ABC was fined $395,000 for using a federal emergency alert noise in a Jimmy Kimmel skit mocking Trump

YouTube/Jimmy Kimmel Show

ABC has been fined $395,000 for imitating the US’ Emergency Alert System (EAS) in a "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" skit about President Donald Trump.
The Federal Communications Commission said on Thursday it was fining the network over an October 3, 2018, skit which used the EAS alert tone three times.
The skit took the form of a fake trailer for a movie called "The Textening" which depicts a family inundated with multiple EAS alerts from Trump including messages such as: "End the WITCH HUNT."
The EAS is normally used for AMBER missing children alerts and severe weather warnings.
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US broadcaster ABC has been fined $395,000 for imitating the US’ Emergency Alert System (EAS) in a Jimmy Kimmel skit parodying Donald Trump.

The Federal Communications Commission said on Thursday it fined ABC for using the EAS tone three times in an October 3, 2018, episode of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"

EAS can allow the US president to address the country by text, radio, and television, but it’s normally used for AMBER missing children notices, or to give weather warnings.

YouTube/Jimmy Kimmel Show

In the Kimmel skit a family is inundated with inane EAS alerts from Trump written in the style of his tweets, including alerts for "FAKE NEWS" and "End the WITCH HUNT."

Here’s the full clip:

The FCC has also fined AMC $104,000 for imitating the alert in an episode of "The Walking Dead" and Discovery $68,000 for using the alert in "Lone Star Law" on Animal Planet.

Radio stations Meruelo Radio Holdings and LLC’s Los Angeles-area KDAY and KDEY-FM’s radio shows were also fined.

The combined sum of all the fines is $600,000.

Caleb Jones/ AP

Announcing the fines, the FCC said: "The use of actual or simulated EAS tones during non-emergencies and outside of proper testing or public service announcements is a serious public safety concern."

"The FCC’s rules prohibit such broadcasting of EAS tones – including simulations of them – except during actual emergencies, authorized tests or authorized public service announcements."

"These rules aim to protect the integrity of the alert system by helping to avoid confusion when the tones are used."

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