Barry Burbank Punks the Internet

[Little Star]

Like so many local news personalities before him, WBZ Meteorologist Barry Burbank became an internet star this week for a simple but amusing blunder: holding his empty coffee cup upside down.

During the newscast, Burbank’s colleague quickly pointed this out to him, and the two joked that he doesn’t drink coffee. But a context-free screenshot of Burbank gripping his coffee cup, seemingly unaware of its orientation, quickly gained traction on social media. Before long, Instagrammer The Fat Jewish was posting the image to his 1.3 million followers with the caption, “GO HOME BARRY, YOU’RE DRUNK.” Eventually, the thing—no joke—made international news. “TV weatherman holds coffee cup UPSIDE DOWN during live broadcast,” is an actual headline in an actual British newspaper.

This seems like overkill, but maybe it caught on because the photo provides the perfect parody of the forced chipperness of morning newscasts. “Hey, we’re just here this morning, drinkin’ our coffee, bein’ Americans, just like you. And hey, while we’re here being perky, why don’t we talk about the warm front moving through the Midwest this week that could destroy your holiday weekend.”

http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/blog/2014/10/07/local-meteorologist-punks-internet/

lol

[CaptainTruth]

1. He should be glad he didn't salute with it!

[MannyGoldstein]

2. We Massholes are notoriously unbalanced

Keep your distance!

[merrily]

3. If I were Burbank, I'd have hundreds of those cups made up, just in case I broke one.

Then, every day, I'd make sure I got on camera at least once, with my upside down cup in my hand.

I might even have my name imprinted on the cups, also upside down, so that you could read my name when the cup is upside down.

I might even do a daily instagram of me during that day's broadcast, holding the cup upside down.

I'd be the most famous weather person since Al Roker. Boo-ya!