Female Meterologist Asked to Put On Sweater, Twitter Explodes


A Los Angeles news anchor, Chris Burrous of KTLA, faced outrage for an incident that many have deemed sexist and misogynistic.

Meteorologist Liberté Chan was presenting the Saturday morning weather when Burrous can be seen off to the side of the screen, attempting to give her a sweater. Burrous can be heard saying “we’re getting a lot of emails” as his justification.

Why Are People Outraged?

Many commentators tapped onto the implications of the objectifying male gaze, and the sexual politics of the gaze forcing women to adhere to male standards. Commentators on Twitter noted that Burrous would have never interrupted a male meteorologist just to tell them to cover up.

Burrous responded on Twitter by being open to the criticism, apologizing, and suggesting that the relationship that he has with Chan and other coworkers is akin to “good friends.”

However, Twitter’s anger wasn’t quelled, with the outrage actually escalating due to his lighthearted response. He started to tag the KTLA news station and asking people on Twitter to give him “another chance.”

Chan’s Response

She posted a series of videos on her Snapchat account, showing her and Burrous reading out loud some of the emails attacking the dress.

Chan published a note on her website. In the note, she remarks that she has worked on air for the past decade, and she knows that relaying the weather on live television is a visual medium for many. She tried to mitigate by noting that her employer, nor did the news station, ordered her to wear the sweater – it was simply a spontaneous moment between coworkers. The black dress was a backup to her initial dress, which showed up as transparent on the green screen.

It’s a problem whenever people feel that it’s okay to comment on a woman’s body, for any reason. Burrous had an opportunity to show support for his “good friend,” but instead he joined them in attempting to police her body.

Featured image is a screengrab from YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1MxMi3uWVs

Core competencies are in business administration and urban development, but an avid political writer, activist, and radical centrist at night. Not politically correct, but not a degenerate. I write about things that interest me - hopefully, they'll interest you.