Yep, it's satire:

Conservative multimedia mogul Rupert Murdoch recently announced the creation of Fox Weather Channel, a 24-7 cable news channel devoted to "a fair, balanced view of the natural world around us." Fox Weather hopes to pull viewers who have grown frustrated with what Murdoch describes as the "overtly feminine, human and scientific tone of The Weather Channel.  In a nut shell, we want people to see that weather is not for pansies."  

"People want to go to a channel and see a tornado plow through a trailer park.  They don't want a tear-jerker about losing your home in a tsunmani," Don Anderson, the program director explained. 

 

Jennifer Tochensky, a weather enthusiast, expressed these same concerns. "I want big waves crushing buildings.   It needs to be more badass.  More Chuck Norris and less Oprah."  

For this reason, the show will create a Weather Center program modeled after the popular ESPN program Sports Center.  Here analysts will do a "Top Ten Destructive Moments" of the day segment.  

"With all this climate change nonsense, viewers have begun to see weather as something fragile.  We want them to yell out 'Holy sh--! That's better than a fu--ing monster truck ralley! And with the advent of 3-D television, we're the network to bring this daily destruction.  And if we can do it with some, you know, really hot weather babes, then we might be gaining a whole new demographic," Anderson said to at the packed Fox Weather Launch Party. 

However, some meteorologists were concerned with Fox Weather's action-oriented reporting, citing the fact that the list of banned words (barometric pressure, convergence zones, weather system) and the use of rounding to make "clean numbers" is an insult to the intelligence of viewers.  Still, many test audiences have embraced these changes.  

"Look, I don't live in Communist Canada.  I don't need Celsius to confuse me," one woman explained.  

Another test screener added, "I like the rounding of numbers.  Don't lie to me and say it's going to be 92 degrees.  Just say 'around ninety' and I'm good.  Plus, it looks so much cleaner.  Nice round numbers." 

Executives of the newly developed Fox Weather Channel explain that it goes beyond being viewer-friendly.  Proponents see this move as a Murdoch-sponsored crusade to bring fairness and balance back to the airwaves. 

As one talk radio host puts it, "Look, we're tired of being talked down to.  Do we really need a segment where government bureaucrats warn us to use sun screen or buy bottled water?  I'd like to see a weather channel that rejects the nanny state."  

For these reasons, Fox Weather will avoid using clips and data from the National Weather Service (or as they put it "the Socialized Climate Police") and instead focus on using their own data.  Furthermore, they intend to create special investigative reports about the "lies of climate change" and the dangers of socialist groups like FEMA and The Red Cross.  Furthermore, in times of natural disasters, they hope to present a more business-friendly perspective.  

"Viewers don't want to view hyped-up propaganda about radiation or oil-coated seal lungs.  Just tell them whether or not it will be sunny for the Super Bowl and help them to see that they can trust the transnational corporations calling the shots," Anderson said.   

Critics are quick to point out that the Weather Channel isn't typically singled out for being particularly liberal.  "We're just a bunch of weather geeks," Bill Odom, a chief meteorologist, explained.  "I mean, we don't even follow politics.  Just weather.  Oh, and we play Black Opps.  Yeah, lots of Call of Duty.  You know, you can only look at clouds so much before you want to kill an imaginary terrorist." 

Gladys Jorgenson, a journalism professor for the University of California - Santa Cruz, explained, "The weather has always been considered neutral.  Aside from the anthropological approaches to cultural criticism, few have suggested that weather reports serve a political agenda.  This, however, could be the impetus in politicizing a formerly neutral area of journalism."

Some critics are skeptical that Fox will pull much of an audience in an already unpopular venue.  However, Janet Pineda, author of the insider publication Weather Media Journal points out, "Don't write them off so quickly.  If Fox knows how to do anything, it's sensationalism and fear.  What better format to ensure both than weather?  This could be the perfect convergence of conservative journalism and sensationalist news.  Right now, most Weather Channel viewers are either losers or people stranded at the air port.  Fox can redefine this market and make it viable for advertising."