[TomGuy]

Why should I lose tv coverage for four minutes because of a storm that in no way threatens my part of the state?

Our 'local' stations cover about a 200 mile radius. Thus, we have a similar situation when storms pop up. At any sign of rotation, they tend to break into programming.

That is a good reason to have alternatives: DVD player and/or ROKU for Netflix and/or media player for downloaded video formats.

Sometimes, we have the opposite problem -- a small storm will pop up, show signs of tornadic activity, but the 'local' TV stations do NOT interrupt unless/until such storms become a threat to more populated city areas.

Weekend storms are problems, as the 'local' weather people seem to be trainees and apprentices. It usually takes the stations 30 minutes or more for the stations to broadcast 'real' weather information. Many of this small pop up storms can do significant damage in that 30-minute gap.

Many times, I have watched/tracked localized storms via the Internet, before the 'local' TV finally gets their weather people on air.

[REPANDPROUDOFIT]

Please note, it is not the alerts that irritate me. I am in full agreement with letting someone know that a tornado is headed at them. It is the inability to change the channel that really bugs me. It is intrusive and insulting! When my channel is changed, I am perfectly capable of deciding if the "emergency" applies to my area. If it doesn't, I should have the capability of changing the channel back to the program I was watching.

Also, this IS NOT the old-fashioned interruption of the program I am watching. Now, the channel changes automatically to WGN. You can only watch that channel till they decide the alert should end. Our remote control is totally disabled. That is what I object to!