Although it’s only the beginning of October, all of that snow in South Dakota and Wyoming has got me thinking about The Weather Channel’s thought of naming winter systems. Ever since last winter, The Weather Channel (TWC) has been naming every winter storm that has developed, regardless of how the storm “performed” with its precipitation. Although TWC promotes the idea, the same idea is frowned upon in much of the meteorological world. Additionally, the National Weather Service has even criticized the idea to name winter storms. This blog post is going to represent both sides of the debate on naming winter storms so that you, the reader, can make a decision whether the ides of naming winter storms should be promoted or thrown in the dumpster.
Let’s look through the perspective of The Weather Channel regarding the naming of winter storms. Citing the use of names by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) for tropical systems, TWC justifies the idea of naming winter storms as a way to “raise awareness.” An article published on TWC’s website in November 2012, “Why The Weather Channel is Naming Winter Storms” by Tom Niziol, explains the thought behind the concept of naming winter systems. TWC discusses the benefits of the idea will “raise the awareness of the public, which will lead to more pro-active efforts to plan ahead, resulting in less impact and inconvenience overall.”
Although it’s not entirely known what criterion is used by TWC to officiate the naming of a winter system, it is known from their press release that “naming will occur no more than three days prior to a winter storm’s expected impact.” They justify this limit by stating that it will “ensure that there is strong confidence the system could have a significant effect on large populations.” In a USA Today article written by Doyle Rice, there is a mention that the storm-naming criterion is also based on the National Weather Service’s thresholds for winter-weather warnings.
From their blog post earlier this month, the Capital Weather Gang (CWG), affiliated with the Washington Post, pointed out that The Weather Channel’s press release “makes the case for why it’s fit to effectively be the parent [of naming winter storms].” Additionally, CWG also points out the implication TWC makes that they are “as qualified as the National Hurricane Center (which names tropical storms).” Within this same press release, TWC states “The Weather Channel has the meteorological ability, support, and technology to bring a more systematic approach to naming winter storms, similar to the way tropical storms have been named.” However, with The Weather Channel, a mere media outlet, comparing itself to be on par with a government organization, this is where many of TWC’s opponents voice criticism.
From the opposition to the idea of naming winter systems, most cite the lack of criterion in order for a winter storm to “earn” its name. Another support of the opposing beliefs is that the National Weather Service voiced opposition and refusal to use the idea through an administrative message that was sent out during a nor’easter in November 2012. As meteorologist Brad Panovich of WCNC stated on his blog post, “since the NWS isn’t using the names, this means the Associated Press and many other media outlets will not be using the names either.” This brings up the slaying truth to TWC’s intended “awareness”, if they are the only media outlet to use it, how much awareness is the name itself generating compared to the mention of the storm, without a name, by all the other media outlets? Lastly, the third reason many cite while opposing the idea is TWC’s cravings for ratings. The Weather Channel, owned by NBC, needs the ratings, just like any other television station, to remain on-air. With much of the ratings leaving traditional television and moving to internet and social media, many tie the ideal of naming winter systems with the ease of internet tagging. Regardless of those who support or oppose the idea of naming winter storms, it will eventually come down to whether any more organizations, government or media, will adopt the new idea.
What do you think about the naming of winter storms? Leave a comment explaining why you agree or disagree with the TWC’s idea below!
ShaeWX: A Girl and Her Radar 
I thought it was a dumb idea at first (they never should have picked the name “Nemo”, that made them laughingstock) but I definitely noticed that there was more awareness about the named storms, where I live, and people prepared better for the impacts. Sure, the TWC name list and criterion may seem silly, but the NHC started off naming tropical weather systems after pilots’ ex-girlfriends, which makes TWC look more intelligent about how they’ve started their process of choosing names. I think people will catch on over time, like they did with the NHC’s names. People are just being over dramatic because TWC has become more of a reality TV channel than a weather information outlet, in recent years.
Winter Storm Nemo, along with many others, made for some great memes. As for the increased awareness, I totally agree. The naming of winter storms will probably catch on, especially with the social media frenzy that is ever-growing in today’s society. With a name, you can “hashtag”, that will link to a list of all the other hashtags (one of the few times I don’t mind the use of a hashtag). However, The Weather Channel would have made better “beginning progress” with the concept if they had discussed it through with the NWS or some other accredited meteorological organization. It still would have had the bumpy start, but there wouldn’t have been as many holes in the criteria. As someone who’s into the science/guts of meteorology, I want the criterion. I want to know what this system has that makes it different, and I feel that the information that distinguishes a major crippling blizzard from a 2 inch overnight clipper needs to be portrayed to the public. Not every winter storm system is the same, and with the loose criterion used currently by TWC, I fear that many are looking at the name and not the information. Yes, it’s still awareness, but how deep is it? With all new things comes the headaches of perfection! Thanks for re-blogging 🙂
Reblogged this on Extreme Ohio Weather.
Reblogged this on behayve5 and commented:
This is a great article! I always wondered how winter storms and hurricaned were named. I thought they just picked random names.
I’ll try to get another blog post out in the near future discussing how the names for tropical systems are picked. The history behind it is pretty fascinating. Thanks for the re-blog!