Live Streaming and Impacts to Your Next Emergency

1. Your Next Emergency Will be Streamed Live
& Everyone Will See What You Do
Micki Trost, Strategic Communications Director
Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management

2. Presentation Overview
• Challenges
• Benefits
• External
• Internal

3. Challenges
• Safety of Responders
• Security of Tactical Operations
• Safeguarding or Protecting Victims
• Everyone with a phone is a “reporter” or can live stream your
response.
Source: https://twitter.com/bostonpolice

4. Live Stream Information Sharing
• 2013 – Washington D.C. Navy Yard Shooting
• 2013 – Boston Marathon Bombing
• 2015 – Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood Shooting
• 2015 – San Bernardino Shooting
• 2016 – Dallas Police Department Shooting
• 2016 – Orlando Pulse Nightclub Shooting
• 2017 – Charlotte Protests
• 2017 – Las Vegas Shooting
Source: https://media3.s-nbcnews.com/j/msnbc/components/video/201708/2017-08-12t23-01-45-533z--1280x720.nbcnews-ux-
1080-600.jpg

5. Radio Traffic – Safety of Responders
Live Tweeting Radio Traffic
• 2015 Planned Parenthood Shooting: Colorado Springs, Colo.
• 43 Tweets
• Time Span: 1228 – 1531  3+ hours

6. Radio Traffic: Tactical Operations

7. Radio Traffic: Tactical Operations Live Streamed
• 10-15% U.S. Public Safety Radio Traffic Encrypted
• Used for live tweeting
• How many control their Broadcastify channel?

8. Tactical Operations: Trends
• Suspects searching for
information during incidents.
• People live streaming encounters
with public safety officials.
• Unmanned Aerial Vehicles/
Drones

9. Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) / Drone
• Community
• Grounds Aircraft or interferes with operations
• Need to monitor
• Media
• Using for coverage
• Asking for footage
• Public Information and Education
• Message before events
• Message during events

10. Challenge: Safeguarding Victims
• Videos and photos allow for early identification of victims.
• Push to use video and photos has departments increasing sharing of patient
care

11. Benefits: External Communications
• Live Stream Media Briefings
• Live Stream Community Meetings
• Increased Situational Awareness
• Utilize New Technology
• External Partners have access to increase coordinated
communications and efforts

12. Benefits: Media Briefings
Updates directly from your agency to the
community. Not filtered by media.

13. Benefits: Community Updates
• Operations Update
• Community Meetings
• Community Events
• Board Meetings

14. Benefits: Greater Access / 508 Compliance
• Accessibility
• Mobility Challenges
• Hearing Impaired
• Subtitles or transcripts
• Translations into different
languages

15. Benefit: Increased Situational Awareness
• Photos and video submitted by the public
• Social media posts related to your incident
• Actively monitor
• Engage with your community
• Comments give insight into community
perspective
• Crowdsourcing maps with shared information

16. Benefits: New Technology
Colorado Division of Fire Prevention
and Control Multi-Mission Aircraft
Increased information sharing with
media and community.
Drone finds lost hikers and dog in
Colorado:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/drone-finds-
lost-hikers-dog-
colorado/story?id=48107539
FDNY uses drone to fight a fire:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/fdny-drone-
time-battle-fire/story?id=45971738

17. Benefits: Community See Impact

18. Benefits: Coordinated Communications
• Live stream news conferences and community meetings increase
coordinated communications with external partners.

19. Benefits: Internal Communications
• Staff briefings for time sensitive information
• Agency town halls

20. Recommendations and Future Research
Public Safety Information Sharing Responsibilities
• Metrics needed on impact of real-time reporting
• Training for first responders to awareness
• Public Information Officers more proactive and engaged
• Transition to encrypted radio channels
Public Information Officer and Media Recommendations
• Implement and adopt an embargo protocol for tactical information shared.
• Create and Provide a Media Training Program for reporters.
• Implement Journalist Credentials.
Future Research
• Media Information Sharing Responsibilities
• Self-imposed nationwide restrictions
• Lock–up room alternative to embedding
• Citizen journalist impacts

21. Contact Information
Micki Trost
Strategic Communications Director
Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
Email: micki.trost@state.co.us
Twitter: @PIO3micki
Cell: 303-472-4087
Thesis: Domestic Embedded Reporter Program: Saving Lives and Security
Tactical Operations ~ http://bit.ly/MickiTrostThesis