Transcript of In the Newsroom with Sarah Collins. Interview with Dr. Weaver, Dr. Richardson, and James Martin.
Sarah Collins: Good evening, and welcome to In the Newsroom. I’m Sarah Collins, and tonight, we have a special segment on the unprecedented meteorological event that has taken the world by storm – quite literally. Joining me tonight are Dr. James Weaver, a meteorologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Dr. Emily Richardson, head of the theology department at Stanford University; and Senator James Martin, who served over thirty years on Capitol Hill. Thank you all for being here.
Dr. Weaver: Happy to be here, Sarah.
Dr. Richardson: Thanks for having me, Sarah.
Senator Martin: It’s a pleasure.
Sarah Collins: Dr. Weaver, let’s start with you. The world has been captivated by reports from various countries about what happened yesterday. This event, commonly referred to as The Storm, encircled the globe and brought about some truly bizarre phenomena. We’ve heard of bubbles raining down in Sao Paulo, the scent of baked goods wafting through parts of England, and unsettling reports from Pucon, Chile, where an entire town was reportedly driven mad. Can you tell us what might be causing these occurrences?
Dr. Weaver: Certainly, Sarah. This storm is unlike anything we’ve experience before. Our initial observations suggest it might be caused by a combination of unique atmospheric anomalies and environmental factors that we’ve never encountered before.
Sarah Collins: I’m sorry, Doctor. Could you explain that for the people at home?
Dr. Weaver: {chuckles} Of course. Take the bubbles in Sao Paulo that you mentioned. They could be the result of specific pollutants in the air reacting with moisture, creating a natural foaming effect. As for the scent of baked goods in England, that could be linked to volatile organic compounds being released from vegetation or soil. In short, there are logical explanations for all these things. But, in truth, we’re still in the early stages of understanding what’s happening here. We need a lot more data to pinpoint the causes behind these phenomena.
SC: And the reports coming out of Pucon? How could a storm cause an entire town to go insane?
Dr. Weaver: That’s by far one of the more perplexing aspects we’re running into. While we can hypothesize scientific explanations for most of the phenomena we’re observing, Pucon presents a particularly challenging case. It’s possible the storm carried toxic substances that affected the neurological functioning of the residents. We’ve seen instances where pollutants have entered rainwater and spread over large areas due to meteorological events. We’re exploring various possibilities, including chemical pollutants or even fungal spores that might have been carried by the storm. However, I have to reiterate, these are just hypotheses at this stage, and we still need to collect more data.
SC: People are asking if this could happen again. Is this the new normal? I’ve seen a number of people on social media linking this storm to global warming and climate change and wondering if this is going to be a recurring event. What are your thoughts?
Dr. Weaver: It’s a valid concern, Sarah, but the honest answer is we just don’t know yet. Good science takes time. We need to gather data, develop hypotheses, and test them against the facts and figures we collect. It will take time to understand what caused this storm. It will take time to understand what its long-term effects might be. It will take time to figure out what this means for future meteorological events. Right now, we have far more questions than answers.
SC: Senator Martin, you’ve spent years on Capitol Hill. What sort of government response can we expect to see in the wake of this storm?
Senator Martin: I’ve been on the phone all day with people from both sides of the aisle, and what I’m hearing is that both houses are trying to come up with a plan to present to the President. I’d say that an emergency funding bill is going to move through the House as early as tomorrow and then it’ll quickly pass through the Senate and land on the President’s desk by the end of the week.
SC: That’s…fast. What will be the focus of the bill?
Senator Martin: Well, people are scared. And they want to see that their government is working for them. I expect that the bill is going to release funds to make sure emergency services are mobilized. Congress is going to be spending a bunch of money on the areas of the country that were most affected. Some regions, like my home state of Missouri, came through relatively unscathed and won’t need as much help. And that actually poses a problem for Congress.
SC: How so? Shouldn’t it make passing the bill easier if not everyone needs funding?
