Grumpy Editor

NOAA SEES ABOVE NORMAL HURRICANE SEASON

While the disaster focus in media has been on Maui, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warns that this year’s Atlantic hurricane season will be above normal, notes Grumpy Editor.

 

Elevated ocean temperature this year can fuel more hurricanes.

 

NOAA expects 14 to 21 named storms this year, of which six to 11 will expand into hurricanes — with winds 74 miles per hour or more.

 

Two to five storms this year are expected to become major hurricanes.

 

NOAA says there is a 60 percent chance of an above-normal season.

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

 

FED MULLS INTEREST RATES.  The Federal Reserve on Wednesday will release minutes from its July meeting when policymakers raised interest rates to the highest l;evel in 22 years.  Those minutes will likely provide some insight into whether the central bank will hike rates again next month. The Fed has raised rates 11 times since it began its inflation fight in March, 2022. 

 

BEAR ESCAPES FROM PLANE.  A bear being transported on an Iraqi Airways flight from Baghdad to Dubai causes an unexpected delay after it escapes from a crate in the cargo hold.

 

SHARKS ACTIVE IN LONG ISLAND.  Three possible shark sightings are observed in Long Island, N.Y. a day after a 65-year old woman is hospitalized after a shark bite on her left thigh at Rockaway Beach in Queens, the first shark attack at that location in 70 years.

 

NORTH KOREA BUSY AGAIN.  As the U.S. and South Korea prepare for a large-scale military exercise, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un orders his military to sharpen its war plans.

 

MAJOR PUBLISHER SOLD.  Publisher Simon & Schuster is sold to private equity firm KKR, months after a federal judge blocked its purchase by publisher Penquin Random House.

 

NOAA SEES MORE WEATHER DISASTERS.  While it’s only August, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the U.S. reached a record 15 different weather disasters this year.  Those disasters caused at least $1 billion in damage, adds NOAA.

 

IS HURRICANE STAND-UP ROUTINE NECESSARY IN TV NEWS REPORTING?

One of the weirdest routines in television news over the years is sending into hurricanes stand-up reporters with microphones in hands, braving heavy winds and downpours, and sometimes pounding surf.

Grumpy Editor asks:  Why?

The same, or better video, can be seen with a reporter in a dry, safe studio or in a nearby TV van utilizing a securely-mounted remote on-scene camera to capture the same, or better, footage.

Over the past few days with Hurricane Florence, TV viewers saw familiar faces --- including anchors --- bending with the wind and getting splashed with water as swaying trees and wild breakers are seen in the background.

Does this enhance coverage?

Sometimes the shots are exaggerated.

A prime example, Weather Channel 's Mike Seidel, reporting live from Wilmington, N.C., is seen struggling against a heavy wind in the rain. “This is about as nasty as it’s been,” voices Seidel, leaning with the wind ---- as the camera also captures two young men in shorts walking normally without wind problems behind him. 

The Weather Channel, in defending Seidel, says its reporter was "trying to maintain his footing on wet grass” while the two people in the background were walking on concrete.

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE...

 

HOUSEHOLD INCOME UP.  Median household income grows to $61,372 last year, up 1.8 percent when adjusted for inflation, while people working full time year round increase by 2.4 million, according to latest census figures .

SIGNING BONUSES FOR SAILORS.  In efforts to retain sailors with desired leadership skills, the U.S. Navy is offering senior submarine officers. for example, as much as $180,000 in signing bonuses.

 

BEETLE TO GET SWATTED.  Volkswagen plans to halt production of its iconic Beetle next July.  The Beetle was developed in Nazi Germany in 1938 and became available in the U.S. 11 years later. 

 

BEWARE OF 2020.  The next financial crisis? J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. strategists, in creating a model, figure it will be in 2020 --- but less painful that former episodes.

iPHONE MORE COSTLY IF U.S. MADE.  If produced in the U.S., as President Donald Trump is urging, an iPhone would cost 20 percent more, tallies an analyst at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

CALIFORNIA TO GO CARBON-FREE ROUTE.  California’s Gov. Jerry Brown signs into law for the Golden State to use only carbon-free electricity sources by 2045.  Thus, it joins Hawaii, the first state to go that route.

