Journalists & watchdog groups scramble to watch police after scanners go silent

[ChrisSmolinski]

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2025/07/04/journalists-and-watchdog-groups-scramble-to-watch-police-after-scanners-go-silent/

[shadypyro]

I have the scanner app on my iPhone, and you can still listen to the Chicago Police frequencies even though they are encrypted and on a 30 minute delay, here in Canada I can’t listen to the RCMP although I can get the ambulance and fire in the clear..

[n2avh]

Ironically the story is behind a paywall.

[NQC]

Hey All,

Nearly ALL Boston Fire Dept is still in the clear .

Nearly ALL Boston PD RADIO TRAFFIC is still in the clear.But the kicker is that a good amount (  but not all ) initial dispatching is done on the Mobile Data Terminal.

I have had to call the cops a number of times in recent years ( A. H. Neighbors )
and immediately snapped on the scanner 
after hanging up the phone.

Sometimes not a peep, but “ eventually “ they show up  ( whenever they “get around to it “,  even at 0300 when things are dead- which is ANOTHER story altogether ) .

You may hear them clear the call- big whoop.

I have found if one is just casually listening to a PD frq , you really need to listen continually so you can ( maybe) hear the initial dispatch and will know the entire story.Even if they ARE using the radio, but the time you hear the sirens it’s usually too late to know the reall skinny. By then they are usually talking around the issue without  any specifics or just using routine generic codes that don’t give away too much.

But 95% of the time BPD is just a bunch of chit chat ( cops requesting coffee breaks and other routine stuff). Usually I can’t be bothered to listen to a bunch of chatter.

BFD is FAR quieter, even the routine stuff isn’t too frequent or annoying.And turning the scanner on when you hear sirens is still definitely worth it. The call is just beginning and again, probably 97% of it is still in the clear ( for the foreseeable future anyway).

The one I REALLY miss is the frequency for the trolley I ride every day.I used to pack a pocket scanner every day. You would hear the REAL deal , rather than the BS they’d tell you over the PA.

And in general I found this traffic quite interesting, even when things were running smoothly.

But they went over to Harris digital, which apparently NO  portable ( or other?) scanner can copy.

Supposedly some have PC cracked it , but not really practical for average folks to try. Also, even if I COULD, I’d have to figure a way to link it to my cell.
Well above my skill and ambition levels.

NQC