The “Social Media-rologist” Dilemma

"Most of the 2-3 week “forecasts” are done by people not qualified to forecast the weather 2-3 days in advance. Most are young weather enthusiasts that, in their love for ice, snow, or severe weather, just “wishcast” by throwing out model maps they have pulled down on various sites promoting the weather they love and desire without understanding the limitations of using those products, or the science behind them."

I loved this part. Very well said.

As a youngish(30) person interested in weather, i run a facebook page dealing with weather and stormchasing. I do not feed into this type of game. Below is a copypasta of what i shared with my followers and attached this article.

"I have had a lot of questions recently about the upcoming weeks because of "media-rologists" posting long range models and they spread like wildfire. I won't make forecasts for anything that far out. I will not add to the hype that other folks feed to the masses. Yes, a model came out saying that Charlottesville is getting 25" of snow in the next few weeks. Do i believe it? Nope. But these Social Media Meteorologists want all of the "Likes" and "Shares" to get their name out there. I have a following of roughly 250 people. A good chunk of them are friends or acquaintances of mine that enjoy seeing pictures i post from stormchasing, or funny pictures i find online. I am not here to whip everybody into a frenzy because that is the last thing we need. Should you be prepared for snow? Absolutely, just like you should be prepared for rain, flooding, lightning, tornados, earthquakes, zombie apocalypse and anything else that might threaten you or your family members. But causing mass panic is not the way to get your name out there. So i will continue to share pictures of stormchasing, forecasts from TRUSTED sources, funny pictures and other things weather/preparedness related, but i will not feed you guys Click-Bait and things that will cause a panic. I appreciate each and every one of you that enjoy my page, and welcome any feedback.

Also, don't forget, milk and bread. :)"

I operate "Virginia Preparedness" on Facebook if you want to take a look, and don't forget to smash that "Like" button. /s

"I took a semester of meteorology class in college therefore I am an expert."

I did actually do that, but no I don't think I could make any predictions.

Whatever happened to that guy who used to issue his own watches, warnings, and advisories on Facebook?

As the family weather enthusiast (I have been this way for roughly 25 years now) I always tell people when they ask, I give them a rough estimate based on what I read and see on NWS sites, and always follow with a disclaimer "you know its not perfect science and this can go the othe way) I also avoid anything beyond 2 weeks if at all possible.

Then again most people dont do this.

This is probably one of my favorite articles to read on social media and weather. It sums it up pretty well. While I have started my own blog with Facebook and Twitter accounts, I always try to include statements to follow mainstream media for the most accurate information as I am still an amature (college studnet) and learning.

Occasionally I'll put out a snow amount graphic on what I think is "accurate" based on models and personal expereinces. Most times I pass on what the NWS is saying, but ocassionally modifiy it slightly based on my opinon.

With all this being said, although all this is fairly new, I am struggling getting views and followers because I'm not good at marketing, possibly because of my wording.