Senator Martin: It’s because not everyone is getting money that makes it a problem. We’ve seen it with other natural disasters; some Senators and Representatives will ask why their tax dollars should go to states hit by tornadoes or hurricades, and they grandstand and try to stall the bills. You’re also going to see Senators and Representatives try to make a big deal about runaway federal spending, just to get their faces on TV. We’ve seen it time and time again.
SC: So, if this bill does pass, what’s going to be in it? Have you heard any specifics?
Senator Martin: Besides funding for emergency responders? There’s also talk about earmarking money for various studies. As Dr. Weaver pointed out, science takes time. Some of my former colleagues are talking about bringing in scientists from all over so we can analyze all this data that’s being collected. You also have people out of work because of the storm, so the bill could include money for people whose lives were disrupted by the stomr. And you’ve got mental health resources that are being talked about. There was a lot of stress and anxiety caused by all these stories we’re hearing about. But I wouldn’t hold out much hope for either of those two things to make it through the working groups.
SC: Dr. Richardson, there are people who are viewing these events through a spiritual or religious lens. We’ve reported on several groups claiming that this is a warning from God. What are your thoughts on that?
Dr. Richardson: The Storm has certainly sparked a lot of spiritual reflection, Sarah. Throughout history, unusual natural phenomena are often seen as the sign of a higher power. Storms, in particularly, are deeply connected with religious symbolism – think of Rembrandt’s Christ in the Storm on the Sea of Galilee, which depicts Jesus calming a tempest.
SC: Do you believe this storm was caused by a higher power?
Dr. Richardson: Raining bubbles, the events on Everest, reports of strange figures in the sky, the madness in Pucon – all those phenomena are reminiscent of stories of divine interventions. Many people see The Storm as a way to urge us to reconnect with our spiritual roots.
SC: Then, how do you respond to those who say this is a purely scientific phenomena with no spiritual implications at all?
Dr. Richardson: Well, I don’t believe that spirituality and science are at odds at all. Einstein famously believed in a higher power. Johannes Kepler saw his work as a way to understand God’s creations. Norman Borlaug, who devoted his entire life to feeding others, was a believer. Science can help us better understand these events; spirituality can help us find meaning and purpose in them. It’s about keeping an open mind, recognizing the scientific explanations and being open to the possibility that a deeper, spiritual meaning can compliment that.
SC: But what happens when the spiritual and religious gets misused by governments?
Dr. Richardson: Unfortunately, there are plenty of examples where people have misused religion and spirituality. What we need right now is for scientists to gather the data, politicians to make informed decisions, and religious and spiritual leaders to help people better understand the ethical and moral issues we face.
SC: We’ve seen a few religious organizations claim that this is the end times. What would you say to them right now?
Dr. Richardson: It’s understandable that, the more we learn about all the events that took place, the more people are thinking about apocalyptic scenarios. It’s something that was bound to happen. But we’ve seen all this before – throughout history, natural disasters have been mistaken for the end times. But humanity has endured them. The Storm is mysterious, but it doesn’t necessarily mean an impending apocalypse.
Dr. Weaver: Consider in…I think it was the 1780s or 1790s, up in New England. The sky went pitch black in the middle of the day to the point that everyone needed to use candles at noon. People thought it was the end of days. But, we know that it was caused by the smoke from forest fires in Canada mixing with a thick New England fog. The more we learn about this storm, the more data we can collect and analyze, the less panic and concern it’ll cause.
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SC: So, you believe we should be studying this storm solely from a scientific perspective.
Dr. Weaver: Science doesn’t operate in isolation. A field like climatology has deep roots with the Greeks and the Chinese. The British used to study it for reliable trade wind data. Now, the field is interconnected with agriculture, political science, manufacturing, and many more fields besides. No field of science is completely separate. Understanding this storm is going to require a multidisciplinary approach, combining scientific research with insights from many different fields.
SC: Dr. Richardson, we’re seeing fractures within some religious communities, each with their own different interpretation of what has happened. How are you seeing this division?
