Q&A with ST's Witty Weatherman...and no, he is not an intern

Just yesterday, Marketing reported how @STcom, The Straits Times' Twitter platform, went off the beaten track with its weather updates.From hilarious homages to Star Wars and Rihanna, to activity suggestions based on the weather that day, the "Weatherman" behind the tweets showcased a big sense of humour. The engagement on the weather posts were phenomenal compared to other tweets, the highest weather update tweet netting around 3,016 retweets and 1341 likes at the time of writing.Weather update: Warm. Showers mainly over northern and eastern Singapore in the late afternoon."Warm" is also the sound a lightsaber makes.— The Straits Times (@STcom) February 5, 2017Curious to find out who was the man or woman (or team) behind the funny tweets, Marketing reached out to ST to find out more about the person(s) behind the tweets. However, ST declined to reveal his identity.As such, we have taken it upon ourselves to name him the "Witty Weatherman""The Weatherman is not one but many in the online team," ST said in a statement. The only thing we know for sure is that the the person in charge of ST's Twitter handle is certainly not an intern.Here's what he/she/they did however share with us.Marketing: The tweets are hilarious. Who is behind these social media posts?Witty Weatherman: Hello, I am The Weatherman. I have been working at The Straits Times for just over half a year now, and am on a rotation programme to the various departments. I shifted from ST Newsdesk to ST Online in December.One of the biggest myths is that I'm an intern. No, I'm not.So for the Twitter users who say they hope I stick around and keep this up, I'm really hoping you didn't just say it out of courtesy. Also for those who constantly ask if I'm going to be fired, the answer is no.But really thanks for your concern. Marketing: What was the rationale behind these tweets?Witty Weatherman: I guess I just wanted to bring a little fun and laughter to our readers. The morning commute to work can get boring and draggy. Mornings in general are terrible. I mean, I don't know about you but I'd really rather be sleeping in.So I thought, why not add a line or two after each weather update - something seemingly mundane yet informative - that could bring a smile to everyone's faces. Including my own. Yes, I actually think I'm really funny. Marketing: Has the engagement with ST's Twitter platform increased or changed in any way?Witty Weatherman: I believe to a certain degree it has. The tweets have reached thousands of retweets, more so than some news tweets. Some have even been shared online on platforms such as SGAG and Reddit, which means people who don't actually follow us on Twitter can view it too, and I'm just glad to do my small part to make the world a happier place.I feel that it is not just important, but necessary, for interaction on social media to be slightly light-hearted because of the nature of the platform. I think letting our personalities shine though allows us to reach out to more people.Marketing: Will we be seeing more such stunts from you? If so, when and where?Witty Weatherman: We work in news, some things are beyond quips and jokes. But where it is possible to inject some fun, you can be sure this team will be there to put a smile on your face.Looking forward to more of your weather updates, Witty Weatherman.