So many people have noted that the local TV stations have gone overboard with their weather coverage this winter (so many, in fact, that it seems that blogs were invented for just that purpose) that I didn’t think I was going to need to add my voice. But when I saw that Channel 5 was in full Winter Blast mode this morning — reporters on the freeways detailing each snowflake as it fell, or didn’t fall, plus two weather forecasters, I figured enough was enough.
This is winter. It gets cold. It even snows. And, believe it or not, we have actually had less snow this winter than normal. (I love that web site, by the way — some parts of the federal government actually know what they’re doing.)
All this weather foolishness is not the problem, of course. It’s a symptom, part of the disease. Local news no longer covers news. It covers lifestyles aimed at specific demographics, and if you aren’t a 21- to 35-year-old woman, they really don’t care whether you watch or not. Watch the news with that in mind, and it makes a whole lot more sense. All those fires and crimes? Aimed at women in that age group. All those diet and health stories? Same thing. And don’t even get me started about all the lost puppy stories.
The other question I have: If this kind of news is so painful to watch, how much worse must it be to report?
