Could this be a trigger (for great prep activity)!!!???

greenspun.com : LUSENET : TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) : One Thread

Response to a site visited urging NBC broadcast stations to have news coverage on preparations being done in their respective communities.

"Hi Mike,

Hmmmmm. You just never know. People who have been on the fence about this might just snap. If this helps promote people to prepare, while probably not good for me (while I finish my preps), it will allow families to be less vulnerable in January.Further thoughts!!! Tom

At 04:24 PM 11/17/99 -0500, you wrote: >Let's hope this isn't it! > >http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=105&STORY=/www/story/11-16-1999/0001077035 "

-- thomas saul (thomas.saul@yale.edu), November 17, 1999

Answers

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=105&STORY=/www/story /11-16-1999/0001077035

-- thomas saul (thomas.saul@yale.edu), November 17, 1999.

help linkmeister!!!???

-- thomas saul (thomas.saul@yale.edu), November 17, 1999.

I think those that haven't prepared already missed the boat. I think every effort needs to be made to prevent the For Ferbie People from activating For Dinty Moore or the stores will be too dangerous to even go near.

I think the "Gobmint" messed up, it is too late for any changes, and all that can be done is to not make this worse. We'll see shortages and riots if the For Ferbie Folk activate.

-- Paula (chowbabe@pacbell.net), November 17, 1999.


Educations Purposes only -yada yada

EEI Urges Broadcasters: Don't Exacerbate Y2K Fears, Seize Opportunity

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- With NBC set to air this Sunday a made-for-TV movie depicting widespread chaos and social unrest caused by the Millennium date change, the Edison Electric Institute has urged NBC affiliate stations to help allay potential public concern by thoroughly covering local Y2K preparations. EEI, the trade association representing U.S. shareholder-owned electric utilities that generate and deliver three-fourths of the nation's electricity, made the request in letters sent to the nation's 100 largest NBC affiliates in advance of the November 21 airing of "Y2K," whose script includes widespread power outages. "Regrettably, fear and opportunism regarding the new Millennium are widespread and likely to grow as the New Year approaches," said M. William Brier, EEI's vice president, communication. "We are concerned that the film, coming just before the conversion, will fan flames of panic and unnecessary alarm." In recent days, network news programs, including NBC's Dateline and Today, have made reference to the "millions of people" who anticipate Apocalyptic events timed to the New Year's weekend. Recent reports by the FBI and the Anti-Defamation League voiced similar concerns. According to EEI, while the movie is clearly an entertainment vehicle, it may unintentionally reinforce the beliefs of many individuals that a chaotic event is imminent. Indeed, the media have frequently noted reports of stockpiling and arms purchases connected to Y2K. The movie includes depictions of societal disintegration. In one scene, federal troops shoot a homeowner who refuses to leave his home in the course of an evacuation. EEI attended a preview of the movie earlier this week. "For the record, we have confidence in the Y2K readiness of the nation's network industries," Brier said. "The electric grid is Y2K-Ready today. We anticipate a New Year like any other. Isolated electric outages occur every day. It would be a serious mistake to assume that any outage over the holiday weekend is related to the Millennium change." Brier noted that the electric utility industry, like other network industries such as telecommunications, oil and gas, has spent billions of dollars over several years to prepare for the transition to 2000. "We hope that prior to and following this program print and broadcast news organizations will seize the opportunity to step up to the plate and offer viewers and readers clear and thorough coverage of local Y2K preparations," Brier said. "The Millennium transition presents a unique challenge to provide accurate information without sensationalism." Edison Electric Institute is the association of shareholder-owned electric companies, international affiliates, and associates, whose domestic members deliver about three-quarters of the nation's electricity.