Dr. Richardson: You do often have interpretations of religious texts that depict the end times, but these texts are often symbolic and open to interpretation. You need to understand the historical and cultural context they were written in and approach them with a nuanced understanding. Yes, they can offer wisdom and guidance without necessarily predicting future events.
Senator Martin: America has a long history of end-of-days fears. Remember Y2K? That was all people wanted to talk about back in 1999. Or what about when Sputnik launched and people thought the space race was over and everyone in America thought the Soviet Union would be launching nukes soon after. But we’re all still here.
Sarah Collins: You can’t deny that there’s a lot of fear out there. We’ve reported on riots and widespread panic in a lot of places.
Dr. Richardson: Fear is a natural response to everything we’re learning. The Storm is something that is so unprecedented that fear is natural. But, I would also tell people that it’s a time to find comfort in something greater than themselves. It doesn’t have to be faith, although that can help. They can find peace in their communities or by learning more about what’s happening. It’s important that we keep educating people on The Storm. We need to support one another and being patient and kind to one another. Look to spiritual leaders, scientists, and experts. Humanity has had challenges before, and we’ve overcome them. We’ll have challenges ahead of us, and we’ll overcome those too.
&&&&&
Malcolm wasn’t happy at all with the interview that had just aired. The biggest news story of the century, possibly of all time, and his anchor was stuck talking to people who had no charisma or screen presence. He could understand the scientist and theologist not being great on tv, but how had Senator Martin ever gotten elected when he was that dull?
In J-school, one of his professors said that a reporter only ever gets to use one exclamation mark in their entire career. Moon landing! Manned flight! War! Those three guests that he was forced to put on the air were ruining his exclamation mark moment with their dullness.
He strolled into the conference room and took his seat at the foot of the table, looking out at all the reporters and producers he called together. “Okay everyone, that was…not great.”
“You’re telling me,” complained Sarah. “I had to carry all three of them through that interview.”
“We’ll look to get better guests but, at the moment, everyone we can call up is still trying to come to terms with what happened. We’ll need to lean on the stories themselves,” announced Malcolm. “We should have been doing that from the start. I need photos, videos, interviews with people who experienced these events. We’ve already been on the phone with local news agencies and wire services. AP is sending out their reporters to every confirmed event, and we should be getting good quotes soon. What we need are pitches. Give me some stories to chase, people.”
Terry, one of the older producers Malcolm had brought along with him from his previous news show, pulled out his notepad and started reading from it. “I’ve got one. United Airlines 1170. It was going from LAX to Honolulu. Flew through one of The Storm clouds, and everyone inside blacked out for a second. All of them, including the pilot.”
“What happened? Did it crash?”
“Nope. They came to a moment later. But nobody on the plane knew how they got there,” Terry explained. “The Storm wiped out the last three weeks of their memories. People were freaking out because, one moment they’re at home or work or wherever, and the next they’re on a plane flying over the Pacific. I spoke with someone at the FAA who says they’re listening to the black box now, but they’re not releasing any information on it.”
Malcolm nodded. “Good, stay on that. Who do we have in Hawaii? Get them to do some interviews with the passengers. We can cut it together and get five minutes out of it. Next.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Malcolm saw one of the interns holding up his phone to try and get everyone’s attention, but he was cut off by the next producer at the table. Gotta be quicker than that, intern.
“I’ve been talking with the London bureau,” said another producer. “An old ship pulled into London harbor late last night.”
“And why is that interesting?” Malcolm asked. “I assume a bunch of ships pull into the harbor every night.”
“Old ship. Like…really old. Sails old. But that’s not the most interesting thing.”
“I don’t like it when people keep me in suspense,” Malcolm said with an eyeroll. “Being mysterious doesn’t work in a newsroom.”
“Nobody is talking about it. Everyone we’ve got at the London bureau has been reaching out to their sources. Military, government, royal family, they’re all quiet. Nobody is saying anything. It’s like it didn’t even happen, even though there were a few dozen witnesses to the thing pulling up to the harbor.”
“Okay…that’s odd, I’ll grant you that. Keep talking with the London bureau and keep me updated. Next.”
