Read More of the Same Day's Blog

Weather made news again. Last Friday's Story of the Day was the devastation left by tornados in central Florida. Next a mass of frigid air descended on the northern tier of states from the Great Lakes to New England. CBS, the network that broadcast Sunday's Super Bowl, led its newscast from Indianapolis, where the victorious Colts were welcomed home by frozen fans. ABC and NBC chose the losing city, chilly Chicago.

"There are just not enough adjectives to describe how bitter and bone chilling this cold snap really is," complained NBC's Kevin Tibbles beside the Chicago waterfront. How cold was it? School buses would not start so hundreds of thousands of students got an unexpected day off in Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio and Indiana, CBS' Cynthia Bowers told us. ABC's Dean Reynolds (subscription required) quoted a tow truck operator's explanation of why his business was so brisk: "Nothing starts. Nothing moves. Everything breaks." Back on NBC, when he was two minutes into his report, even Tibbles' splendid hat was proving ineffective. He dropped a hint that he wanted to wrap up his report: "It takes less than five minutes for any exposed skin to be frostbitten."

Andrew Tyndall 2/7/07 12:03:05 am

© 2010 Tyndall Report