BURGLARY SHAKES UP ISLAND.  Gigha, a small island off the west coast of Scotland, sees its peace and tranquility broken by a $2,600 hotel storeroom burglary --- the first serious crime in two decades.

HIGHER PRICES SEEN CURBING SPENDING.  A Kiplinger Letter forecast notes business and consumer spending “could slow because of higher prices and heftier borrowing costs.”

BIG BOOK-BUYING DAY.  Veteran newsman-author Bob Woodward’s latest book, “Fear,” sells 750,000 copies the day after the book arrived in stores, reports Simon & Schuster.  The book deals with a dysfunctional White House.

FICTION READING SAGS.  The percentage of adults reading fiction drops to 41.8 percent last year from 45.2 percent in 2012, while poetry reading jumps to 11.7 percent  from 6.7 percent, reports the National Endowment for the Arts.

 

 

 

STORM REPORTING NOT EXACTLY LIKE 'SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN'

 

Grumpy Editor notes TV hurricane reporters, on camera fighting strong wind and rain, constantly remind viewers in the storm’s path that: “You shouldn’t be out here, but I am.”

It’s a bit different than the happy script and long-popular title song in the 1952 film, “Singin' in the Rain," starring Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds.

Instead of braving the risky elements in storms, often standing in knee-high water and dodging downed power lines, reporting on latest weather conditions and events could just as well be done --- perhaps even better ---  in the confines of a dry, safe and windless TV studio.

But standing out in the elements with microphone in hand is the way severe weather reporting has been conducted for years.  News editors figure that’s the way to go.

“Reporters out there make me sick!,” tweets an ABC viewer who was watching the network’s wet and wind-blown storm reporter in Naples, Florida describe the “suction” force of the gale. “Go home, be safe and stop grand standing,” adds the viewer.

Another mentions, "God Bless our intrepid reporters, but have you never heard the expression hadn't got enough sense to come in out of the rain?”

 

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE...

 

WEATHER COOLING IN CALIFORNIA?  California’s Sierra Nevada mountains experiences snowfall a month earlier than usual last week.  Snow plows had to be called.  But global warming (er, climate change) folks are silent on this meteorological development in the Sunshine State.

HOLLYWOOD AWARDS SHOWS GET POLITICAL.  TV viewers tune into awards shows to check out winners and be entertained, not to hear chatter reserved for political programs — which is a sure way to see audiences dwindle.

TOUGH TALK SHAKES UP SOME MEDIA.  President Donald Trump, in his United Nations speech, disturbs some in media after vowing to destroy North Korea should the communist country attack the U.S.  Trump referred to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as “Rocket Man” and said he was  on a "suicide mission" in advancing the country's nuclear weapons development. Trump mentions the U.S.,“if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea.” An example of media reaction: an Associated Press reporter says, “Rocket Man" may get headlines, but the president of the United States just threatened to eradicate a nation of 25 million people."

ARMY BRASS PUT IN SPOTLIGHT.  The U.S. Army plans a series of mental health, counseling and career management programs which it hopes will shape stronger, more ethical leaders, focusing more on building character than on berating bad conduct. The move comes as an effort to help deal with an embarrassing number of misconduct and behavior problems among senior officers. 

PC TO STRANGLE COMEDY?  Society's "stupidly politically correct" sensibilities will lead to the "death of comedy," veteran comedian Mel Brooks, tells BBC.  He adds that political correctness is becoming a stranglehold on comedians.  “It's not good for comedy. Comedy has to walk a thin line, take risks.”

BUDGET HITS ANOTHER COLLEGE NEWSPAPER.  University of Louisville campus newspaper, the Cardinal, will stop getting funds from the university by the end of next year’s spring semester.  The university blames the end of funding on the school's $48 million budget shortfall.

WORLD WAR I SUB LOCATED.  An intact German World War I submarine containing the bodies of 23 sailors is found in the North Sea off the coast of Belgium.  The UB II-type dive boat is described as 88 feet long, 20 feet wide and about 90 feet below the surface.

