Meaning, Context, and Weather-Related Information Sharing

A literature review of rhetorical approaches to applied communication settings and practices is contextualized for the Atmospheric Sciences. Using examples from the local Pittsburgh-NWS Office and the webcasts/conferencing utilized therein for emergency management audiences, the Warning Coordinator Meteorologist's (WCM) design of repackaging highlights the needs and use/utility of rhetorical sensitivity. The author will assess the context of the receiver of the information, and management of uncertainty to provide more useable and effective information to constituencies. The resulting recommendations herein can be applied to other NOAA/NWS offices in their effective goals of disseminating the meaning of information, rather than simply information.