“I think we should dig into something Senator Martin mentioned about the government bill. He said they were looking at mental health services to help people cope with The Storm. We could do a few stories on that.”
Malcolm swiveled his chair to the producer who suggested it – Carol. He always suspected she was a day drinker. Her work was a little sloppy. He often found himself minutes away from firing her, but Carol had an uncanny ability to develop sources that others couldn’t. “Hmm, check back on that next week. Right now, we’re still focused on figuring out what actually happened during The Storm. Darren, what do you have?”
Darren was seated next to Carol, and he perked up at being called upon. He opened his notepad, a pained expression crossing his face. “Not much. Something happened in Lesotho.”
“Something happened in Lesotho,” Malcolm repeated in a flat voice. “You’re a reporter, and the best you’ve got is ‘something happened in Lesotho’?”
“I’ve been trying to decipher their social media posts, but they speak Sesotho, Xhosa, and about five dozen other languages there, none of which we have a translator for. I’m stuck using Google Translate, and it’s not all that great.”
“Well, what did you find out so far?”
“The Storm hit them and did something to their farmland, which could be really good or really bad. Most of their population are subsistence farmers.”
“Okay, keep me updated.” Malcolm turned to the next reporter down the line. Jeremy was a new guy eager to prove himself and Malcolm had parked him in front of a computer early in the morning to trawl through social media posts. “What do you got?”
“Uh, it could be big,” said Jeremy. “A Russian town was…moved. One moment they’re in Russia, and in the morning they’re not.”
“You’ve got to be kidding,” Malcolm said, stunned. “An entire town was moved?”
“Yea. Not only that, but it was moved to Kazakhstan. The town is now near…Zhalualy. I think I’m pronouncing that correctly. It’s a big lake inside the Kazakh borders. The people went to sleep, The Storm hit, and they woke up in a completely different country.”
“Oh man. That’s…potentially catastrophic. Russia and Kazakhstan used to be close allies, but their relationship has been strained ever since the invasion of Ukraine.”
Jeremy nodded. “Yea. I’m already reaching out to people at the Kazakhstan embassy in DC for comment. I was about to head over to the UN to see if I can get some reactions there. An entire Russian town inside Kazakh borders is going to be talked about. Kazakhstan is already wary of Russian interest in Northern Kazakhstan. There’s a large Russian minority in the region, so there are probably concerns that Russia might use this as a pretext for invasion or something.”
“Keep an eye on it. See if we’ve got anyone in the region who can get to the village. Next.” Malcolm’s eyes flittered to the intern struggling to join the conversation. Come on, kid, this is a newsroom. You’ve got to speak up if you want to be heard.
“There’s that guy in Brooklyn,” said Hailee, the next producer in line. “He’s been posting all morning saying The Storm made his apartment come alive and it tried to eat him. It’s been all over social media.”
“I’ve already sent someone over there to check on it,” Malcolm said, his eyes drifting towards the conference room door as it opened. “Speak of the devil. Tell us what you know, Matt.”
Matt, one of Malcolm’s most trusted reporters, strode into the conference room and tossed his bag on the table before easing into one of the chairs. “I know that I hate going to Brooklyn. I checked on that guy’s story. There’s nothing suggesting it’s true.”
“What do you mean?”
“I looked around, talked to some of the neighbors, found nothing. My guess, he saw everything that was being posted on social media and decided to get in on it by claiming he was involved in an event or something. Best I can tell, he’s lying out his ass.”
“Shit,” said Malcolm. His attention was once more drawn to the intern in the corner, holding his phone out. He was trying to make eye contact with…whomever so that it would give him permission to speak. Malcolm was about to berate him for not speaking up when Matt cut in.
“Yea, but you’re going to love what I did find. In the Uber back here, I started chatting with a couple sources out in the 72nd precinct. They cover the area around Sunset Park. They say they’ve got three people in custody for crimes committed yesterday – a shooting and two robberies.”
“And?”
“All three of them blamed The Storm for driving them mad enough to commit the crimes.”
Malcolm leaned back in his chair, taking in the information.
