Weather anchor’s dress sparks social media firestorm
A screenshot of KTLA meteorologist Liberte Chan’s Facebook page.
LOS ANGELES » It’s become so common for some female TV weather reporters to dress like they are on the way to a cocktail party that their dresses should have long ago ceased to raise any eyebrows among viewers.
But there was eyebrow-raising aplenty across the Internet this week after KTLA-TV weather anchor Liberte Chan’s co-host handed her a dull-looking, gray sweater and she pulled it on over her black, sparkly, spaghetti-strap evening dress while delivering her report Saturday.
“You want me to put this on? Why? Because it’s cold?” Chan quipped when co-host Chris Burrous dangled the sweater from off camera as she was in the middle of explaining why the gloomy weather gripping LA was going to stick around awhile.
“We’re getting emails,” he answered.
That was nothing compared to what they would get in the days ahead.
Soon Chan and her black, sparkly dress were trending on social media. The cast of NBC’s “Today” show was cracking wise (“It’s never the crime, it’s the cover-up,” Savannah Guthrie said). New York Daily News columnist Linda Stasi was saying it was time TV stopped making its women dress like strippers while allowing fat, bald, old men to deliver the news.
“You would think this is Trump versus Clinton,” Burrous said on Sunday’s broadcast. “Never before have we received so many emails.”
He didn’t say how many, and KTLA officials didn’t respond to a phone message Monday. But Burrous said the vote was roughly 50-50 in favor of and against the dress.
He didn’t reveal how many people thought he was an idiot for handing her the sweater live on the air.
“I cannot believe the station had the nerve to have someone dangle that sweater at you — distracting you and your report and the viewer,” one of the hundreds who left comments on Chan’s Facebook page said. “They were absolutely ridiculous in doing this.”
Burrous said the next day that he was only joking, and Chan, who is both a meteorologist and a veteran news reporter, backed him up.
By today’s TV news standards, her dress was actually fairly modest. It revealed no cleavage, and the hemline was no more than an inch or two above her knees. It was the sparkles and straps that seemed to incense critics. One email said she looked like she’d stayed late at a party and arrived wearing the same dress as the night before.
Her attire, however, had actually been her second choice that day.
Her first choice was a modest print with an elaborate design that had clashed with the green screen that weather reporters stand in front of so viewers at home can see all those fancy graphics they’re describing.
So she switched to the black dress.
By Monday she had moved on, even if others hadn’t. Her most recent Facebook post linked to a story about a dog that saved a little girl from a rattlesnake.
27 responses to “Weather anchor’s dress sparks social media firestorm”
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Who possibly could have been offended?
yawn…must be a day without real news
I see nothing wrong.
Better than the Muslims darn Burkas! Maybe Muslims complained because it is not Scharia conform.
MEBBE DA BURKA WEARERS REALIZE THAT THEY ARE FREAKING UGLY.
Some of the Iranian female models who have posted pictures of themselves online without head covering that were arrested by the Iranian government and forced to publicly denounce what they did, are quite attractive.
the dress nazi’s are active again.
if anything else you don’t even notice the weather image behind her.
There was a weather report behind her?
To me, the embarrassment they put the reporter through was the shameful part. If it had been a male wearing only surf trunks and shades reporting on big waves, there probably would not have been much chatter. Ironically, the people that complained were probably women.
just please not Bill Reilly in a Speedo. That image still haunts me.
Apparently there are a lot of people who had best avoid Hawaii’s fashion oriented beaches.
Don’t see anything wrong with the way she was dressed.
She is usually on Sunday mornings for years and doubles with the traffic also. There is another Ginger Chan on the weekly morning traffic report with her husband in the helicopter, Mark Konno. Liberte is sexier looking and may be the reason for me watching her on Sunday mornings. Her attire selection is meant to catch your eyes and she is pleasant to look at.
I like it, an exotic look!
Nothing wrong with the dress. What’s up with those who supposedly complained to the TV station.
Bible thumpers and door knockers.
Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein wrote a series of investigative reports detailing corruption at the highest levels of the United States government. Their articles helped end the Presidency of one man. How refreshing to see that in 2016, American journalism has continued to uphold the highest standards when it comes to reporting on news that is relevant and that will and can change our world.
Comment of the Month.
I wish Kelly Simek of Khon2 would wear one of those dresses, She looks very Beautiful !
I agree!!!
She can come in the male locker room any time as far as I am concerned. I sure Hope little Barry saw this.
This kind of smells like a public relations stunt. Los Angeles is a very competitive market and this is one sure way of garnering publicity. It made the news nationwide and put Ms.Chan’s image just about everywhere and I can’t imagine why anyone would actually complain. Of course, if someone is used to wearing a burka, they might be offended. She’s a very pretty lady.
But was her weather report correct?
Guy Hagi always dresses appropriately, but his weather report is, well, a Guy Hagi weather report….if you know what I mean.
Yeah, shrug my shoulders like Guy, I know what you mean!
Guy Hagi always sounds as if he’s jumping out of his skin and his weather reports are usually wrong. When he comes on , we switch channels.
The things people will do to get attention!
Yawn…much to do about nothing……