2018 Haurwitz Lecture

For broadcast and digital meteorologists, engaging with audiences on social media has become an indispensable part of the job. Social media platforms are critical for communicating up-to-the-minute weather information and interacting directly with readers and viewers. Meteorologists can greatly benefit from audience-generated content, including photos, videos and reports which they can share to enrich their own coverage. But social media also presents many challenges. How do you build a following and what content is most engaging and appropriate to post? How much time should be spent on social media and which platforms reach the most people? How do you sustain a strong social media presence when you have other more pressing responsibilities? Can you monetize social media content? Should you confront bad information published on social media from amateurs and even colleagues? This panel will attempt to address many of these challenging questions.

The Robert T. Ryan Symposium will conclude with a cocktail reception welcoming symposium attendees, along with Bob's numerous colleagues and former interns from across the weather enterprise. With a short program hosted by symposium co-chair and AMS Fellow Veronica Johnson of WJLA in Washington, D.C., this casual event will honor Bob for his distinguished career, achievements, and contributions to the American Meteorological Society.