The Edison Electric Institute sent the following letter to the top 100 NBC affiliate stations in the country dated October 26:

As you know, your network is planning to air on November 21 a movie titled "Y2K," which will depict a nation plunged into chaos on New Year's Eve because of widespread computer failure. Its plot includes electric blackouts, near- nuclear meltdowns and widespread panic. At EEI, which represents the nation's shareholder-owned electric utilities, we are concerned that the NBC film -- while clearly intended as entertainment and not news -- may unnecessarily cause Americans to have unjustified fears about U.S. preparedness for the conversion to the year 2000. Our member companies, which deliver about three-quarters of the nation's electricity, have worked diligently with the President's Council on Y2K Preparedness, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), and the North American Electric Reliability Council to ensure that the lights will keep burning on January 1. In fact, our members have spent about $2.5 billion to make sure that this coming New Year's Day is like any other. We cannot guarantee that there won't be any localized outages -- they occur every day. But we can state unequivocally that the electric utility industry is Y2K ready. Regrettably, however, fear and opportunism regarding the new millennium are widespread, and likely will grow as the New Year approaches. We are concerned that the NBC film, coming just before the conversion, will fan flames of panic and unnecessary alarm. Reports of Americans stockpiling food, electric generators, gas masks and even weapons are widespread in the media. These reports have prompted many organizations, including most recently the Anti-Defamation League, to issue a report on the dangers from Americans overreacting to Y2K anxiety. We have attached that organization's press release. In short, at EEI, we believe the network film may exacerbate these anxieties. We understand the need for creative, exciting programming. But we also believe in the importance of social responsibility at critical moments like the one we're about to enter. Therefore, it is our hope that your station might be willing to consider alternative programming that evening. Otherwise, you might consider airing a disclaimer or a crawl reminding audiences that the scenes depicted in the NBC film are imaginary and very unlikely to unfold in real life on January 1. Alternatively, perhaps your station would consider airing a news report on your city's Y2K preparedness, featuring interviews with local officials and industry leaders. We hope that you will seize this opportunity to make a positive impact in your viewing area, and we are ready to assist you with any information on electric utility Y2K-related issues. Please feel free to contact John Castagna on my staff at 202-508-5661 or visit the Edison Electric Institute website at http://www.eei.org.

SOURCE Edison Electric Institute Web Site: http://www.eei.org

(Today's News) (Company News On-Call) (Search) (Feature News) (Automotive) (Energy) (Entertainment) (Financial) (Health/Biotech) (Hispanic) (Latin America) (Sports) (Technology) (Washington) (Mountain News) (PRN Products & Services) (Ask PRN) (Links) (PRN Events)

)1996-1999 PR Newswire. All rights reserved.

Redistribution, retransmission, republication or commercial exploitation of the contents of this site are expressly prohibited without the written consent of PR Newswire.

These pages have been optimized for Netscape v.2.0 or later



-- thomas saul (thomas.saul@yale.edu), November 17, 1999.


Here you go, Thomas:

CLICK HERE

-- Dennis (djolson@cherco.net), November 17, 1999.



http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/991116/pa_wpxi_y2_1.html

Link

Tuesday November 16, 9:00 am Eastern Time

Company Press Release

SOURCE: WPXI-TV

Y2K Reality Check; WPXI-TV Prepares for `Y2K The Movie'

PITTSBURGH, Nov. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- On Sunday, November 21, WPXI-TV will air the fictional drama ``Y2K The Movie.'' This program presents a fictional scenario of what could go wrong on the eve of the new millennium.

Because many viewers fear just such a scenario, WPXI-TV has taken steps to minimize those fears. Disclaimers, explanations, and in depth reporting will take place before, during and after the broadcast in order to fully inform viewers about the fictional nature of the broadcast and to provide coverage of Y2K-related concerns.

Viewers will be told repeatedly: ``This program is a purely fictional thriller. The characters and situations are not based on fact. This program does not suggest or imply that any of these events could actually occur.''

On Friday, November 19th at 11:00 p.m., WPXI-TV will air a preview of the movie with response from Y2K experts addressing the fictional nature of this drama.

Beginning the morning of Sunday, November 21st, WPXI-TV will air a series of reports called ``Y2K Reality Check.'' These reports will address the fictional nature of this movie and detail the Y2K state of readiness among major institutions in our community.

