The Weather Channel
The purest nuts-and-bolts television channel that will ever be created, The Weather Channel is a 24-hour American cable weather network based just outside Atlanta, Georgia dedicated to telling you what to expect outside every morning, afternoon, evening and night, and little else. (This has changed recently as it has started showing speculative documentaries.) The network is well known for its CNN-like weather coverage, and will usually be the first to send reporters, usually meteorologists themselves, to report live on site at major weather events; something that can quickly become awesome, if not crowningly so, if it involves the words "hurricane" or "tornado" occurring within visual range. The Weather Channel is owned not by Time Warner, but by Comcast/NBC Universal and two private equity firms, The Blackstone Group and Bain Capital (before that, Landmark Communications).
Its Canadian counterpart is The Weather Network - a different channel with a similar focus.
Tropes used in The Weather Channel include:
- Adored by the Network: Jim Cantore. John Hope was this before his passing.
- And Starring: Wake Up With Al, starring Al Roker and Stephanie Abrams.
- Awesomeness By Analysis: One of the draws of the network, and why they're so valuable. If someone on The Weather Center tells you to seek shelter - listen to them.
- Badass Adorable: Julie Martin, when out on location. Nicole Mitchell also qualifies.
- Badass Bookworm: Almost mandatory for the on-air staff who go out into hurricanes. Justified for Warren Madden and former OCM Nicole Mitchell, as they're Air Force Reserve officers and 'Hurricane Hunters' - the folks who fly missions into hurricanes.
- Badass Creed: 'The (insert weather condition here) Authority'.
- Big Man on Campus: That would be you, Mr. Cantore.
- Bishonen: Mike Bettes.
- Bald of Awesome: Jim Cantore (again).
- Cool Old Guy: John Hope. He cared about his viewers, staying up for three days and pleading with viewers to evacuate during Hurricanes Hugo and Andrew. He also enjoyed putting on educational shows for children.
- Cult Soundtrack: The network's local forecast music has been offered for sale on CD by the network.
- Deadpan Snarker: Jim Cantore can do this on occasion. Such as when there's a wildly unpredictable storm system:
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"...And this is where it becomes fun for the meteorologist." |
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- Dissonant Serenity: The computerized Weather Report Narration of the forecast during a massive storm. Calmly stating it will be windy with rain - heavy at times with winds that might reach 100-140 mph.
- Don't Ask, Just Run: If the on-air meterologists tells you to do this your better do it.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: Somewhat averted. Even after decades of good work, TWC has started to become the go-to place for even the other networks to call for on-air interviews and explanations of a current weather situation.
- The Grim Reaper: If Jim Cantore shows up in front of your house - oh, well...
- Lampshaded in one commercial where he shows up at a beach on a nice summer day. Everyone there, knowing the above, starts evacuating the beach as soon as they lay eyes on him.
- Hair of Gold: Hi there, Heather and Nicole!
- Long Runners: Oh, yes.
- My Kung Fu Is Stronger Than Yours: The reason why the channel has survived over all these years, despite everyone else also having quite competent or even excellent meteorologists on-staff.
- Nightmare Fuel: Deliberately invoked during severe weather events, to emphasize that something very bad is coming - and people should seek shelter immediately .
- Nightmare Fuel Station Attendant: During serious weather events, everyone on the air qualifies.
- Oh Crap: Any major storm coverage.
- The radar/forcast in the last few hours before that massive storm hits. [1]
- Old Shame: The Bob Stokes and Marny Stanier incidents.
- OOC Is Serious Business: When the on-air meterologists break from the script or broadcasts and start speaking with emotion directly to the people in an affected or threatened area (as Jim Cantore did in 2005 before Hurricane Katrina hit, when he all but said to people "Evacuate, because if you stay here - you are going to die." )
- Rated "M" for Manly: Again, Jim Cantore. A distaff version can be found in Stephanie Abrams.
- Reality Ensues: Oh so very much, when bad weather events occur.
- Real Life Writes the Plot: why Jeanetta Jones left the network.
- Screwed by the Network: So many examples, but Marny Stanier and Nicole Mitchell's ousters top the list.
- Serious Business: Thoroughly averted. Many people depend on The Weather Channel for top-level weather predictions, and look to the channel for life-saving warnings and advisories during serious weather conditions and events.
- Farmers especially. As long as they exist, TWC will always exist with it.
- Spicy Latina: Defied, as Maria Larosa is calm and professional on screen.
- Talk About the Weather: Thoroughly inverted, as that's the whole point of the channel.
- Walking the Earth: Peter Lik, Jim Cantore (for Cantore Stories), and the hosts of Storm Chasers.
- Weather Report Narration: Again, it's the whole point of the channel, so if they start off with a non-weather related story...
- Wolverine Publicity: Jim Cantore is made of this trope - and Stephanie Abrams is inching her way into the yellow zone on this one.
Programs featured by the Network include:
- It Could Happen Tomorrow: A Speculative Documentary series where the results of a serious weather incident like a hurricane or tornado, or natural disaster like an earthquake or levee break, would affect a major American city.
- Full Force Nature: A documentary examining actual serious weather incidents, using user video of the event, newscasts, and interviews of people who were there in the incident at the time it happened.
- ↑ To quote one youtube comment "I'll take "Things you don't want to see on your local radar" for $200."