THE INSIDE STORY OF THE
WEATHER CHANNEL AS TOLD BY ITS FOUNDER
Twenty years ago, who'd have
believed that millions of viewers would follow the twists and turns of storms developing
across the globe with the rapt attention once reserved for thriller movies? That a single
television channel could simultaneously inform and entertain us, enrich our lives and, at
times, help save them?
This is the remarkable story
of The Weather Channel, a cable network that succeeded when almost all the experts
predicted it would fail. Told by one of the key figures in the network's success, former
Chairman and CEO Frank Batten, this is at once a deeply personal account of high-stakes
entrepreneurship and a fascinating case study of a media business both experiencing and
driving major change.
There are colourful
personalities from the on-camera meteorologists to the whiz kids recruited to help build
the company's core technology. There are adventures and dramas from the glitch-filled
national that saved by luck and a mysterious stranger to The Weather Channel's near-death
experience as its owner, Landmark Communications was poised to lose its entire $31 million
investment in the network. There are unexpected plot twists, risky ventures, failures and
victories.
Batten's engrossing narrative
reveals for the first time how The Weather Channel works its magic and the technological,
meteorological, and business innovations that have made it all possible. He takes us
behind the scenes as his unique network evolved from struggling start-up to media
powerhouse, from editorial cartoon fodder to vital public service.
Along the way, he shares
hard-won business lessons on breaking from convention and taking educated risks; bringing
a great idea to market; strengthening a brand;
leveraging disruptive
technologies/managing through failure; preserving a spirit of risk-taking through periods
of intense growth; and more.
An absorbing tale of success
against the odds, this book will appeal to entrepreneurs in all industries, as well as to
the millions of fans of The Weather Channel.
Frank Batten is the retired
Chairman and CEO of Landmark Communications, Inc., a private media company that owns
newspapers, speciality publications, television stations, and The Weather Channel.
276 pages