I’ve read that WJLA-TV, the ABC affiliate here in Washington, is often at odds with the network. As the ABC outlet in Washington, DC, their refusal for years to install a high-definition encoder for their digital station infuriated network officials who were testifying in Congress on digital television. And what’s worse is their constant pre-emption of network programming for pretty strange reasons. Billy Graham specials in prime time are odd enough, but yesterday they prempted network programming for an hour at 8pm to show a home-grown infomercial entitled “Doug Hill’s Winter Outlook.” For some reason, my TiVo thought I’d be interested in this, and recorded it.
Imagine, if you will, the 2 minute weather segment on the news expanded to a full hour, but with the same about of actual weather content. The show consisted mainly of footage of last year’s snow: buses driving in snow, cars skidding in snow, snow plows moving snow, kids sledding in snow, and a bunch of people standing around in snow being interviewed and giving such insightful gems as…
“I thought my car was gone! I only saw the side view mirror. Nothin’ else left.”
This program was the ultimate evidence of the bizarre snowphobia that grips Washington, DC. Just the mention of what is euphemistically called “the S word” makes people here nuts. Schools close at the thought. Grocery stores are mobbed. People call their friends and ask, “Is it snowing there?”
And the main instigator of all this nonsense is the local news media. It doesn’t matter what’s happening in the world — terrorism, war, death — if there is snow in the forecast, that’s the lead story.
This is not the tropics. It snows here every winter. Get a grip, people.
And, as the first flakes of snow begin to fall, a dozen cars drive into ditches, catch on fire or just plain break down in the center lane of 395.