TEDxRedMountain - James Spann - Communicating Weather Info in a Post Broadcast World

Meteorologist James Spann discusses new ways to communicate critical weather information in a world where broadcast reports are losing critical mass to social media and Internet feeds. This talk references the April 27th tornado outbreak throughout Alabama, including the devastating EF4 Tuscaloosa storm.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• USA
• English
• TEDxRedMountain
• Technology
• Education
• Community
• Culture
• Media
• Meteorologist
• James Spann
• Tornado
• April 27th
• Storm
• Warning
• discussion
• educational

[smitken]

@thatnickjones Indeed. My point: without modern radar, vigilant meteorologists like @spann, his broadcast colleagues and the NWS, without weather radios, days of advanced warning and so on numbers from a storm like that are drastically higher. All of those things and the people invested in the public good save numerous lives every time the weather pops.

This was terrible, yes. Just a generation ago it would have been a different level of devastating.

[thatnickjones]

@smitken Why did so many people die? It was one of the most violent tornadoes in Alabama history. It is hard to survive a direct hit from an EF-4 or EF-5 tornado even if you do all the right things.

[icemage943]

U Stream is what I watched. We didn't have TV at our house when it hit. U Stream saved our lives.

[moe405]

Outstanding Video James. I agree completely. Especially with COMMUNICATING with your audience. I enjoy talking with my fans. Also, I do not like Auto-Feed Warnings. Its impersonal and uninformative. Thank you for all that you do. You are right on the money. Keep fighting the good fight ! Social Media is the way of the future.

[smitken]

Why did so many die? It is a tragedy. But consider how many survived, thanks to broadcast, online, NWS and personal networks. Those were technological near-miracles.

[thatnickjones]

Great talk James! I applaud what you do! Hate I missed the event. Didn't even know about it.