alerting System]], branded as Alert Ready in English and En Alerte in French, was launched on March 31, 2015. Alert Ready messages are distributed to [=TVs=], radios, and cell phones and can be targeted to specific geographic areas. Alerts can only be created by the federal agency Environment and Climate Change Canada, or authorized provincial/territorial emergency management agencies. Initially envisioned as a weather warning system, it is also used for civil emergencies, flood warnings, and Amber Alerts. Most provinces have also used it during the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic to disseminate lockdown notices. It shares the same two-tone alarm used by Alberta Emergency Alert.

* '''UsefulNotes/{{Canada}}:''' Canada would begin dabbling in alert systems when the province of Alberta implemented its own warning system, the Alberta Emergency Public Warning System, following a devastating tornado that tore through Edmonton on July 31, 1987. Alerts could be disseminated through radio and [=TV=] to warn of threats like severe weather, wildfires, terrorist threats, and other threats to human safety. The system was replaced by Alberta Emergency Alert, which uses a distinctive two-tone alarm and, in addition to television and radio alerts, can also give alerts via social media, apps and messages sent directly to phones, in October 2011. On March 31, 2015, the entire nation would launch their own national warning system, Alert Ready, which is distributed nationwide to [=TVs=], radios, and cell phones. Alert Ready was first envisioned as a weather warning system but is also used for civil emergencies, flood warnings, and Amber Alerts. Most provinces have also used it during the 2020-2021 pandemic to disseminate lockdown notices. It shares the same two-tone alarm used by Alberta Emergency Alert.

** And in ''Film/DawnOfTheDead'' 2004 on the car radio.

* Naturally, this is the basis for WebOriginal/EASScenarios, which feature a wide variety of stories played out through the medium of emergency broadcast messages.

* '''[[UsefulNotes/{{Britain}} The United Kingdom]]:''' The British emergency broadcast is limited to the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_minute_warning "Four-Minute Warning"]], so called because its sole use was to warn the public that [[UsefulNotes/FromRussiaWithNukes the Soviets were attacking]], and the Soviet Union was close enough to Britain that they only had four minutes' advance notice before the bombs started dropping. The system was dismantled in 1992, not long after the Soviet Union was. Weather warnings and emergency messages are typically done through special news reports. The networks are particularly prepared for special broadcasts announcing the death of a member of UsefulNotes/TheBritishRoyalFamily. They rehearse it for pretty much every member, each of whom has a protocol named [[ThemeNaming after a bridge]] (''e.g.'' "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_London_Bridge London Bridge]]" for the late Queen, "Forth Bridge" for Prince Philip, "Menai Bridge" for the King). The government retains the legal right to take over the broadcasting of the two biggest networks (the Creator/{{BBC}} and Creator/{{ITV}}) in the event of a national emergency but has not to date used this power. As a general rule of thumb, if the BBC ever interrupts programming with the phrase “This is the BBC from London,” it’s either because of the above or because something horrible is happening or is about to happen - these include natural disasters, the death of the Prime Minister, terror attacks or even in the unlikely event of a nuclear strike. In addition, the UK has recently adopted a Wireless Alert System similar to that used in the USA, which sends emergency alerts as notifications to compatible phones.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[DoNotAdjustYourSet Do not adjust your set,]][[ThisIsNotADrill this is not a drill.]]]]