--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first rule of hurricane coverage is…" description: "\"The first rule of hurricane coverage is that every broadcast must begin with palm trees bending in the wind.\" — Carl Hiaasen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62e/carl-hiaasen-2926_bending_the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is_409003.png" --- # The first rule of hurricane coverage is that every… ![“The first rule of hurricane coverage is that every broadcast must begin with palm trees bending in the wind.” quote by Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62e/carl-hiaasen-2926_bending_the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is_409003.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62e/carl-hiaasen-2926_bending_the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is_409003.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62e/carl-hiaasen-2926_bending_the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is_409003.png) > “The first rule of hurricane coverage is that every broadcast must begin with palm trees bending in the wind.” [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hurricane reporting often starts with clichéd visuals, ignoring real danger. **In simple terms:** Media focuses on dramatic images over substance. Key Takeaway Demand accurate, substance‑driven coverage. Themes media environment truth Mood critical informative Type journalistic environmental When to use this quote - news broadcasts - disaster preparedness - public safety campaigns Key Concepts journalism visual rhetoric Questions to Reflect On - How can reporters balance drama with factual reporting? - What visuals best convey a storm’s seriousness? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on visuals can mislead audiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bending/) [Broadcast Begin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broadcast-begin-3651730/) [Coverage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coverage/) [Coverage Broadcast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coverage-broadcast-3651731/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Hurricane Coverage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hurricane-coverage-3651728/) [Hurricanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hurricanes/) [Palm trees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/palm-trees/) [Palms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/palms/) [Rule Hurricane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rule-hurricane-3651729/) [Tree](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tree/) [Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind/) ## Related quotes > [Mickey Cray had been out of work ever since a dead iguana fell from a palm tree and hit him on the head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/mickey-cray-had-been-out-of-work-ever-since-a-dead-iguana-fell-from-a/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [I love touring in the United States. It's dramatically different wherever you go. North to south, you're going from snow to palm trees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-lake/i-love-touring-in-the-united-states-it-s-dramatically-different/) [Greg Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-lake/) > [I have a lot of palm trees, because they say to me holidays and ocean. I grew up very poor and I had an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/udo-kier/i-have-a-lot-of-palm-trees-because-they-say-to-me-holidays-and-ocean/) [Udo Kier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/udo-kier/) > [“Christy dug her hand deeper into her shoulder bag. Scanning the papers she finally located there, she found no phone numbers or addresses listed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-jones-gunn/christy-dug-her-hand-deeper-into-her-shoulder-bag-scanning-the-papers/) [Robin Jones Gunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-jones-gunn/) > [Genius in the poet, like the nomad of Arabia, ever a wanderer, still ever makes a home where the well or the palm-tree invites…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/genius-in-the-poet-like-the-nomad-of-arabia-ever-a-wanderer-still/) [Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-bulwer-lytton-1st-baron-lytton/) > [“In the landscape of my native land, a stranger in my own fields, --I had a homeland where the Duero flows between gray cliffs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-machado/in-the-landscape-of-my-native-land-a-stranger-in-my-own-fields-i-had/) [Antonio Machado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-machado/) > [The time came around where the label was like, "Well, if you want something to come out in early 2017, it's going to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mac-demarco/the-time-came-around-where-the-label-was-like-well-if-you-want/) [Mac DeMarco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mac-demarco/) > [I see a girl caught in the remains of a holiday gone bad, with her flesh picked off day after day as the carcass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-halse-anderson/i-see-a-girl-caught-in-the-remains-of-a-holiday-gone-bad-with-her/) [Laurie Halse Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-halse-anderson/) > [“Hyacinth bean and papayas, long vines, deep roots. Palm trees outside the garden walls, with deep roots, stand a thousand years.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-see/hyacinth-bean-and-papayas-long-vines-deep-roots-palm-trees-outside/) [Lisa See](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-see/) > [“There were some hours to spare before his ship sailed, and having deposited his luggage, including a locked leather despatch-case, on board, he lunched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-f-benson/there-were-some-hours-to-spare-before-his-ship-sailed-and-having/) [E.F. Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-f-benson/) > [It's not palm trees and neon signs in Florida; it's strip malls, highways, hot sun beating down on you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patty-jenkins/it-s-not-palm-trees-and-neon-signs-in-florida-it-s-strip-malls/) [Patty Jenkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patty-jenkins/) > [“There were only two men on the planet better educated in the various martial arts than Butler, and he was related to one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eoin-colfer/there-were-only-two-men-on-the-planet-better-educated-in-the-various/) [Eoin Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eoin-colfer/) > [“So I went up north to a land of palm trees and mangroves like malignant growths in the mud-filled throats of the bays, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-frame/so-i-went-up-north-to-a-land-of-palm-trees-and-mangroves-like/) [Janet Frame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-frame/) > [“A slight breeze cooled the Hawaiian spring air, swaying the branches of palm trees, which cast black silhouettes against the purple and orange colors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-kahler/a-slight-breeze-cooled-the-hawaiian-spring-air-swaying-the-branches/) [Victoria Kahler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-kahler/) > [“They are strange trees, palm trees, they are so individualistic, so unique, so full of capriciousness, just as Jews are. One palm tree appears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dvorah-telushkin-master-of-dreams-a-memoir-of-isaac-bashevis-singer-1997-2004/they-are-strange-trees-palm-trees-they-are-so-individualistic-so/) [Dvorah Telushkin Master of Dreams A Memoir of Isaac Bashevis Singer 1997 2004](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dvorah-telushkin-master-of-dreams-a-memoir-of-isaac-bashevis-singer-1997-2004/) ## More by Carl Hiaasen > [All novels are about crime. You'd be hard pressed to find any novel that does not have an element of crime. I don't see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/all-novels-are-about-crime-you-d-be-hard-pressed-to-find-any-novel/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“Hey. Sometimes life is a shit flavored Popsicle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/hey-sometimes-life-is-a-shit-flavored-popsicle/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [as a lobbyist he had long ago concluded there was no difference in how Democrats and Republicans conducted the business of government. The game…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/as-a-lobbyist-he-had-long-ago-concluded-there-was-no-difference-in/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [As frightening as this may sound, what you see in the books is the way I see the world. And so far I haven't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/as-frightening-as-this-may-sound-what-you-see-in-the-books-is-the-way/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [Sure, I'll have characters drop in and out of books but the main cast of characters always changes. Maybe I'm wrong but I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/sure-i-ll-have-characters-drop-in-and-out-of-books-but-the-main-cast/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [When I'm deciding to read a book, I never open to the first chapter, because that's been revised and worked over 88 times. I'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/when-i-m-deciding-to-read-a-book-i-never-open-to-the-first-chapter/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“I believe it's never too late to change. I'm eighty-one years old, but I still think I can be a better person tomorrow than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/i-believe-it-s-never-too-late-to-change-i-m-eighty-one-years-old-but/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“Earl, you can’t walk around with a lead slug up your bottom. It’s bound to affect your outlook.” Tool jerked his hand away. “I’ll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/earl-you-can-t-walk-around-with-a-lead-slug-up-your-bottom-it-s-bound/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“A quick puke, two rails of blow and she was solid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/a-quick-puke-two-rails-of-blow-and-she-was-solid/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“Buck’s girlfriend went by the porny name of Miracle though she had a master’s in computer science from Florida State.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/buck-s-girlfriend-went-by-the-porny-name-of-miracle-though-she-had-a/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [Disney's something to be a little alarmed about. It's not just a little theme park anymore. It's now an ethic and outlook and strategy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/disney-s-something-to-be-a-little-alarmed-about-it-s-not-just-a/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“In his own mind, it was never a matter of courage. But courage it was.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/in-his-own-mind-it-was-never-a-matter-of-courage-but-courage-it-was/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [No deliberative body is manifestly less qualified to make decisions about public education than our state Legislature. With a few shining exceptions, most of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/no-deliberative-body-is-manifestly-less-qualified-to-make-decisions/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“If anything is more irresistible than Jesus, it's Mickey.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/if-anything-is-more-irresistible-than-jesus-it-s-mickey/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) > [“Shreave flicked away the dead mosquito. "Don't these things carry the bird flu too?" "No Boyd, that would be a bird.