squawk

SquawkNet Update

There has been some confusion about a recent PRSS communication (EsPRSS-O, May 2010 – see it here) regarding NPR News' decision to move the SquawkNET to the Breaking News channel in ContentDepot. The following information has been drafted by Ralph Woods, Deputy Director of Operations for the PRSS, to answer some of the questions that have been raised.

The primary message around the announcement is that it addresses the control functions of SquawkNET only. In contrast, the NPR News Squawk (AKA "Shoutdown") channel remains unchanged and will continue to serve as a key way to receive up-to-the minute information from NPR News about urgent upcoming news events at your station. All weekly emergency alert system (EAS) tests will continue on the Squawk Channel as before.

With the SquawkNET functions moving to the Breaking News channel, the dual-tone multi-frequency (DTMF) will be replaced by cues that will be available on the back of the SR2000PRO receiver used for the Breaking News Channel, similar to the cues stations receive for other ContentDepot programs.

The biggest difference is that Cue #2 will be used to activate a relay at your station to route audio directly from the Breaking News Channel (BNC) to your air chain – if you so choose. Cue #3 will be used to trigger 60-second station breaks and Cue #4 will be used to end broadcasts on the BNC and switch audio back to local station control, if you’ve wired your equipment this way. Additionally, Cues 3 and 4 will be used during pre-scheduled extended coverage on the Breaking News Channel (such as during political conventions and elections) to allow for stations to automate their broadcasts of this coverage.

The PRSS NOC will be conducting weekly tests of the new SquawkNET functionality on the BNC, occurring at 13:00 pm ET on Tuesdays . There are also daily tests of the cueing functionality that occur Monday through Friday on Stream 2 at 12:15 ET. These have been running for several years now, under the name of “Streaming System Test Tone.”

Also, please note that events on the BNC will be announced via WebDACS and via the Squawk channel. The SquawkNET cueing system will only be used in cases of a highly urgent news event, and even then, only after hours and on weekends.

If you have any additional questions, please contact the PRSS Helpdesk at 800.971.7677 or prsshelp@npr.org.

Detailed information about SquawkNET can be found here:

https://www.nprstations.org/squawknet.cfm