Morning newscasts can be so ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, they mix the gritty, not so pleasant news with fun topics, and I commend them for that. Well, maybe just the network versions. Local morning news casts are another story. This morning I woke up, looked out my bedroom window only to see the entire street blanketed in snow. Okay, so there's snow. Nothing that surprising, I thought. But I turned on my television and turned to the WB11Morning News as I had my daily cup of joe to find at least 25 minutes of their newscast dedicated to this phenomenon. I never would've thought that this would be a topic of enlightenment on a news broadcast. One of the reporters even said as she pointed to her feet, "As you can see the ground is covered in snow here in Brooklyn". Really? You think?
Why is frozen precipitation such a big deal on the news? Yes, we need to know the traffic report and how this will affect our daily commutes. But more often than not, snow coverage on the news is overstated.
Joseph Michener @ December 9, 2005 - 12:08pm
I absolutely agree. People in the U.S. are seemingly obsessed with the weather, and for some reason they will watch 25 minutes of snow hitting the ground. Perhaps they anticipate an accumulation of a three or four feet as they watch so they don't have to go to work.
Of course, news stations are betting that people will tune in at random times, and they don't want to have someone flip the channel because they aren't covering the "blizzard" like everyone else.
By the way, why is it a cup of "joe"? I am personally offended by it, and I wish people would stop using my name to dub an addictive beverage that stains their teeth...
... Just kidding. I always wanted to say that.
»