KFOR Dual Dopplers, Dual Dead?

[MalikR 0]

Has anyone noticed that since the move to the new building, KFOR has not used South or North Doppler? Does anyone know if they are getting a new radar upgrade or something? It’s been almost 5 years. 

[JCB4TV 347]

On 3/18/2021 at 12:55 AM, MalikR said:

Has anyone noticed that since the move to the new building, KFOR has not used South or North Doppler? Does anyone know if they are getting a new radar upgrade or something? It’s been almost 5 years. 

As a longtime KFOR viewer, I've wondered the same as to whether Tribune shut them down as some point as a cost move. Sadly, I doubt that Nexstar will spend on a new or upgraded system.

[dman748 1256]

I can probably chime in on this one.

 

I think Tribune "may" very well have shuttered the dual doppler radars at KFOR. It's one thing to have it shuttered for like a couple of weeks or something of alike to upgrade your radar but to have it shuttered for 3, 4 or even 5 years and at that point you have to wonder if it was part of the cost saving moves that Tribune made and I firmly believe that it was the case.

[edladd 14]

KFOR is unfortunately past its glory days. They and KOCO both are plagued by KWTV's seemingly unlimited resources.

[edladd 14]

I just checked the news ...neither KFOR or KOCO sent anyone to the NCAA Tourney although KWTV sent two (although one is from sister station KOTV in Tulsa). Heck, 9 even has a reporter that goes to every Thunder game...home and AWAY.

[JCB4TV 347]

5 minutes ago, edladd said:

I just checked the news ...neither KFOR or KOCO sent anyone to the NCAA Tourney although KWTV sent two (although one is from sister station KOTV in Tulsa). Heck, 9 even has a reporter that goes to every Thunder game...home and AWAY.

Nexstar & Hearst will probably blame COVID for not sending a reporter to Indiana. At least KFOR can get help from either WTTV/WXIN or a NewsNation reporter, while KOCO could obtain assistance from a Hearst reporter on scene, presumably WLKY.

[24994J 5577]

WGN9 sent a reporter to Indy, as well. There's no need for every market to send someone for what might be just a one-and-done game. I fully expect many stations to send a reporter if a local team advances to the Final Four. Nothing wrong with regionalized pool reporting until then.

[dman748 1256]

6 hours ago, edladd said:

KFOR is unfortunately past its glory days. They and KOCO both are plagued by KWTV's seemingly unlimited resources.

You're probably right about that, KWTV/Griffin has a vast amount of resources with radar and everything else that I guess Nexstar/Tribune just couldn't keep up with.

 

What a shame that KFOR has fallen that far, I really wish I could see how the ratings look like for OKC stations but that's a different topic for another day

[DirtyHarry 727]

Why does the station need its own radar with all the technology available nowadays? The National Weather Service is going to have a far more robust radar than anything a TV station is going to have.

[dman748 1256]

25 minutes ago, DirtyHarry said:

Why does the station need its own radar with all the technology available nowadays? The National Weather Service is going to have a far more robust radar than anything a TV station is going to have.

Because.. KWTV is Oklahoma's Own.

 

They're just a lot more willing to spend the big bucks on radar technology than anyone else. They've been investing in weather technologies since Gary England became chief in 1972.

[LexTVandRadio 418]

On 4/7/2021 at 4:24 PM, DirtyHarry said:

Why does the station need its own radar with all the technology available nowadays? The National Weather Service is going to have a far more robust radar than anything a TV station is going to have.

I often wonder that myself.  Here in Lexington, WLEX is replacing their 18 year old radar that was still running windows XP. 

 

https://www.lex18.com/weather/bill-meck-explains-what-makes-maxtrack-2-0-the-most-accurate-radar-in-lexington

 

 

 

[DirtyHarry 727]

21 minutes ago, LexTVandRadio said:

I often wonder that myself.

 

In a way, I can understand it here in Columbus since the National Weather Service radar is 70 mi away in Wilmington, but I'm still skeptical that it's any more than a marketing gimmick. It might help, but if I were paying for it out of my own checkbook I doubt I would write the check.

[MalikR 0]

On 4/9/2021 at 1:32 PM, DirtyHarry said:

 

In a way, I can understand it here in Columbus since the National Weather Service radar is 70 mi away in Wilmington, but I'm still skeptical that it's any more than a marketing gimmick. It might help, but if I were paying for it out of my own checkbook I doubt I would write the check.

When you have someone like Mike Morgan that is able to interpret live radar data and use it to its full capabilities, then it is VERY useful. For Mike it was never a marketing gimmick, and their live radar at KFOR still is not a marketing gimmick. 

[carolinanews4 376]

On 4/7/2021 at 4:24 PM, DirtyHarry said:

The National Weather Service is going to have a far more robust radar than anything a TV station is going to have.

I'm not sure that is an accurate statement. Perhaps in some areas, but certainly not all. The Charlotte market has long lacked its own NWS radar. The area has traditionally been "covered" by the NWS radar located in Greer, S.C. Due to Charlotte's distance from the radar tower and the curvature of the Earth, radar coverage was impossible at ground level. In fact, Charlotte was the largest metro without its own next gen radar. The Greer radar provided only "fair" coverage of the city and had huge gaps in the northern suburbs. There is FAA operated radar at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, which provides limited supplemental coverage but is not very strong. 

 

This is why WSOC has continued to operate their own radar tower in Mint Hill, SC (a small town adjacent to Charlotte). WCNC and WBTV both used to operate their own radars but have since abandoned those efforts. Is WSOC's radar a marketing gimmick? Maybe. But WSOC doesn't have to deal with the 6 minute delay experienced by stations that rely on NWS radar. (That's how long it takes for the NWS radar to fully update) That's a sizeable advantage when it comes to severe summer storms.  

 

While Charlotte is the largest population without adequate coverage, we are not alone. NWS gaps exist in Southeast OK/Northeast Texas, North-Central Florida, West Virginia, and East Tennessee. Those are just the gaps - other areas might not have ideal coverage. That's why you see some stations willing to invest in operating their own radar. Call it marketing. Call it station investment. However you want to classify it, there are reasons why some stations don't subscribe to the theory that NWS has "more robust radar". Just food for thought.

[MidwestTV 1232]

21 hours ago, carolinanews4 said:

But WSOC doesn't have to deal with the 6 minute delay experienced by stations that rely on NWS radar. (That's how long it takes for the NWS radar to fully update) That's a sizeable advantage when it comes to severe summer storms. 

It takes ~6 minutes to complete a full scan of all levels depending on what mode the radar is in. New technology within the last 10 years allows for radar to be set into various different modes that will provide updates for the lowest levels in as little as 2 or 3 minutes. I'm just playing semantics, I understand your point.

[qunewsguy 377]

The latest Baron control software lets stations run rapid update "sector" scans that focus on individual storms instead of doing full sweeps. That's about the only advantage gimmick left for those smaller radars.