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/shreave-flicked-away-the-dead-mosquito-don-t-these-things-carry-the/) [Carl Hiaasen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) [Explore all 141 Carl Hiaasen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/) ## More Bending quotes > [Prayer is not a convenient device for imposing our will upon God, or bending his will to ours, but the prescribed way of subordinating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stott/prayer-is-not-a-convenient-device-for-imposing-our-will-upon-god-or/) [John Stott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stott/) > [Much bending breaks the bow; much unbending the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-bacon/much-bending-breaks-the-bow-much-unbending-the-mind/) [Francis Bacon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-bacon/) > [In effect we are, bending and breaking the rules of the language. And if someone were to ask why we do it, the answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-crystal/in-effect-we-are-bending-and-breaking-the-rules-of-the-language-and/) [David Crystal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-crystal/) > [Losing is the bane and bugbear of every professional athlete's existence, but in baseball the monster seems to hang closer than in other sports,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-angell/losing-is-the-bane-and-bugbear-of-every-professional-athlete-s/) [Roger Angell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-angell/) > [Here on the edge of the river, the motifs are very plentiful, the same subject seen from a different angle gives a subject for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-cezanne/here-on-the-edge-of-the-river-the-motifs-are-very-plentiful-the-same/) [Paul Cezanne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-cezanne/) > [Drawing is one of those things which sit on the uneasy bending line between instinct and instruction, where seeming perversity eventually trumps pleasure as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-gopnik/drawing-is-one-of-those-things-which-sit-on-the-uneasy-bending-line/) [Adam Gopnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-gopnik/) > [In Prison Wearily, drearily, Half the day long, Flap the great banners High over the stone; Strangely and eerily Sounds the wind's song, Bending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-morris/in-prison-wearily-drearily-half-the-day-long-flap-the-great-banners/) [William Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-morris/) > [I have an idea that conscience impedes quite as many merits as faults, is a sort of alloy, a nickel which may prevent silver…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-townsend-warner/i-have-an-idea-that-conscience-impedes-quite-as-many-merits-as-faults/) [Sylvia Townsend Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-townsend-warner/) > [Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-lee/notice-that-the-stiffest-tree-is-most-easily-cracked-while-the-bamboo/) [Bruce Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-lee/) > [I had a constant fascination with the darkside. 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Following the bend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eartha-kitt/the-river-is-constantly-turning-and-bending-and-you-never-know-where/) [Eartha Kitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eartha-kitt/) > [This Great God, Like a mammy bending over her baby, Kneeled down in the dust Toiling over a lump of clay Till He shaped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/this-great-god-like-a-mammy-bending-over-her-baby-kneeled-down-in-the/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [For me it's just so exciting to have a daughter because I do think she will have even more opportunities than I had, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-clinton/for-me-it-s-just-so-exciting-to-have-a-daughter-because-i-do-think/) [Chelsea Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-clinton/) > [Before what is sacred, people lose all sense of power and all confidence; they occupy a powerless and humble attitude toward it. And yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-stirner/before-what-is-sacred-people-lose-all-sense-of-power-and-all/) [Max Stirner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-stirner/) > [Jesus' whole life and mission involve accepting powerlessness and revealing in this powerlessness the limitlessness of God's love. Here we see what compassion means.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/jesus-whole-life-and-mission-involve-accepting-powerlessness-and/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) [Browse all 198 Bending quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bending/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The first rule of hurricane coverage is that every broadcast must begin with palm trees bending in the wind.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Carl Hiaasen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is-that-every-broadcast-must/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bending" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is-that-every-broadcast-must/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62e/carl-hiaasen-2926_bending_the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is_409003.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62e/carl-hiaasen-2926_bending_the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is_409003.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62e/carl-hiaasen-2926_bending_the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is_409003.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The first rule of hurricane coverage is that every broadcast must begin with palm trees bending in the wind.” — Carl Hiaasen", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Carl Hiaasen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-hiaasen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The first rule of hurricane coverage...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is-that-every-broadcast-must/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-hiaasen/the-first-rule-of-hurricane-coverage-is-that-every-broadcast-must/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```