“I’m still not getting it,” Sarah said, looking between Malcolm and Matt. “What’s the significance?”
“It means Matt still loves to bury the lede for dramatic effect,” Malcolm said, shaking his head with a hint of a smile. Matt grinned and closed his notebook.
“You wanna fill the rest of us in?” asked Sarah.
“I’ve been checking on a few stories in New York, and none of them hold up. They all seem iffy. I wouldn’t run any of them because there’s not enough evidence that they’re true. That, combined with Matt’s guy in Brooklyn who, if Matt is right, is making up a story about his apartment trying to eat him…” Malcolm trailed off, piecing it all together. He leaned forward and pointed at Matt. “Do some more digging. Try reaching out to other precincts to see if they’re seeing the same thing.
“We start with the big stories. There’s one down in Pucon, but we need footage from someone down there. I know AP has a reporter heading to the town, but right now it’s only Chilean news sources. We can wait until the AP guy gets there. Then there’s the story in Wyoming I’ve been hearing about. Some guy flips out and tries to attack people in a diner, claiming The Storm told him to. That’ll grab attention.”
“Isn’t that a little…macabre?” asked one of the younger producers. “There are tons of stories out there. Do we really want to elevate the Wyoming or Pucon one?”
“Don’t you understand? There’s more to it than just the events themselves,” Malcolm said, his mind racing at the implications of Matt’s findings. “Cheyenne PD released a statement this morning saying they’re charging the guy in the diner with assault and attempted murder. What’s his defense going to be? Temporary insanity is nearly impossible to prove, but we just had a storm that caused ridiculous events. A town being teleported from Russia to Kazakhstan is going to make it much easier to convince a jury that The Storm made this guy attack people.”
“Malcolm, I swear to God—” grumbled Sarah. “Get to the point.”
“My point is that New York probably wasn’t hit by The Storm,” said Malcolm. “Think about it – we’ve got a bunch of stories that all seem fabricated. No one has any videos of these supposed events. If New York wasn’t affected by The Storm and people are just lying for social media attention, that undermines the defense of the three guys in Brooklyn who claim The Storm made them commit their crimes.
“How many other crimes happened yesterday with people blaming The Storm? Matt already dealt with one guy claiming his apartment tried to eat him. There are bound to be more like him. In a city of several million, there will be plenty trying to use this event as an excuse for their actions. That’s their defense: ‘The Storm made me do it.’
“First person to find a case where a murder happened after The Storm and the perpetrator uses it as an alibi gets a Snickers bar.”
The intern finally mustered the courage to raise his voice. “Uh, Malcolm?” he called out, his voice shaking slightly. Malcolm turned his gaze towards the intern, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes.
“Yes?” Malcolm asked, slightly impatient.
“I think I’ve got something interesting,” the intern said, trying to project confidence. It wasn’t going well because he had finally noticed everyone else in the room looking at him. He stepped forward and placed his phone on the table, showing a picture. “I, uh, I’ve been combing through social media. This picture was taken by an elderly couple on Tsushima Island. It’s near Japan. Or…it’s Japanese. Uh, the couple was out walking today and captured this.”
Malcolm squinted at the photo. “Okay, what am I looking at?”
One of the other producers, who had been glancing over Malcolm’s shoulder, piped up. “Oh, that’s probably Iki island.” When Malcolm raised an eyebrow at the remark he added, “my nephew played a lot of Ghost of Tsushima. Part of it takes place on Iki island.”
“No, it’s not Iki island,” the intern insisted, shaking his head. “Iki island is further away. This island wasn’t there before. It popped up overnight.”
Malcolm’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “A new island just appeared out of nowhere?”
The intern nodded fervently. “Yes, and it’s not just this one. I’ve been searching social media for mentions of islands, and I think I’ve found at least three others. That includes one that popped up off the coast of Manhattan.”
“You’re saying, an island appeared just off the coast of Manhattan,” said Malcolm, turning to the producers in the room. “And nobody in this room caught it because they didn’t think to look outside?!”