A message to those who blindly share inaccurate information in NJ

Back in February, there was chatter all over social media about a huge snowstorm coming to New Jersey. And that chatter only got louder as the forecasted date approached.

It was like a full-blown panic had set in that New Jersey was going to get one of the biggest snowstorms it's ever seen in a long time. Feet of snow? Sure, why not?

But then, that all changed in a hurry once that date arrived. All that hype that spread like wildfire across social media was no more.

Once that big snow storm came into focus, it became apparent it was not going play out nearly as huge as some had hoped.

Fast forward to today, and even more has changed thanks to funding cuts at the national level. Those very cuts affect how much weather data our meteorologists can work with. That in turn makes it that much trickier for them to put together a forecast.

Important to note

First and foremost, forecasters were very careful not to lean into storms days and weeks in advance. They don't cause the hype - the general public (and the keyboard experts) do.

Literally anyone can post the potential of a massive storm of any nature that's going to hit one week away (or longer), and we're all going to share it blindly and get into a panic over it because that's what we do.

Then when the time comes and we see the sun shining, we instantly blame the true weather forecasters, even though they were the ones telling us not to believe the hype in the first place.

I personally feel this happens all the time, and it's not fair to our own meteorologists who work very hard to make sure you're properly informed.

Creating my own hype - for you

I could literally draw a flood map, or hurricane landfall map, or snow map right now saying we're going to get hammered in New Jersey on September 31, and a good portion of those keyboard warriors will take that and run with it.

Never mind the fact that I'm not a meteorologist, or that no such storm will hit on September 31 (or... maybe it will).

For those of you who stir up panic, please try to be more aware. Yes, our apps may also feed into the panic, but that's only because most of those are giving us raw data without any analysis (I know, that one can be a trap sometimes that changes constantly).

For New Jersey, one of the absolute best to follow is Chief Meteorologist Dan Zarrow.

Most of our readers and listeners have no idea how hard Dan works behind the scenes to make sure you get the most accurate information. He truly is one of the best both the weather and broadcast industry has ever seen.

ALSO READ: Old-school habits of NJ kids that are now lost today

My ask for the rest of us is simple. Please stop with the careless sharing, including sharing what your weather app says weeks in advance.

We are that forecaster who thinks we know better, and we have to be careful of that before we hit that share button online.

The above post reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 weekend host & content contributor Mike Brant. Any opinions expressed are his own.