Holly Smoke, QUAKE! --More like, quake. We're getting worked up over 4.0 "jolts?" Seriously now. We're such pussies.
OK, for the record, I was awakened by this (Monday) morning Earth fart. It was jolting and jarring but it was over quickly. What's going to happen when a 7.2 hits? We'll all be shitting in our pants and hope we have cable and water.
Immediately went to KCBS and heard Stan Bunger giggle, "yes, that was an earthquake", as if to say, shit, that was kinda, sorta, big...and then immediately, my new heroine, traffic anchor, Kim Wonderly, acknowledged "I felt the MINOR quake." Then Wonderly, in her subsequent traffic reports referred to the "minor quake" (twice--with emphasis)--a direct rebuke to both Bunger and co-anchor, Susan Leigh Taylor's overreaction.
Furthermore, just after the fart, Bunger went to a phone hookup to reporter, Holly Quan, in the Oakland Hills, right near the epicenter. Quan: "You know, I have a day off and you all have to get me up and working." Huh? Hey Holly, grab yourself. You're not that big and your ego isn't either to begin doing sarcasm and comedy in the early morning.
OK, back to coffee and bagels.
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The KTVU folks were talking a mile a minute for a long time afterwards. So much so that sometimes you couldn't understand what they were saying.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was Karel falling off his soapbox, so I went back to bed.
ReplyDeleteGasia did most of the talking. Dave sat there and nodded and said "uh-huh" and "Right" a lot on a 2-shot. Eventually they just framed up on her. Later he seemed to pull hisself together, and eventually she calmed down.
ReplyDeleteSteve Paulson is now starring on YouTube, as he was on the air when the quake hit.
ReplyDeleteI can't wait for the 7+ quake that hits just hard enough to take out most of the cell networks due to power loss.
ReplyDeleteNo Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Teenagers will leap from bridges,Soccer moms won't have enough pills to OD on...
It will take days for TV stations to re-boot all those computers....a 50ft piece of video cable with BNC connectors will cost $1000 when I sell it to KTVU just so they can connect an analog Betacam directly to a transmitter.
"This ain't no party...this ain't no disco"!
I hope Grandma answers that POTS ringdown line we put in after "Loma Prieta".
This made me laugh.
DeleteKTVU's MO2 ran video of Steve Paulson's on-air reaction to the rumble about 100 times again and again and again. Now I'm tired of Steve Paulson.
ReplyDeleteOh, jeez, give the KCBS crew a break!
ReplyDeleteSince we've had two "little" quakes in the last couple of weeks now I've noticed that even though the quake rating might be small 3.3 and 4.0 it gives you a good jolt if you're close to the epicenter (of course we don't know until some minutes later whether we were on top of it or if the epicenter was 20 miles or more away). I've come to the conclusion for small quakes you can't really belittle someone's response, if their studio was closer then you are they felt it more. That 3.3 quake awhile back centered in the ocean off Marin got little news coverage, but if you were in the Ocean Beach area of SF it was a strong jolt.
ReplyDeletethey can all add to their twitter profile.. "Covered the Piedmont quake of 2015"
ReplyDelete"SURVIVED the Piedmont quake of 2015." They're probably already making T-shirts.
DeleteYou have too many people living here who aren't Bay Area natives. To them, it's a big event. They're fucking stupid people. That's reflected in the news coverage.
ReplyDeleteSo very true! The ABC7 website had a headline about "Quake ROCKS Bay Area." Bunch of idiots.
DeleteA subtle reminder to BE READY. Its coming, and no amount of sarcasm will help then.
ReplyDeleteLocal TV stations wish it were bigger. So sad they overreact. I wish we did have a big one. Then they'll regret it!
ReplyDeleteIsn't that what he always does?
ReplyDeleteI had KCBS on at the time of the earthquake and did not find any fault (no pun intended) with their coverage or any of the remarks that were made. Rich, you are barking up the wrong tree this time.
ReplyDeleteGood God I saw more measured reactions after the 1989 earthquake. Paulson must be from the midwest. Perhaps more of these little jolts will scare enough of the gentrifiers and hipsters moving into the bay area and they all leave!
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of jolts. Richard: I was jolted when I heard Brian Sussman fill in AGAIN for Dr. Savage today. More than ever I'm convinced he has pictures. How can this morning zoo, global warming denier be given a fill in post for the good Doctor?!?!?!??!
"global warming denier"
ReplyDeleteIs like an "infidel", a term used by people who don't ascribe to one of the other religions?
It is hard to forget the breathless and bouncy Melanie Morgan on KGO Radio following the Loma Prieta quake, inviting listeners to phone in with their experiences (where were you and what were you doing), in direct contradiction with pleas from authorities to limit use of the telephone following the quake for emergency use only.
ReplyDeleteIt's actually a symptom of the decline in news. It's free to cover an earthquake... Like traffic and weather. No cost to have some idiot mindlessly babble about the non event. Take a few calls, post a few tweets and show the usgs website. Mindless dreck. You don't even have to change out of your sweats or let the bun down.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who was midway between the epicenter and KTVU, I can say the earthquake didn't seem small at all. I was actually quite shaken for a good two hours. I'm not surprised the folks at KTVU seemed much more rattled than the KPOX folks apparently did.
ReplyDelete