Since 2004, the National Center for Landscape Fire Analysis (NCLFA) has deployed broadband radio equipment coupled with strategic monitoring technologies to support management of wildland fires in remote areas of the western United States. Wireless broadband radios and surveillance-grade camera equipment have provided cost-effective monitoring of fire behavior, smoke, and weather for extended events in inaccessible terrain. The use of surveillance equipment in fire is expanding, and the direct benefits include enhanced capabilities for communications, data acquisition, and data transfer. A 2007 deployment in the North Cascades of Washington State emphasized additional, unexpected utility of this equipment in support of public outreach and education by providing public Web access to daily archived video and near-real-time digital images of fire activity. It is likely that access to this archived video enhanced communications between fire managers and members of the public because of the increased transparency in management actions and fire activity, and the common language provided by the video for each side to communicate their message with context. This experience suggests that public access to these types of near-real-time media is an important tool to help build and maintain public support for long-term fire management objectives. The high bandwidth provided by broadband radio networks allows multiple data transfer objectives to be met using the same network; therefore, providing data for public consumption does not have to come at the cost of other network-related management goals. We conclude that in addition to the direct benefits of remote surveillance to fire managers, this secondary benefit related to public outreach may actually provide the most value, from a fire management perspective, because of its potential utility as a tool to effectively communicate fire management goals to the public. © 2010, Tall Timbers Research, Inc.