‘Midget,’ as with raisins, looms as another banned word

 

“Midget” is another word that seems likely to be banned --- at least by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in connection with raisins, notes Grumpy Editor.

It would join forbidden words (in California): alien, husband, wife.

The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service is seeking comments on “modifying the raisin standards to remove the term midget,” that has been used to describe small-size California raisins for 37 years.

The proposed action gets applause from Little People of America which, for years, has been pushing to drop use of midget.

The LPA, a nonprofit organization that provides support and information to people of short stature and their families, long has described the word midget as offensive.  Four years ago it wanted the Federal Communications Commission to fine TV and radio stations that allow the word to be broadcast on public airwaves.

Elimination of midget by the USDA would pose problems for companies that deal in dried fruit, such as Nuts.com, Cranford, N.J.

Its website proclaims:  “Our midget raisins are the perfect size for baking! Add these sweet mini raisins to oatmeal cookies, scones, bread, or any baked treats your heart desires."

 

In case you missed these...

 

SWAYING PALM TREES DELIGHT EDITORS

Always on the outlook for hurricanes, print and (especially) television media were excited over Atlantic tropical storm Danny, upgraded to a hurricane on Thursday.  But Danny fizzled back to tropical storm at the weekend as it headed toward Puerto Rico…Speaking of hurricanes, editors also are moved with anniversaries.  Currently on their “remember when” hit parade with numerous stories continuing into this week:  Hurricane Katrina that smacked Louisiana with force on Aug. 29, 2005.  Some newspapers already have spotlighted a half page of material, including art, on the storm’s 10^th anniversary.

 

AND IT’S NOT OUR 51^ST STATE

Growing concern over China’s slow growth continued to send the stock market south on Friday with the Dow dropping 530.94 points to 16459.75 --- plunging more than 1,000 points in a week and another 1,000 points in the first four minutes of today's trading…Donald Trump mentioned Oreo cookies in his Friday night rally in Mobile, Ala. while most media earlier overlooked plans by Mondelez International to shut down a Chicago operation that produces the popular cookies, eliminating up to 600 jobs, and shifting production to a new facility in Salinas, Mexico…A California tax-raising ballot measure passed three years ago designed to generate more than 11,000 clean energy jobs each year has created only 1,700 jobs since 2012, reported Associated Press.

 

EPA RELEASES DOCUMENTS AS MIDNIGHT NEARS

Internal documents, requested by Associated Press from the Environmental Protection Agency regarding the accidental discharge of 3 million gallons of contaminated wastewater from the Gold King Mine near Silverton, Colo., were released Friday night at about 10:30, Eastern time, well after deadlines for Saturday morning newspapers.  AP found the information indicated EPA managers were aware of the potential for a catastrophic "blowout" at the abandoned mine.

 

BANK OF AMERICA UPS RATES, BUT NOT TO SAVERS

Bank savings interest rates may be negligible, but Bank of America quietly gave its board of directors a pay boost, with the lowest paid now making nearly $280,000 a year in cash and restricted stock, up about $36,000…Border wall (but not U.S.) going up:  Turkey has started construction on a 28-mile-long concrete wall along a key stretch of the border with Syria…CNNMoney reported radio audience in the U.S. increased in the second quarter to its highest level.

 

"Reporters" caught wearing unusual clothes:  Posing as reporters, two men dressed in firefighter gear and bearing phony media credentials were nabbed trying to gain access to a wildfire near California’s Walker Lake.

Authorities said it’s not unusual for people to try to gain access to fire areas in efforts to steal equipment and supplies.

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Hurricane Sandy blows advertisers to Weather Channel

Hurricane Sandy blew in a record number of viewers to the Weather Channel along with a boost in advertising revenue and digital traffic, notes Grumpy Editor.

The cable network received an increase in watchers after an 18.5 percent dip from last year. 

Atlanta-based, the Weather Channel tracked Sandy as it roared through the northeast, positioning 10 reporters at various sites for frequent updates. 

"There is no question that as horrible as the storm is, from a business standpoint, we are in the business of weather and more audience tends to mean more revenue," Curt Hecht, chief global revenue officer for the network, told Jon Lafayette, writer for Broadcasting & Cable. 

