Mock Media

The media team at 4Comm has years of experience in supporting emergency preparedness exercises for multiple local, state and Federal agencies, including Cobalt Magnet, a Department of Energy (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)-led national-level exercise that focuses on managing the offsite consequences of a radiological or nuclear incident.

The 4Comm team provides mock media support, including reporters and camera crews, that tests an agency’s ability to respond effectively to the media during a crisis. Using a dynamic and secure online platform that is exclusive to exercise participants, 4Comm can provide realistic real-time news coverage using print, radio, television and social media injects to give response players the full range of experience in conducting interviews, monitoring the media, responding to phone queries, news gathering and writing, and participating in news conferences and briefings.

Regardless of how big or small your exercise or drill is – from functional and table-tops to full-scale play – 4Comm customizes the media experience with specialists who can also provide planning, instruction, coaching and evaluation of processes and procedures for a full assessment of the response. They also specialize in Joint Information Center/System implementation for bringing together multiple agencies to mitigate a range of realistic scenarios.

Mock Media – How it Works

Let’s say you want to host a drill or exercise involving your agency, or join with other agencies in responding to an emergency scenario. The goal is to evaluate plans, processes and procedures, along with the capabilities of those chosen to conduct emergency public information (EPI) activities during the crisis event.

4Comm starts by meeting with key planners to discuss exercise/drill objectives and to assess the level of support needed, based on numerous criteria, such as size and scope, number of participants, budget, etc. After assisting in the EPI planning, 4Comm will build a team of media specialists – each with extensive real-world journalism experience – to craft initial news stories for the event. These stories become the “introduction” to the emergency when the exercise begins.

Exercise players, controllers and observers are all granted the link and passwords to a highly secure online “news network” that features multiple channels for print, radio and television stories. The site also contains a feed that simulates a real-world social media platform. Once the exercise starts, the mock media teams will proceed to cover the “story” as if it were a real event – that is, making calls to published numbers, requesting interviews, speaking to participants, and crafting news stories based on learned information. The stories are then posted to the online network, where response agencies can monitor and ensure not only accurate information, but respond to rumors and misinformation. The 4Comm team can even broadcast your news conference live, so that other participants can watch – just like in a real event!

Upon the conclusion of the exercise, 4Comm then compiles a comprehensive report of observations, lessons learned and best practices to provide the response agencies with valuable feedback on the effectiveness of their programs. The agency can use this information as a basis to revise their plans, processes and procedures, build partnerships, seek additional funding for certain resources, and train personnel.