TAMARAC, FLA. — When it came time to prepare for one of the biggest and most dangerous hurricanes to ever make landfall in the mainland U.S., there was one “overwhelming” choice when it came to news and information before, during, and after the storm.
No, it wasn’t radio, although it played a big part as a dissemination vehicle. The trophy goes to local broadcast TV, so says the trade association that represents VHF and UHF stations across the U.S.
As news surfaced this morning of the deaths of 8 nursing home residents at a facility just six blocks north of RBR+TVBR’s editorial offices in Hollywood, Fla., we were emotionally stricken. It empowered us to pen an RBR+TVBR OBSERVATION, which appears below for subscribers only.
The TVB on Wednesday released its official Hurricane Irma media usage survey results—a proprietary survey conducted by Research Now.
Sadly, it is an extension of the Hurricane Harvey Media Usage study released Aug. 30.
What were TVB and Research Now’s findings?
“Live, local broadcast television news connects viewers to their communities and serves as the leading and most reliable source for real-time reporting and lifesaving information in emergencies,” said TVB President/CEO Steve Lanzano. “As Hurricane Irma approached Florida markets, residents overwhelmingly chose their local broadcast TV stations over all other media for storm coverage, with 85% of survey respondents using local TV news for critical information.”
Furthermore, Lanzano said, “On a daily average, Floridians spent the most time with local TV news during the weather emergency, with over five hours of viewing, while Hispanic viewers spent nearly six hours.”
There was even more glowingly positive data for local TV, courtesy of TVB Chief Research Officer Hadassa Gerber. She said, “In a state always on alert during hurricane season, 31% of respondents reported that they downloaded their local TV station’s mobile app specifically for situations like Irma.”
Research Now surveyed 1,193 respondents about their media consumption habits related to Hurricane Irma.
Interviews began midday Friday (9/8) in Miami, Ft. Myers and West Palm Beach and midday Saturday (9/9) in Tampa-St. Petersburg, Orlando and Jacksonville—prior to widespread power outages that still greatly impact 300,000 residents of Broward County and much of Miami-Dade County.
What was the top reason respondents gave for using local TV websites and/or apps during storms? “The constant updates and latest information” was the most common answer.
RBR+TVBR OBSERVATION: Look at the above statistic. Now, you have every reason to tune out any puffery coming from radio industry trade associations touting the power of local radio during Hurricane Irma. It wasn’t there, except for a handful of instances we here in Broward County, Fla., personally experienced. As noted yesterday, Entercom-owned WLYF-FM Director of Programming & Operations Rob Sidney made the wise choice by having air personalities Julie Guy and Gayle Garton stick with storm coverage in between music and live simulcasts of WPLG-10’s local evening and nighttime newscasts.
Why? Because, how the heck were we supposed to watch the local TV newscasts without power for so long? So, so many stations returned to regular programming; Alpha Media’s West Palm Beach stations took a beating and WEAT-FM “Sunny 107.9” had only returned Monday late afternoon. WIOD-AM 610 is off, and using WINZ-AM 940 to broadcast — this is irony, as the two stations were once fierce competitors, and while powerless for 33 hours reading Towers in the Sand by Donn Collee Jr. we learned a lot about the history of Florida radio and TV, and how so many radio stations in the past were lifelines of information during emergency situations.
In Irma, they were lifelines … but only to retransmit the outstanding coverage from TV news crews with the budget — and people — to do the job right. We will not apologize in noting that iHeartMedia’s coverage originating from WIOD-AM 610 was a bit inferior to anything coming from any Miami-market TV station. In West Palm Beach, we heard no local announcers taking the mic — only WPEC-12 simulcasting on WRMF-FM 97.9.
Yes, there is an issue of personnel safety. But, did you see what WTVJ-6’s entire news team was doing? Jackie Nespral and Keith Jones were somehow, with satellite phones, broadcasting live from a destroyed mobile home park in Islamorada, in the battered Florida Keys. How about WSVN-7 sending sports guy Steve Shapiro out in the field to report on gas stations and availability in Broward County? WPLG-10 had a reporter driving around South Beach providing live play-by-play for both radio and TV consumers. WFOR-4 also gets kudos for their wall-to-wall coverage, simulcast on CBS Radio’s stations including WKIS-FM 99.9 and WPOW-FM 96.5.
Lastly, we lament the dismal state of the local newspaper industry. The Sun-Sentinel, a Tronc publication, and the Miami Herald, a McClatchy publication, have fallen far, far below the TV stations in both English and Spanish when it comes to news delivery. A trickle of newspapers with great pics sat at Publix untouched; social media and TV connectivity was the “must.”
Radio sat somewhere between TV and newspaper — the “last resort” media. That’s good, but it’s not good enough.
TVB’s survey may be a bit self-serving. But, it’s true and it is the result of a newspaper industry that has all but seen great publications crumble in South Florida. Don’t let the radio industry crumble in the same way. Be more than a “last resort” media the next time we’re in a emergency situation.
Oh, wait … we still are. And, TV gets it.
Adam R Jacobson has lived in Hollywood, Fla., since 2013 and in the Miami area since September 2006. He rode out Hurricane Andrew in Aug. 1992 in Pompano Beach, Fla., after being forced to evacuate his parents’ home, which did not have storm damage. He cannot return home from Hurricane Irma due to trees falling on cars across his community, down power lines, and the breaking news regarding multiple deaths at a nursing home one mile north of his apartment.
