Local meteorologists might face layoffs amid new initiative with The Weather Channel

Meteorologists at 27 native TV information stations are dealing with uncertainty about their jobs after Allen Media Group introduced a brand new native climate initiative with The Weather Channel.

The group, which owns TV stations in 21 markets throughout the nation, mentioned Saturday it’s rolling out a brand new format for climate protection that can have “additional visual storytelling capabilities” throughout its stations in 2025.

The transfer comes as the published business, significantly tv, seeks new methods to have interaction audiences because it navigates waning viewership amid wire chopping and the rise of streaming platforms.

The plan entails meteorologists at The Weather Channel in Atlanta producing content material for native stations throughout the nation. The group below the brand new initiative might be led by Carl Parker, a meteorologist at The Weather Channel, and embody some meteorologists from native TV stations shifting to Atlanta, the media group mentioned in an announcement.

Severe climate will stay a precedence, the group mentioned, and the brand new format will “improve reporting capabilities, especially in high-stakes weather situations.” It can even guarantee “the most accurate, timely, and engaging forecasts for communities across the country,” in response to the discharge.

The firm wouldn’t publicly element how the change would have an effect on meteorologists at native TV stations.

Meteorologists at some stations say they count on to be impacted by the choice. There are additionally stations dealing with ongoing layoffs that were announced in early 2024.

“By now most of you have probably seen the chatter about Allen media letting local meteorologists go, well I am one that will be affected by this,” Amber Kulick, a meteorologist with WAAY-TV in Huntsville, Ala., a station owned by the media group, wrote in a social media post. “For now I am still at the station but I am looking for my next career opportunity.”

Josh Franson, a meteorologist with KWWL-TV in Iowa, mentioned he’s amongst these dealing with layoffs at his station.

“Hey guys, If you haven’t heard the recent news about the layoffs, I wanted to share that our station is one of those impacted,” Franson wrote in a post on X. “To my viewers and those of you who have been on Frannys Report since day one, thank you.”

Zach Stanford, a former state coordinator for disaster data and catastrophe intelligence for the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, mentioned native meteorologists are the “obvious choice for life-saving local weather information” and serve vital roles in sharing different data akin to wildfire perimeters and evacuations.

“Local meteorologists on TV are a trusted face, not only because they know their science, but also because they’re a member of that community,” Stanford informed NPR. “The community component has to be thought through to make sure that that critical service is not lost.”

Allen Media Group took possession of The Weather Channel in 2018.