Stormarmageddon 2009!

[mrschimpf]

How does Green Bay's NBC affiliate deal with Storm Information or Madison?  Is Milwaukee the only city that goes overkill on weather and school closing graphics?

Jack

Since TMJ now pretty much runs the WGBA newsroom (including firing all the cameramen and making everyone of their reporters one-man-band it,) it's pretty much the same thing, but even more obnoxious. 4:3 squish-o-vision...and a third of the space is wasted with a rotating sponsor plug :rolleyes:. The other three Green Bay stations just use their morning news tickers to scroll the information and call it done.

[techguy1975]

One of JSOnline's current polls:

Does the news media overhype snowstorms?

Yes, I don't need wall-to-wall coverage. Just treat 'em like a normal news story (79%)
No, it's important and I can't get enough of the coverage (7%)
They're overhyped but I can't stay away from it (14%)
Total Responses: 7948

(responses as of 12:30AM 12/10/2009)


Maybe the local stations will take the hint.  


*Bill in Milwaukee

I doubt it...  Until people start calling and complaining and/or advertisers start pulling ads because of it...it will not stop.

[ArgMeMatey]

I doubt it...  Until people start calling and complaining and/or advertisers start pulling ads because of it...it will not stop.

Agreed.  They will attribute plummeting viewer numbers to competition from other media, and the paucity of good network programming.  We're just complaining about a death spiral that is not quite steep enough.

[Jack 1000]

I think the question than becomes why do other cities such as Green Bay and Madison see success with the smaller banner ads, but Milwaukee does not?  Maybe the customer statistics showing that about 70% of viewers think there is an overkill of weather information might help Milwaukee station managers see that the weather information is overdone in this city.

If Green Bay, Madison, and other Wisconsin station affiliates can do well with smaller and less obtrusive weather information, Milwaukee can as well.

Jack

[RonH]

I think I got stuck in Cleveland because of the local media's over-reporting.  Midwest Airlines cancelled my flight 13 hours before the flight because they must watch the local news.  Although it was snowing in the Milwaukee area, by the time I got in the next morning, we landed on the runway next to green grass and maybe 1/4" of snow in some areas.

It also hurts productivity.  I work at a large company that has let many people take advantage of the "work/life balance" and now if there is a risk of snow the place is empty.  Local news coverage doesn't help this.  At least I read the NOAA forecast.

This "fear" mentality moves beyond weather these days, from the "shark attacks" of 2001 to people going crazy with the anti-bacterial lotion.

My office also has a 1:1 ratio with road salt to snow.  So if it snows 1/4", we get 1/4" of salt it seems!  Sometimes we almost slip on the large chucks of salt leftover!  The grass can't grow within 3 feet of the road, since the soil is too alkaline!

[bschlafer]

My office also has a 1:1 ratio with road salt to snow.  So if it snows 1/4", we get 1/4" of salt it seems!  Sometimes we almost slip on the large chucks of salt leftover!  The grass can't grow within 3 feet of the road, since the soil is too alkaline!

Yeah, I'd agree with that 1:1 ratio on road salt.  My car is white with salt reside from December through March.  Funny how you never see that stuff used in Europe.


*Bill in Milwaukee

[beeper]

The storm reporting has definitely gone into overkill.

As the storm approached, one of the more informative remote reports on one channel, was that "the Pick & Save parking lot was wet", as the reporter grasped for anything that could be used to make us prepared, not scared.