Lafayette added, “In addition to advertisers traditionally attracted by coverage of bad weather --- notably companies selling insurance and equipment like generators --- new advertisers, including movie studios, were drawn to Weather Channel's big audiences.” 

Launched on May 2, 1982, the Weather Channel broadcasts weather information and related programming, such as “Storm Stories,” around the clock.  NBCUniversal acquired a controlling stake in 2008.

With the storm knocking out power in its New York offices, Lafayette pointed out, Weather Channel sales executives worked from home.

Keeping a close eye on  Sandy was accomplished in the wake of a recent company-wide layoff involving 80 employees.

TV, the morning after, lingers on superstorm Sandy

The morning after superstorm Sandy smacked the East Coast, especially the New York City-New Jersey area, brought Grumpy Editor some interesting observations. 

A sweep of the television dial Tuesday morning started at CNN which framed live coverage with lightning flashes in efforts to stir viewers --- even though no lightning was associated with the historic hurricane as it hit the East Coast. 

CNN also picked up live shots of a WABC, New York, TV reporter sloshing through water in a flooded Little Ferry, N.J. street.  The live action was simultaneously fed to HLN. 

With the New York Stock Exchange closed for the second day, CNBC market experts discussed how post-Sandy trading would affect business. 

The Weather Channel continued to track Sandy as it headed northwest, with 10 staffers at various sites set to give updates. 

NBC still had reporters standing in the brisk wind at Battery Park at the southern tip of Manhattan, with a backdrop of New York Harbor waves churning against a gray sky.

CBS also posted on-camera folks at Battery Park, a favorite location with TV coverage, and then replayed the previous day’s comments by President Barack Obama on how he is going to cut red tape for folks in the storm’s aftermath. 

ABC remained fascinated with the dangling crane atop a Manhattan building under construction and mentioned Sandy brought out the “biggest use of manpower since 9/11” to get things back on track. 

Fox News focused on overlooked Delaware with flooded streets at Rehoboth Beach as waves continued to splash against docked pleasure craft.

Meanwhile, an eyebrow-raising word was heard on CBS radio in the early morning when on-the-hour news led off with the “typhoon” hitting the northeast. 

Typhoon is the term used in the western Pacific area, including China and Japan, along with India, for what is called a hurricane in the U.S.

Hit by Isaac, Times-Picayune uses Ala. backup for printing

Nothing shakes up a newspaper operation more than a power outage, especially during a major news event, such as when Hurricane Isaac hit New Orleans this week, cutting off power for the Times-Picayune, notes Grumpy Editor. 

The newspaper, in the Advance Publications Inc. family with daily circulation of about 141,000, called on the Press-Register, a sister publication in Mobile, Ala., 130 miles away to handle the printing. 

Isaac grew into a hurricane as it reached Louisiana and was downgraded to tropical storm on Wednesday afternoon. 

The howling wind and heavy rain cut power for 83 percent of the New Orleans metropolitan area.

Those able to access the Web kept up with news developments via NOLA. com.

Andrew Beaujon, writing at Poynter.org, reported an email from Ricky Mathews, Times-Picayune publisher, explained the newspaper has not missed a day of publication.  Mathews pointed out:

“We printed in Mobile, Alabama last night (Wednesday) since we have no power at the plant in New Orleans. Our drivers braved high wind and rain to get the papers back to Louisiana. Of course, there will be spotty delivery, but subscribers will get deliveries when conditions permit. We also enabled free access to the e-edition of the Times-Picayune via NOLA.com and communicated that access in advance of the storm.”

Meanwhile, the Times-Picayune, established in 1837, continued with plans to shift to a non-daily in the fall, printing three days a week.

Mathews earlier said the switch was necessary by the upheaval in the newspaper publishing industry and the future focus will be on boosting online news.

Isaac throws curve as Tampa 'hurricane’ muffled for GOP

Out of the 15,000 news folks sent to Tampa to cover the Republican National Convention, now starting tomorrow rather than today because of earlier concerns about inclement weather, it seems 14,999 have turned into weather reporters, observes Grumpy Editor.

