Effective Hazardous Weather Communication between National Weather Service Offices and Broadcast Media

Rapid advances in communication technology, combined with a dedicated effort by the National Weather Service (NWS) to improve customer service and strengthen relationships with partners, are the driving force to enhance collaboration between local Weather Forecast Offices (WFO) and broadcast media for the markets that each serve.

Through the NWS’ Southern Region’s Building Leaders for a Solid Tomorrow (BLAST) program, a team was assembled to conduct a series of media workshops to foster better relationships between WFO and local media, with the ultimate goal to provide consistent hazardous weather information to American citizens.

Successful examples of collaborative efforts are discussed, including instant messaging (IM), local media workshops at a number of WFO, forecaster/broadcaster exchange programs, storm surveys, and teleconferences prior to large scale hazardous weather events. Details of a successful IM initiative between WFO Birmingham, AL, and local broadcasters are shown. Following these presentations, an open discussion will be provided for feedback, new ideas, and potential solutions which could be implemented nationally.