TV weather question...

[Lee]

This may be a no-brainer, but I was wondering if local TV newscasts ratings "spike" during bad weather, like the recent snowstorm. Do they intentionally play it up to be the worst.storm.ever when it comes to bad weather to get that ratings jump?

[Big Media]

I dunno but it must do something.. every weather man in town nearly wets himself whenever there's a storm on the horizon.

[Arp2]

"To get the weather" is very often the number one reason people watch tv news.

That being the case, stations that can afford to do so will generally work to build up their weather abilities, talents, tools, and image.

And that being the case, when the time comes to deliver the goods, you darn well better deliver the goods.


And severe weather can be life-and-death stuff, too, you know. It's both important and urgent. It matters.

[Ace Purple]

When severe weather hits, it usually become *the* top story of the newscast. To point, right after 9/11 I was working in TV in Tampa and we were doing around-the-clock coverage of that, then suddenly Hurricane Gabrielle hit and we had to immediate stop our 9/11 coverage and switch to breaking weather. That was a tough week.