AP Photo,Joe Marquette
The Department of Homeland Security is replacing the color-coded terror-alert system with a new system designed to give the public better information about credible terror threats. The National Terrorism Advisory System will launch on April 26. Under the new system, intelligence analysts from various government agencies will decide when to recommend a specific threat and if Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano concurs, then she will make a public announcement. More detailed information will follow on the Homeland Security site, and alerts will be posted on social-media sites. The alerts will expire after two weeks, unless fresh intelligence is collected. The color-coded system debuted in March 2002, and Napolitano had said earlier this year that she would replace it.