Periodically throughout the broadcast of ``Y2K The Movie,'' a crawl will run at the bottom of the screen reminding viewers that ``Y2K The Movie'' is purely fictional, and directing concerned viewers to the ``Y2K Reality Check'' report following the movie.

That report will run during Channel 11 News 11 at 11 directly following the ``Y2K The Movie'' broadcast.

For viewers who continue to feel concern, experts will staff a Y2K phone bank to respond to immediate questions.

``We hope viewers enjoy the movie,'' said News Director Jennifer Rigby. ``But we don't want the concerns of the movie to carry over into their real lives.''

SOURCE: WPXI-TV

-- (spin@city.tv), November 17, 1999.


"In one scene, federal troops shoot a homeowner who refuses to leave his home in the course of an evacuation."

WTF???

Not trying to incite paranoia *there*, are they?

Do they walk away muttering about how they had to destroy the village in order to save it?

-- Ron Schwarz (rs@clubvb.com.delete.this), November 17, 1999.


The warnings are for the crazed and fanatical christian militia doomers, who, if armageddon does not come on the 1st, will make it so themselves. Of course! But, not to worry. The FBI will have it all under control, dontcha know?

Does anyone else smell something bad coming our way, courtesy of the gubbies?

-- OR (orwelliator@biosys.net), November 18, 1999.


Or and other govt haters: As a closet doomer, the one group that keeps me in the closet is not wanting to be associated with the group that sees everything as a government plot to bring evil on the populace. The government as a whole mirrors the population as a whole. for the most part the goverment as an entity has trouble planning anything more complicated than the type of donuts for the next meeting. About on par with the planning capacity for the population at large. As an entity, "it" assumes tomorrow will be like today, as does the average individual. For the government as an entity to conceive or plan for even a mild end of the world as we know it is as impossible as it is for the average citizen to conceive that disaster might strike tomorrow. The 'government" eyes glaze over just as rapidly at the thought of real change just as rapidly as those of the most polly individual. Only a small fraction of those in government who are involved in planning for bad y2k events actually believe anything will happen. Its a job and an intellectual exercise. The government personnel staffing the Y2K centers (bunkers) are probably less likely to have made personal preparations than the citizens at large. Certainly the most frightening possibility for a government organization is the idea that anything could happen to those nice middle class taxpayers who are vital their well being. Government officials and employees are just as confident that THEY will fix it as the general population is confident that "THEY" won't let anything bad happen. Neither really knows who "THEY" is. Believe me, Ive been there and done that in terms of government. If TSHTF government will be moore panicked than you will be and probably even more inept. Not bad, just inept. Worry about yourselves and what you will do and not what the government will do to you. It will do nothing to you except by accident as it flounders around.

-- Noone (Noone @none.com), November 18, 1999.

No one, there is sense in some of what you say, but I perceive that you seriously underestimate the capacity of governments to intentionally cause evil in an organized, widespread manner when they perceive that the chips are down. You cannot possibly have read P.A. Sorokin's "Man and Society in Calamity" (1942). You have read "The Gulag Archipelago" by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, haven't you?

www.y2ksafeminnesota.com

-- MinnesotaSmith (y2ksafeminnesota@hotmail.com), November 19, 1999.



Minnesota: I have read both, more years ago than i want to admit to myself.In a past life i have also been part of the government structure that is often viewed as part of the great conspiracy. We were not very good at it if that was what we were supposed to be doing. Anyway, we reflected very much the greater population. The people i know still on duty reflect the general spread of the population in taking y2k seriously or not.

-- Noone (Noone@none.com), November 19, 1999.

Minnesota;l A p.s. recognize that their are governments which truly are evil and willing to do anything. I just do not believe ours is. Could it be in the future? It could, but to brand it as such now is not correct. would be like convicting you for bank robbery on the grounds you could be one someday.

-- Noone (noone@none.com), November 19, 1999.

Moderation questions? read the FAQ