Snoooooooze
Myweighin.com - my pet project
Posted on 08/15/2005 7:53:38 AM PDT by My Favorite Headache
Weather Channel adopts breezier feel Aim to win new viewers, keep the old Scott Leith - Staff
Yes, the Weather Channel can actually get squarer.
But that's just the new logo.
Beginning Monday, the Atlanta-based king of cable weather will unveil a boxy logo to replace its existing symbol, a well-known but dated badge that has barely changed since the network was founded in 1982.
Channel devotees will notice more substantial chages as the year goes on. The Weather Channel, known for years by its staid style and endearingly nerdy approach, is moving to the next step in its evolution as the network aims to offer more entertaining programs.
The topper: The Weather Channel is at work on a weekend news program, which will debut Sept. 17, featuring an anchor who doesn't even have a meteorological background.
"It's really important to us to reach consumers in broader ways," said Weather Channel President Debora Wilson, who assumed her post in March 2004.
The Weather Channel --- which is housed in a nondescript office building near the junction of I-75 and I-285 --- is a serious sort of place. The new logo has been kept under wraps at corporate headquarters in preparation for Monday's changeover.
But Weather Channel executives are savvy enough to know it must change, given that options for getting weather information have grown dramatically since the days it was a novelty --- or an oddity, as some thought --- to provide 24-hour weather programming.
The Weather Channel's overall audience has a median age of 48 and is evenly split between men and women. On average, watchers have a household income of $68,554.
But the network has been conducting deeper research to figure out how to attract new viewers and keep existing ones watching longer. Wonya Lucas, who joined the Weather Channel in July 2002 as executive vice president for marketing, used that information to reshape the network's efforts at brand building.
The studies, which showed that many viewers have an emotional attachment to weather, guided decisions about the new look for the Weather Channel logo, an upcoming ad campaign, and a revamped slogan, "Bringing weather to life."
When it comes to viewing habits, research found different camps. Some people watch the Weather Channel rarely, and only to get a quick forecast.
Others tune in often and are what the network dubs "vitalists" --- loyal viewers who use the Weather Channel to plan their days while also enjoying the "spectacle" of weather. They want regular forecasts, but they also enjoy tracking hurricanes even if they live in, say, Illinois.
"They're fascinated by Mother Nature," said Lucas, whose past jobs included posts at Turner Broadcasting and Coca-Cola.
Killer tornadoes popular
The Weather Channel, which is part of a privately held Virginia company called Landmark Communications, has tried to keep these hard-core viewers watching longer. In January 2003 it launched "Storm Stories," a prime-time program that now runs seven days a week and features dramatic tales of killer tornadoes and other weather phenomena.
Wilson said "Storm Stories" had been a solid success. During the 12-month period that ended in June, the hourlong block of "Storm Stories" that starts at 8 p.m. had an average 331,000 viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research.
The Weather Channel's next big programming experiment is due Sept. 17. On that Saturday morning, at 7 a.m., the network will launch "Weekend View," a four-hour-long show.
Wilson said it would take a "Good Morning America"-style approach to a weather news show, with an in-studio host and meteorologists scattered around the country.
The new, live program, which will be shown on Saturdays and Sundays, is meant to have a breezier feel than most Weather Channel fare. The network has built a special studio for the show, with a couch and chair set in a colorful space that doesn't look like the newsy main studio.
Then there's the host, Dao Vu, a woman who, before moving to the Weather Channel, helped anchor "The Daily Buzz," a syndicated live morning show carried in many markets around the country.
As is the norm in today's TV world, Vu has model-like good looks and a swirl of enthusiasm. She doesn't have weather experience, however, and has been charged with shaping a show that will have few rules. "We can do whatever we want," she said.
'Weathertainment'
On Nov. 29 the changes are scheduled to continue as the network introduces a short-run series called "The Weather Channel Top Ten." In five episodes, the network will rank major metro areas on measures like cloudiest and rainiest. Vu will host that show as well. It is meant to be a fun show.
"I call it weathertainment," she said.
While "Weekend View" and "Top Ten" remain unproved, devoted Weather Channel fans have no shortage of opinions on changes that have already occurred, especially "Storm Stories."
"Change is always good, to an extent," said loyal watcher Kerry D. Graham of Marietta. "At least they never got away from what they set out to do," which is to offer regular forecasts.
Stacy Simpson Assaf of Duluth said she enjoyed "Storm Stories" partly because she found the programs safe and even educational for her kids. Overall, she finds today's Weather Channel much more polished than it was a decade ago.
The studies that helped shape the latest changes at the Weather Channel give network leaders confidence that its base of loyal watchers will stick with them.
"Our core audience actually gives us license to do more," Wilson said.
Is this news? Who cares whatthey do as long as we get local updates. Come on use this forum for more important matters
No offense...but who are you??
Myweighin.com - my pet project
Not good.
I do not care about the killer storm features. Just give me the weather darn it!
Get a life
Perhaps they should add the weather babes from telemundo.
Of course, they tend to block the map --- when standing sideways.
The only thing I've noticed is that the Weather Channel girls appear to reproduce at a rate much greater than the general population.
Bring back Jill Brown...
"breezier"...
I GET IT!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
They still need to do something about the music...it sounds like a bad porno flick, I tease Hubby about it all the time, LOL!
"Hey...The "Weather" Channel...
"breezier"...
I GET IT!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
It took you that long to get it?
The WTC jumped the shark about 10 years ago when they changed the local forecast music and started adding commentary to it. The storm stories might be good, but every night? Steve Lyons needs to go...he plays down every hurricane like it is "not as bad as it could be",the days of John Hope are loooooooong gone.
Why change the logo? I mean c'mon? Shooting for a Good Morning America feel? I think the last time I watched GMA I was home sick from school in middle school in the mid-1980s.
Sarcasm, kiddo.
Is that an area of high pressure approaching, or are you just happy to see me? :~D
If they are going to change anything, thruth in advertising would be appropriate. The need a pregnat weathercaster infron of a map. It seems like the female weathercasters are always pregnant.
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