Weather Channel Gaslighting

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mediatechnology
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Weather Channel Gaslighting

Post by mediatechnology »

“This is about as nasty as it’s been,” Weather Channel reporter Mike Seidel says as he appears to be losing his footing — or just shifting his footing dramatically.
While two guys casually stroll by...

Image

https://twitter.com/gourdnibler/status/ ... 2262916096
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ta ... rter-being

And who owns the Weather Channel? IBM: https://newsroom.ibm.com/the-weather-company

Not trying to understate the real devastation and human toll of Florence but, on a normal day without hurricanes, can we really trust IBM to deliver objective weather reporting when they benefit from selling software "solutions" to a "problem" that they're obviously over-hyping?

Florence, and storms like it, require factual reporting because lives are at stake. This stunt, and others like it, require those impacted by Florence to have the added burden of sorting out real threats from media hype. IBM's false narrative is impeding the flow of legitimate information that could save lives. Its sick.

Is IBM in such a bubble that they don't know how utterly stupid they look?
Where do they find reporters like Mike Seidel who will sacrifice their credibility?
MK-Ultra graduates maybe?

We don't watch much current TV, do not have Netflix (cancelled it) and rarely put on a DVD or Blu-Ray. Our only viewing is decades-old OTA sub-channel Mayberry, Colombo, MASH and Frazier. Maybe some PBS cooking shows on weekends. When my wife travels the TV can go a week without even being turned on. I haven't seen a TV newscast in years.

So, from the outside looking into the asylum, these attempted psyops are just getting ridiculous...
Their desperation to create a narrative is so painfully obvious.

Florence has created big problems for a lot of people.
This report was synthetic and we can do without that.

As "they" (the media) panic, normal Americans casually stroll by and ignore them.
Its symbolic of the entire media landscape.
They just don't matter anymore.
The real world, the one that Florence has left, does.
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JR.
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by JR. »

Yes that embarrasing video went viral... apparently the segment producer wasn't even watching. IIRC this has happened before with other storm coverage, but most such embarrassments didn't go viral.

I am not a conspiracy fan and weather channel was bought by Byron Allen ($300M) earlier this year. Owner of Atlanta based Entertainment Studios.

Unfortunately this incident is iconic of the modern news reportage practice that gets rewarded with increased viewership for hyping all news events to end of world/sky is falling gravitas.

This can be dangerous as it leads viewers to discount weather warnings. Of course a category 1 hurricane is still a hurricane and dangerous, but not the worst case winds and storm surge predicted.

This morning I saw some weathercaster standing in a marina that was flooded by river runoff. Probably the deepest water he could find to showcase.

ALL NEWS is questionable... caveat lector.

JR
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mediatechnology
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by mediatechnology »

I saw another video of an ABC 7 reporter somewhere, at a different flood, sitting in a raft.
It was a tight shot until they backed out and you could see people walking by in ankle deep water.
The smile of the "victim" the ABC reporter had coerced into sitting in the raft told the whole story.

Our local OO NBC affiliate, KXAS, bought an "S-Band" high-power long-range radar system a few years ago and promoted it heavily ever since. (We know from watching the sub-channels.)

S-Band! S-Band! S-Band! is all we heard as they patted themselves on the back for being wonderful.

When we had some really bad tornadoes rip through here we did go to their main channel to get radar. The storm did a lot of damage as it passed through Dallas headed eastward.

It got far worse as it went through Canton which is just out of KXAS' coverage but KXAS headed into Canton with their storm chasers with wall-to-wall coverage. It was a huge public service given that KXAS' feed is picked up by cable stations in the area. The long range radar proved its worth.

The last feed we saw that night was right before 7 PM when the news crew, in Canton, prevented a couple of guys from running across the freeway. The people on the side of the road had to wait for the crew to pass. At 7 PM KXAS promptly cut their feed, including those to cable stations re-transmitting their signal in East Texas so they could show an NHL game. East Texas lives no longer mattered to them.

We later learned that the two guys crossing the freeway were running to rescue a trucker whose rig had been picked up and thrown several hundred feet. IIRC he later died.

Not only did KXAS cut a vital radar feed that night when it was needed most, they were in the way of ordinary citizens thrust into the role of first-responder.

I haven't watched a KXAS newscast or main channel program since 2016 and its unlikely I ever will.
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by Gold »

It’s not only the weather. It’s the operating principle for TV news. Hype the crap out of it. Then either say “crisis averted” if the hype no longer is believable or keep hyping the crap out of it if there is a shred of truth.
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by JR. »

Do you realize this is fake news blaming it on IBM?

IBM may suck, but didn't do this one...

JR
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mediatechnology
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by mediatechnology »

From the web they still appear to own it.

Image

Weather Channel Press Room contacts found at the footer of the web page here: https://weather.com/

Link directly to IBM: https://newsroom.ibm.com/the-weather-company

...Who also, conveniently, provide solutions to prevent the meteorological end of the world.

If the sold it in March they may want to change the link to prevent future embarrassment to IBM. :lol:
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by mediatechnology »

I got a reply back from Melissa at IBM which read:
The Weather Company no longer owns The Weather Channel television network.
But the signature line on the email I received reads:
External communications, Global Weather and Consumer AI -- IBM
The Weather Company (including The Weather Channel and Weather Underground)
It's a self-debunking e-mail. :lol:
So yes its all fake news.

But, regardless of whether or not IBM owns The Weather Channel, IBM, aka The Weather Company, still benefits from the hyperbole of the Weather Channel and the Weather Channel, at least in the case of Mike Seidel, seem to be perpetrating yet another fraud.

Update from IBM:
We own The Weather Channel brand and digital properties, but not the TV network.
Oh, well that's crystal clear now.
So which one of them are responsible for the psyop?
Big Data or Big Broadcast?
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mediatechnology
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by mediatechnology »

Image

Anderson Cooper waist deep.
Not Florence coverage but...

JR - If Hickory floods you might want to book CNN to come in and stand in your rain ditch.
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by JR. »

runoff.jpg
I'm not crazy enough to stand in my rain ditch when it is full of water... you can see some white water turbulence near the road bank where the two water streams combine.

FWIW That 3' diameter pipe never backed up, even after Katrina. If it did my world could get wetter.

======

If Cooper is standing in a street that could be a valid shot. It looks like maybe a back alley?

My criticism of storm coverage is showing images of the worst cases rather than providing info about most cases. I have a cousin in Lumberton NC who rode out the storm and there is flooding reported there. Google maps shows a red outline, perhaps flooding, but a current satellite image would be informative, albeit a transitory snapshot.

JR
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mediatechnology
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Re: Weather Channel Gaslighting Courtesy of IBM

Post by mediatechnology »

I've been wanting to hear from Doug to see how he's doing.
That's been a worry of mine the last few days.
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