A message alert system is useful for a communication device (10) having a display (12) and a processor (30). The message alert system includes a computer-readable medium (32) and a routine stored in the computer-readable medium (32) and configured for execution by the processor (30). The routine includes a first routine that receives a message having a message type, and a second routine that generates a display item (40) for the display (12) of the communication device (10) in accordance with the message type such that the display item (40) comprises information indicative of the message type of the received message and whether further messages of the message type have been received by the communication device (10). The routine may further includes a memory check routine that determines whether storing the message in the computer-readable medium (32) would result in exceeding a predetermined amount of the capacity of the computer-readable medium (32). The routine may still further include a routine that analyzes the message to determine a size thereof. In such an embodiment, the second routine generates the display item in accordance with the size of the message.