They continued to be focused on Isaac --- whether labeled a tropical storm or a potential hurricane --- long predicted to bring wind and rain to the gathering at Tampa Bay Times Forum. 

Since early last week, media have been working Isaac into reports relating to the GOP gathering. 

However, latest forecasts now place Isaac on a course heading toward the New Orleans area, rather than western Florida. 

With all the hurricane talk popping up last week when Isaac was 1,600 miles southeast of Tampa, Bob Buckhorn, the city’s mayor, on Wednesday said he was ready to call off the Republican convention, if necessary, because of the predicted bad weather and much talk (mostly by media) on a direct hit on his fair city. 

That made front-page headlines and grabbed prime time broadcast coverage as Tampa geared up with storm preparations. 

TV cameras stepped up ever-popular shots of far-away wind-blown palm trees --- with fronds that flutter even with the slightest breeze on clear-sky days. 

Yesterday in a turnabout, the Tampa mayor, a Democrat, said he saw no problems with the weather during the GOP convention period. 

That cut the stress for the expected 50,000 visitors to Tampa in connection with the convention. 

But fidgety, Weather Channel-watching Republicans already had pushed today's speakers into Tuesday and beyond. 

Print and broadcast media have been heralding hurricane since the middle of last week. 

Media predicted Isaac "could" become a hurricane on Thursday.  Then hurricane status was delayed to Friday.  Saturday was next with no graduation.  Yesterday it still was a tropical storm on a more western path as it passed Key West, Florida, with few incidents. 

Meanwhile, umbrella sales continued to rise in Tampa.

Media jump on linking Isaac to GOP Tampa convention

Print and broadcast media seem gleeful that tropical storm Isaac, a vast 1,600 miles southeast of Tampa, Florida, yesterday could (note the word could) hit the 2012 Republican National Convention as a hurricane on Tuesday and the mayor (a Democrat, by the way) said he is ready to call the whole thing off, if necessary, because of stormy weather, notes Grumpy Editor. 

Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn won’t be doing that, of course, to his fair city that is about to welcome thousands of convention visitors but it gave media a fresh angle, along with a long-range weather outlook, in connection with the upcoming gathering at Tampa Bay Times Forum. 

With 15,000 international press members due, it’ll take more than political and meteorological wind to stop them from going to America’s 55^th largest city, Aug. 27 to 30. 

Also in attendance at the convention will be 2,286 GOP delegates and 2,125 alternate delegates from 50 states, District of Columbia and five territories.

Late yesterday, Isaac was closing in on the Leeward Islands, east of Puerto Rico.

Weather forecasters saw tropical storm Isaac possibly developing into a hurricane today or tomorrow while media jumped in with their own outlook, focusing on the disturbance as posing a threat to the convention at 401 Channelside Drive in Tampa. 

That inspired a number of interesting headlines.  Among them, starting with one injected with a bit of humor: 

New York Daily News: Tropical storm Isaac may cause bigger problems for RNC than Obama 

USA Today:  Isaac could threaten GOP convention in Tampa 

Christian Science Monitor:  GOP’s Tampa convention likely to be wet, but how wet? 

Fox News website:  Tropical Storm Isaac poses potential threat for Republican National Convention 

CNN website:  Tropical Storm Isaac a concern as GOP convention nears 

Tampa Bay Times:  Tropical storm Isaac becomes a concern for RNC 

Washington Post:  Could Hurricane Isaac derail the GOP convention? 

With the Washington Post story, readers getting deeper into the text would note what Dennis Feltgen, spokesman for the National Hurricane Center in Miami, cautioned: 

“There is still way too much uncertainty right now, and it’s too early to know what effect it (Isaac) could have in the U.S. and in Florida. It depends on how much time it spends on land in Cuba. We don’t know what kind of shape it will be in by the time it clears those islands.” 

Still, most media --- in seeking to grab readers or viewers --- zoom right past that flashing yellow light. 

Grumpy Editor, observing the holidays, returns Jan. 3

 

Grumpy Editor is taking time off to celebrate Christmas and welcome year 2012.

He --- and his grumpiness --- will return on Jan. 3.