Seeing stars on weather

Press, 13 May 1981, Page 18

Seeing stars on weather

PA Wellington The meteorological office in Wellington is assessing the star quality of its staff in case they have to present weather bulletins on television. The chief forecaster (Mr Alex Neale) said that the Broadcasting Corporation had asked the office some months ago whether any. of its staff “would be reasonable in presenting the weather.”

“What we are looking for are.people who know something about the weather and can really come across with it,” Mr Neale said. But, as far as he knows, introducing the voice of the Met Office to television and community radio stations would not mean doing away with the weather presenters used by Television New Zea-land--v A... .’ •:

If the idea succeeds Met Office staff would present some of the existing weather forecasts on television or even supplementary forecasts if the Broadcasting Corporation decided to put them on.

The office has received numerous letters from farmers and fisherman wanting a weathermap televised when transmission started in the afternoon, Mr Neale said.

The reason for the Corporation’s approach was to make forecasts more exact and give them more authority.

Community radio and television’s presentations sometimes sacrificed accuracy to chattiness, Mr Neale said.

They were not obliged to read the forecasts exactly as the Met Office sent them out, but the meaning' :was supposed to be. the same.