He's the communications officer for the city of Sunnyvale.

Whenever a crisis hits a city, whether it's a fire, the arrest of a dozen Columbia Middle School students for an arson plot or an earthquake, communications officers from surrounding cities gather among the emergency workers.

Their job is to make sure the public knows what is going on.

For large-scale events like fires or earthquakes, communications officers form their own team of specialists, delegating tasks—such as fielding media questions and gathering information at specific locations of the event. They make sure residents are informed about the situation—and that all bases are covered.

When Columbia Middle School officials uncovered a plot by a dozen students to set fire to parts of the school last month, Pilger heard first because the school and the officers who handled it are in Sunnyvale. But many students from Columbia are Cupertino residents, so Pilger contacted Rick Kitson, public information officer for Cupertino, with information, and Kitson fielded questions from the Cupertino community.

"In that particular incident, the fact that I contacted him early on meant he was able to inform his senior staff, so when they got calls from the populace, they were able to respond with intelligent answers," Pilger said. "The better informed we are as communications officers, the better we're able to do our job."

Pilger and Kitson are fortunate in that they've worked together in the past, so they know to call each other. But for larger events or incidents that affect more than just a few agencies, Pilger and Kitson are establishing that larger network now for South Bay public information officers. They plan to include a directory for all the public information officers as well as sponsored forums and Internet boards to encourage discussion on growing trends or developing concerns.

Recently, organizations including the California Association of Public Information Officials—of which Kitson is a former president—the American Red Cross and Bay Area Community Emergency Services have held meetings to coordinate operations. Kitson said the idea of a formal network, in the form of a directory, has been talked about but never created.

"We're at critical mass, and at some point [the network] is going to crystallize, and John and I are working to make sure it comes before the next crisis," Kitson.

In Northern California, the most obvious large-scale emergency is an earthquake similar to the 1989 Loma Prieta quake that rocked the Bay Area and set off fires throughout the region.

According to a 2003 report by the United States Geologic Survey, there is a 62 percent chance that a quake of at least magnitude 6.7—Loma Prieta was around 7.1 on the Richter scale—will strike within the next 30 years.

"You knock on wood that these things don't happen, but when they do, that's when PIOs come out of the woodwork," Kitson said.

But Pilger and Kitson's real concern is not with coordination during a large emergency such as an earthquake, because efforts at that level are often state-coordinated. Instead, events like the Columbia Middle School incident are their concern, because with smaller events that affect multiple areas, it is easy for a small communications operation to be overwhelmed.

In addition, assisting in the dissemination of information within one community will help keep the public informed about the actions of its officials and the ways its tax dollars are being spent.

Without efficient communication, Pilger and Kitson both say, the ability of a city government to assist the public is greatly diminished.

"Being in charge of communication for a government is like being in charge of water for an aquarium: it gets overlooked until it's gone, but it's an essential ingredient for democracy," says Kitson.

In Sunnyvale, Pilger and his communications deputy, Adam Levermore-Rich, are the only dedicated staff members for communications, and in Cupertino, Kitson is on his own.

"I recognize that I don't have all the answers, so in bringing this network together, it gives us resources," Kitson said.

Bringing communications officers together allows several small agencies to function as one larger agency. That agency can delegate tasks such as speech and other media information preparation and interviews for the media out to other officers to prevent one person from getting swamped.

In the tight budget times facing many local cities—including Sunnyvale and Cupertino—outside help like this and a unified effort to handle multijurisdictional incidents enable the flow of information to the public to continue regardless of staff size.

Pilger and Kitson hope to have the network in place by the end of the year to handle anything that comes up in the near future and better prepare for larger situations down the road.

"There is always the interest in making the connections before the emergencies," Kitson said. "We have no excuse to be surprised."

Any communications officers interested in assisting with the efforts should contact John Pilger at 408.730.7476.