The Contribution
of contribution made by Mr Gerald
Fleming to the discussion on Public Weather Services during a recent
Executive Council meeting in Geneva.
Thank You Mr Chairman,
for this opportunity to speak to this discussion.
At meetings of Executive Council and at meetings of the Commission
for Basic Systems, there have in recent years been many calls in
support of the concept of a Single Official Voice for the issuing of
warning of severe weather. The IABM wishes to state that it also
supports this concept, and as an Association it actively encourages
its members to put this concept into practice; that is, to make sure
that the warnings which they relay are those of the National
Meteorological Service of the country to which the warning pertains.
Please note the use of the word "encourage". Neither the
IABM nor any other organisation can enforce such an idea on the
world's broadcasters. The President of RA1, and several other
speakers, commented on the fact that many broadcasters seemed to be
more interested in the image of the weather broadcast than in the
correctness of the content. This is undeniably true. The media is a
many-headed monster; a monster, nonetheless that is growing quickly
and in an uncontrollable manner. The growth of international
broadcasters, and the growth of the Internet, are but the latest
manifestations of the explosive increase of the media. The
development of digital broadcasting, with a further proliferation of
channels and choice, is another growth; just beginning.
In this situation, when we put information out into the public
arena, be it warnings or forecasts, some will use this information
sensibly; some will abuse it. This is unfortunate, but it is the
reality.
If we, as a meteorological community wish to have correct
information broadcast on the media, then the onus is on us to
provide it quickly and efficiently to the media organisations. We
need to make it easy for them to have the best information.
There is a tendency within the meteorological community to look on
weather broadcasters with some suspicion; as if we are not in some
way part of "real" meteorology. On the contrary; not
simply are we part of meteorology; we are the only representatives
of meteorology within the broadcast community, where we are often
looked on with equal suspicion as coming from an outside tradition.
The IABM does not represent the media; it represents individual
weather broadcasters who can often be ploughing a lonely furrow
within their television or radio stations.
Weather broadcasters need support; they have the support of the IABM
but they need also the support of the wider meteorological
community. As the faces and voices of weather, they carry the
credibility of the weather forecast. If their credibility is
weakened or lost, then there may be serious repercussions not just
for the wider meteorological community, but for individual National
Meteorological Services also.