Utah Department of Public Safety Media Portal

The Department of Public Safety is dedicated to protecting the community. With the new DPS Media Portal, the public can find out about incidents more quickly and DPS employees can focus on protecting the public rather than communication with the media. The Media Portal uses innovative Web 2.0 technologies that provide the media with a current comprehensive view into statewide law enforcement activities.

1. The service is the First of its Kind – Utah is the first state to implement a centralized Media Portal that communicates directly with media outlets to enable them access to all public safety activities. While other agencies have various components, this web application is the first to integrate three vital services:

• Active Incident Feed – A real-time data feed of current calls to the law enforcement dispatch center. The feed offers a comprehensive view of incidents that the Utah Highway Patrol is responding to, including the nature of the call, the location, and the status. In addition, the DPS Public Information Officer (PIO) may flag high-profile incidents and add comments to dispatch calls, including links to news releases and media advisories.
• News Stories – Current and archived news releases that are completely indexed and searchable. These stories include sections for multimedia files, where the PIO may make available digital images, video clips, and audio clips for news organizations and media outlets to download and include in their broadcasts or stories.
• Pushed Alerts – The alerts section includes a feed using Twitter to display short alerts sent from the PIO office to the media outlets. These short alerts allow the PIO to communicate immediately with the media about upcoming events, releases, or breaking situations. The alerts may be received through the PIO application, through an RSS feed, or delivered directly to a mobile device through SMS messaging.

2. Media Communication Streamlined – Through the innovative use of streaming video, pushed alerts, and real-time incorporation of active incidents, the PIO is able to leverage this tool to communicate with the media in a one-to-many manner. As a result, communication with the media is streamlined and call volume has dropped by over 40% during high-profile incidents.

3. Real-time Access for Reporters – With the Media Portal, reporters have a real-time view into dispatch calls, easy access to news releases and multimedia files, and a subscriber-based alert feed through Twitter. The site is secure for media access only to receive the disseminated information.

4. Communication Directly to Citizens through Pushed Alerts – The Twitter feed is available to all users, allowing the PIO to communicate directly to the public on Public Safety activities and urgent information. The Twitter feed includes a mix of media advisories relevant to the media through the Portal, and updates on community events, highway incidents, and public advisories for the citizens.

The Public Safety Media Portal incorporates secure data feeds, multimedia, and the use of Twitter microblogging feeds to provide current and urgent information to the media. These elements are available through a secure service and through pushed mobile updates.