Why Do Reporters Stand Outdoors In Dangerous Hurricane Conditions?

The Weather Channel's Mike Bettes reports live
Wednesday evening in Tampa, Florida amid dangerous
winds and drenching rains. 

Wednesday night, CNN's Anderson Cooper got bopped in the face by a flying piece of debris during a live outdoor report on Hurricane Milton.

Also, a large tree fell on vehicles containing Fox Weather reporter Robert Ray and his crew just after a live shot of the storm 

NBC's Tom Llamas was doing a live shot in Sarasota moments after the calm eye of Hurricane Milton passed and the wind roared up again suddenly. He and his crew were forced to flee during the shot as a transformer exploded behind him. 

Cooper, Llamas, Ray and his crew were not hurt. 

Plus, there were others. Like Mike Bettes, who could barely stand on his feet in horrendous gusts and blinding rain in Tampa as debris scooted by behind him. Matthew Cappucci of My Radar and the Washington Post filmed from inside a rocking vehicle in downtown Sarasota, Florida as debris sailed past him and storm surge water began to fill the streets. 

And there's Jim Cantore, who's always out in the thick of every storm he can get his hands on. (When I saw Cantore last night, he was relatively tame, as he took viewers into a parking garage that was being invaded by a storm surge). 

So, the age old question comes back: Why do reporters go out in hurricanes in areas that have been evacuated, that emergency managers have deemed unsafe? After all, we know hurricanes are both windy and rainy, and have dangerous storm surges, right? So do they really have to stand out there in the weather?

Poynter, a non-profit journalism school and research center does have good answers to this question.  

"There is some value to the viewer to be able to see the intensity of the storm," Al Tomkins of Poynter said. "It can serve as a proxy for viewers who might have evacuated and want an eyewitness account of what they left behind. If you were locked in a shelter, you would be anxious to know what was happening outside."

Tomkins also raised this point: "If the world can see what is happening, then help is more likely to follow."

He added: "The communities that are suffering most desperately need journalists to document their needs. Help follows coverage. And I can say for sure that when Jim Cantore is on the air documenting the devastation in your town, emergency crews and federal aid will get there faster than if you suffer and nobody notices."

If that's true, it's probably worth it for reporters to barely be able to stand up while doing their live shot stand ups during the worst hours of a hurricane. 

 You might have noticed that increasingly, the meteorologists and reporters who stand outside and do reports during hurricanes have upped their game with safety equipment. Many of them now wear helmets and goggles to protect themselves. (Anderson Cooper was an unfortunate exception Wednesday evening. I'm glad he's OK).

Poynter's Tom Jones wrote in an op-ed that it would probably be a good idea to take viewers "behind the curtain" and show them that they only stand outside briefly for live shots, then take cover. And their live shots are usually in semi-protected areas. 

For instance, Jones pointed to CNN's Jason Carroll during power Hurricane Ida in Louisiana in 2021. He showed how the cameraman was sheltered next to a large, sturdy building during the live shot and how he also took shelter between shots. 

Reporters who do live shots in hurricanes do need to be careful to actually report and not grandstand. Most of the people doing live shots during Hurricane Milton last night were meteorologists, who could provide important contexts and forecasts and explanations of why viewers were seeing what they were seeing on their screens.

Then there's the storm chasers. Though the can be helpful, they're also after revenue on social media. So they take too many risks, in my opinion.  For some reason, some of them are attracted to mobile home parks during hurricanes, which feature huge, lethal chunks of sharp sheet metal blowing around. 

 Interestingly, Poynter's headquarters is in St. Petersburg, Florida, which got nailed by Hurricane Milton. They report all of their staff is safe and their buildings received just minor damage. That perspective gave them a good view of how reporters did covering Hurricane Milton.

Overall, national journalists did a solid job, but it's local reporters that really shined. They know their surroundings probably better than anybody, and they were able to focus on specific neighborhoods and their unique experiences with Hurricane Milton. 

In an age when all the crazies keep yelling out supposed fake news, we do have take a moment to honor real journalists who bring us the information we need during severe weather like hurricanes. 

Sure, we can laugh a little at Jim Cantore struggling to stay on his feet in a hurricane or rejoicing on camera at thunder snow. 

But while these reporters struggle in the weather, they do manage to provide a valuable service.