Stand up for the facts!

Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy.
We need your help.

More Info

I would like to contribute

Ciara O'Rourke
By Ciara O'Rourke October 2, 2024

No, this isn’t a real Hurricane Helene meteorologist; he’s a comedian

If Your Time is short

  • This isn’t an authentic weather broadcaster; he’s a comedian. 

Hurricane Helene made landfall Sept. 26 in northwestern Florida as a Category 4 storm, but a video that purportedly shows a meteorologist describing Doppler radar imagery as "Satan’s butthole" isn’t an authentic weather broadcast. 

"Hurricane Helene chaos: weatherman loses it live on air," a Sept. 27 Threads post said, sharing a video with a "Hurricane Helene live tracker" chyron.

"Look at the name of the hurricane: Helene," says a man the video’s chyron identifies as a meteorologist named "Jim Acosted." "Coincidentally that's my ex-wife’s name. Our divorce was finalized this week, and if this thing is anything like her it’s going to take your car, it’s going to take your house, it’s going to ruin your damn life."

This post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and Threads.)

Featured Fact-check

The person in this video is not meteorologist "Jim Acosted" but comedian Vincent Oshana, who made the video for the site Valuetainment

"Helene is an ‘extremely dangerous’ Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained wind speeds of 130 mph, but it pales compared to Vinnie’s ex-wife," a description of the video says on Valuetainment’s site.

We rate claims this is an authentic weather broadcast False.

 

Our Sources

Browse the Truth-O-Meter

More by Ciara O'Rourke

No, this isn’t a real Hurricane Helene meteorologist; he’s a comedian

Support independent fact-checking.
Become a member!

In a world of wild talk and fake news, help us stand up for the facts.

Sign me up