BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) — In a completely unscientific survey based on observation and anecdotal comments from lots and lots of readers, the Weather Channel is the go to source for hurricane news and information — when it comes to TV — in South Florida. In the days before the storm in both the Palm Beach market and Miami/Fort Lauderdale, we observed at restaurant after restaurant, bar after bar, outdoor venue and public gathering place that it’s the Weather Channel, not local television stations, prominently displayed on TVs.
A quick check of local stations may reveal why: it’s the same thing over and over and over and over again and again and again and again. Live shot after live shot from Home Depot. Hyperventilating reports from “weather centers.” Breathless live shots from the beach.
By comparison, the Weather Channel is credible, consistent and staffed by scientists. When Governor Rick Scott speaks, the Weather Channel takes it live. They recap for a minute, then move on to the next element of the storm. When local television stations take Rick Scott live, they recap everything he said for the next 30 minutes. That’s not news. That’s regurgitation. And then they do it again. And again.
If nothing else, Irma will be remembered as the storm where The Weather Channel, as it often does, outshined local television news in providing hype-free local information.
To put it another way: Slow and steady wins the race.
Monday, December 11, 2023
