David Bernard (born 1969) is a former American television meteorologist who worked for WVUE-TV in New Orleans, Louisiana. He previously worked for CBS News and television stations in Miami, Florida, and Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Early life and career
Bernard is a native of
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
. He graduated from the
University of Texas
The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...
at
Austin
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
and attended
Mississippi State University
Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university adjacent to Starkville, Mississippi. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Unive ...
.
In 1993, he began his career in television
meteorology
Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not ...
forecasting in the
Tornado Alley
Tornado Alley is a loosely defined area of the central United States where tornadoes are most frequent. The term was first used in 1952 as the title of a research project to study severe weather in areas of Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Kansas, So ...
region of the
Texas Panhandle and
Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
.
Bernard first worked at television stations
KZTV in
Corpus Christi, Texas
Corpus Christi (; Ecclesiastical Latin: "'' Body of Christ"'') is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patrici ...
and
KVII in
Amarillo, Texas
Amarillo ( ; Spanish for "yellow") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Potter County. It is the 14th-most populous city in Texas and the largest city in the Texas Panhandle. A portion of the city extends into Randall County ...
.
He then began work at
Tulsa
Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the U.S. state, state of Oklahoma and List of United States cities by population, 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. ...
, Oklahoma TV station
KJRH
KJRH-TV (channel 2) is a television station in Tulsa, Oklahoma, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is owned by the E. W. Scripps Company alongside Okmulgee-licensed Ion Television outlet KTPX-TV (channel 44). KJRH-TV's studios are located o ...
in 1994 where he was the meteorologist for the morning and midday news programs.
New Orleans and Miami
Bernard moved to
WWL-TV
WWL-TV (channel 4) is a television station in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside Slidell-licensed MyNetworkTV affiliate WUPL (channel 54). Both stations share studios on Rampart Street ...
in
in 1997.
He was the meteorologist for the morning news programs at the station for eight years.
For his coverage of
Hurricane Ivan in 2004, Bernard earned critical praise from Dave Walker, TV columnist for the
New Orleans Times-Picayune. Walker wrote: “Nuts-and-bolts when he needed to be, Bernard presented potentially terrifying facts with palpable tranquility, and added comprehendible meteorological context to the public-safety discussion. Cool and correct but mostly cool, he was the ideal guide through a few threatening days.”
In the summer of 2005, Bernard left WWL for a new position at
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
TV station
WFOR, a
CBS affiliate. Six weeks after his departure from New Orleans, he was sent back to New Orleans to cover the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...
.
He was named
CBS News
CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio service CBS. CBS News television programs include the ''CBS Evening News'', ''CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs '' CBS News Sunday Morning'', '' 60 Minutes'', and '' 48 H ...
national hurricane consultant in 2008.
He covered hurricanes
Gustav,
Ike
Ike or IKE may refer to:
People
* Ike (given name), a list of people with the name or nickname
* Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969), Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe during World War II and President of the United States Surname
...
,
Isaac
Isaac; grc, Ἰσαάκ, Isaák; ar, إسحٰق/إسحاق, Isḥāq; am, ይስሐቅ is one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. He was the ...
,
Irene
Irene is a name derived from εἰρήνη (eirēnē), the Greek for "peace".
Irene, and related names, may refer to:
* Irene (given name)
Places
* Irene, Gauteng, South Africa
* Irene, South Dakota, United States
* Irene, Texas, United Stat ...
and
Sandy
Sandy may refer to:
People and fictional characters
*Sandy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Sandy (surname), a list of people
*Sandy (singer), Brazilian singer and actress Sandy Leah Lima (born 1983)
* (Sandy) ...
for the network on the
CBS Evening News,
CBS This Morning
''CBS This Morning'' (''CTM'') is an American morning television program that aired on CBS from November 30, 1987, to October 29, 1999, and again from January 9, 2012, to September 6, 2021. The program was aired from Monday through Saturday. ...
,
Face The Nation and
CBS Sunday Morning.
In 2015, Bernard returned to New Orleans working for
WVUE-TV
WVUE-DT (channel 8) is a television station in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. Owned by Gray Television, the station maintains primary studios on Norman C. Francis Parkway in the city's Gert Town secti ...
.
Several months later, he was named chief meteorologist.
On Oct. 25, 2022, it was announced that he would be "leaving FOX 8 to pursue new passion".
Accreditation and honors
Bernard is a member of the
American Meteorological Society
The American Meteorological Society (AMS) is the premier scientific and professional organization in the United States promoting and disseminating information about the Atmospheric sciences, atmospheric, Oceanography, oceanic, and Hydrology, hydr ...
and
National Weather Association. He is a
Certified Broadcast Meteorologist and former member of the AMS board of broadcast meteorology.
In 2018, Bernard won first prize for best weather anchor and best weathercast in the Louisiana-Mississippi Associated Press competition. The Press Club of New Orleans awarded Bernard the first prize for best weathercast in 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022.
Bernard was named one of 2021's most influential New Orleanians by New Orleans Adore magazine.
Personal life
In 2019, Bernard married longtime partner Charles Urstadt in New Orleans. Urstadt is a real estate investor and chairman of the Ogden Museum of Southern Art.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bernard, David
Living people
CBS News people
University of Texas alumni
American television weather presenters
Television anchors from New Orleans
1969 births