Comcast XFINITY TV → Re: [HD] We do not get the Local on the 8

Yes, these days there are almost as many hours of documentary series programs as there are actual Weather Center ones.

During these programs, the LOT8s info is usually displayed on the "Lower Display Line" as discussed in the Wikipedia article (»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lo ··· n_the_8s) on it:

quote:

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In recent years with the inclusion of original programming such as Storm Stories and Full Force Nature to The Weather Channel, the local forecasts now generally air only four times an hour during long-form entertainment-based programs and some forecast programming on the channel. Local weather information is provided during the other "8"'s on the Lower Display Line during these programs. The standard "Local on the 8s" segment airs during non-forecast programming once every half-hour, while at about the :18 and :48 point of every hour, the "Local on the 8s" local forecast information is aired during a live national forecast update by one of the channel's meteorologists, running in a simultaneous picture-in-picture.

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However, I subscribe to the Preferred Digital tier, so when I want to see the local weather, I usually just tune to the Weatherscan channel. Unfortunately, I can't get that on my DTAs, though.

 
You are being charitable when you label The Weather Channel's low-budget reality programs as "documentaries".

OK, I guess, TWC just calls them "series." More are on the way for the 2013-2014 season too:

Weather Channel Announces Five New Series
Network planning new morning show, enhanced local forecasts for fall
By Andrea Morabito, Broadcasting & Cable - April 3, 2013
»www.broadcastingcable.co ··· ries.php

quote:

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The Weather Channel is planning for 2013-14 to be a season of transformation for the network, which will include 20 primetime series, up from eight in 2012.

Network president David Clark detailed five of those new series at Weather Channel's upfront presentation on Wednesday morning. They include Secrets of the Earth, which premieres May 23 and uses computer graphics and expert scientists to reveal new aspects of the planet; Weather That Changed the World, launching June 6, which explores how weather impacted historic events like the sinking of the Titanic and the Hindenburg disaster; and August's Storm Warriors, which shows how people use incredible machines to work in the world's worst weather environments.

On tap for September is Strangest Weather on Earth which explores what causes phenomenon like raining frogs and volcano smoke rings, and Freaks of Nature which searches for people who have the ability to perform feats that would harm or kill the average human. Clark also announced the next edition of its Coast Guard series, Cape Disappointment, which follows rescuers at the headland in on the Columbia River in Washington.

Those join returning series like Coast Guard Alaska, Deadliest Space Weather, Forecasting the End, Hurricane Hunters, Lifeguard! and Prospectors that helped Weather Channel grow its ratings 10% with adults 25-54 in 2012.

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Of course, why bother with covering the weather anymore when 'reality' shows are so much better?

CNN should of been the one to buy out TWC.

The weather network does not have all of this reality BS.

comcast needs to quit calling it the weather channel. Call it the documentary channel 2. Most of the severe storms happen in the late afternoon and evening and instead I have to watch shark hunters or ice berg hunters or reef wranglers.
The weather channel is the new MTV!!!

If there is widespread severe weather, they do pre-empt the scheduled shows. This happened in May several times with those EF5 tornadoes.

Widespread, sure - but his point is valid, they don't really care about covering the weather anymore unless they get ratings.

The Local on the 8s segments, really don't provide a lot of detail anymore, especially with all of them being a minute long. It used to be that some of them were at least two minutes long and provided additional information (regional observations, air quality, almanac), but that stopped I believe late last year. It's a shame what the Weather Channel has come to, but it seems like a lot of cable channels have drifted from what their original intent was. I wouldn't mind having WeatherNation, since they only focus on the weather, but I'm not holding my breath on getting it anytime soon. But, at least I can watch the live feed on their website.
»weathernationtv.com/LocalWeather