From 1996 to 1998, The Weather Channel dramatically changed its on-air presentation. The first wave of change came in October 1996, with the introduction of a new slogan ("No Place on Earth Has Better Weather"), that was heralded with a trio of humorous spots (blizzard/breezy/flood) promoting the accuracy of TWC's weather coverage. Months later, The Weather Channel received its biggest graphical overhaul since 1991, the modernization of TWC's presentation included the introduction of a newer, flatter logo (although its previous logo remained in use on some segments, and some specialty segments retained narration by Dan Chandler and/or the previous TWC logo into late 1997), as well as a new graphics package featuring rotating globes and compass points for introductions, and new music. 1996 also saw the launch of The Weather Channel's website, weather.com. "Local on the 8s", a concept in which local forecasts aired in ten-minute intervals at times ending in "8," also made its debut.
On October 15, 1996, Landmark Communications purchased a building at 300 Interstate North (near the junction of Interstates 75 and 285 in Atlanta) to house The Weather Channel's operations. Landmark had been looking for new studio facilities for the channel, and requirements included 18-foot ceilings. Improvements were made to bring the building up to code before TWC moved into its new headquarters at the end of 1996 (but it did not begin broadcasting from the facility until early 1997). By 1996, The Weather Channel reached 63 million homes, with average ratings totaling at 130,000 viewers at that time.
On March 31, 1997, the channel revised its programming schedule with the introduction of a news wheel format. On August 25, the channel debuted a memorable advertising campaign, "The Front", created by ad agency TBWA Chiat/Day. The promos (which used the slogan, "Weather Fans, You're Not Alone") were set in something akin to a sports bar, with the major difference being that weather was the central focus. That October, 1997 World Series became the first major event that TWC covered with live reporters. New title bars were introduced for national segments on January 6, 1998.
In March 1998, TWC introduced a graphical refresh, featuring heavy use of the Akzidenz-Grotesk typeface and footage of clouds at the core of the new identity. For the first time in the channel's history, there was no slogan or unifying theme. "WeatherScope" was replaced with "Weather Center" on March 10, a program which essentially comprised The Weather Channel's entire 24-hour daily programming schedule at the time in the form of three separate programs ("Weather Center AM", a morning program (5 a.m.-noon) focusing primarily on business, commuter and leisure travel weather; Weather Center PM, an evening program (7 p.m.-5 a.m.) with a focus on forecasts for the day ahead; and an afternoon broadcast (12 p.m.-7 p.m.) simply using the Weather Center title, which focused on ongoing weather conditions). April 1998 saw updates to "The Front" image campaign; one of the new advertisements specifically mentioned the 36-hour text forecasts (which, at the time, were still supplied by the National Weather Service), but heralded new Local Forecast graphics. The machine that produced those graphics, the IRIX-based Weather Star XL, was released to cable providers later that year as the first new mainline STAR unit manufactured in eight years. The catalyst for a top-to-bottom modernization of the local forecast segment, the XL's graphical and technological capabilities were significantly more advanced than the 4000, with an animated, high-quality output consistent with TWC's national graphics and new scalable icons that would be used for eight years on TWC (these icons remain in use by Weather Star XLs still in service and on certain downloadable web widgets).
1999 brought the removal of the unpredictable-length Local Update product on the Weather Star 4000, which stabilized flavor lineups. Also in March 31 that year, The Weather Channel launched a spin-off network called Weatherscan Local, a channel offering continuous weather information 24/7, which exclusively provided local forecasts generated by specialized STAR units. Originally exclusive to Comcast systems, cable operators could add optional packages featuring expanded weather information or specialty forecasts (such as golf, boat and beach, or marine weather) to their Weatherscan STAR systems. The Weather Channel also appointed Decker Anstrom to serve as president of the network. By 1999, The Weather Channel reached 70 million homes, or 98% of all households that subscribe to cable television. It also provided weather forecasts to 52 newspapers and 250+ radio stations. Between 1999 and 2000, TWC aired weather observation reports from Mount Everest using battery-powered sensors.
In 2000, the channel's Weather Star XL systems introduced an audio function, Vocal Local, which assembles narration tracks heard during local forecast segments to introduce forecast products, and read descriptive forecasts and primary weather observations; while most cable operators added the Vocal Local feature, some did not employ it on their Weather Star XL units. The cycling of music playlist changes was increased from a quarterly to a monthly basis; as such, 2000 is considered to be the year the split between the "classic" TWC and "modern" TWC occurred by several websites. On August 23 of that year, the channel debuted "Atmospheres", a weekly newsmagazine-style program hosted by Jim Cantore and Mishelle "Mish" Michaels. It aired Wednesdays at 8pm, Saturdays at 5pm, and Sundays at 8pm and 11pm. Encore editions were aired on Saturday and Sunday at reverse time.
On January 3, 2000, The Weather Channel began reducing "Weather Center"'s broadcasting time. The first news program to be broadcast was titled "Your Weather Today", airing weekdays from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. Presenters were Heather Tesch and Marshall Seese.
On March 20, 2000, another weather news program was unveiled, titled "First Outlook", airing for two hours right after "Your Weather Today". On-air team was Rick Griffin and Cheryl Lemke, along with travel analyst Dennis Smith.
On April 21, 2001, "Weekend Now" was the first news programme to cut into the weekend timeslot of "Weather Center". It aired from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. Saturdays and Sundays, presented by two teams of meteorologists: one was Kelly Cass and Bill Keneely and the other team was Melissa Barrington and Bob Stokes. Any given hour of the program would be hosted by one team while a member of the other team provided special segments like "Travel Forecast" (other cities' forecasts) and "Weather Maker" (details behind the day's most important wearher system).
In June 2001, "Weather Center"'s name no longer featured the "AM/PM" distinction.
On August 20, 2001, "Evening Edition" dropped the 9 p.m.-5 a.m. block of "Weather Center". Because of long-form programs, Evening Edition aired its first hour, then long-form programs, then two hours, then long-form programs repeated from earlier, followed by the overnight hour, and finally this final hour was repeated twice. The show was presented by various meteorologists. In 2003, 4:30-7 a.m. weekend block now showed "Weekend Outlook", which presented by Ray Stagich only. (In case of severe weather, the show would start from 3 a.m, and another meteorologist would join him). Also at this year, 7-11 a.m. weekend block had a new show: "Weekend Planner", so "Weekend Now" moved to the 11 a.m.-2 p.m. block instead (this time, less special segments than before). As a result of these changes, "Weather Center" aired from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. weekdays and 2 p.m.-5 a.m. weekends.
In October 2002, Kim Cunningham left "Evening Edition" for "First Outlook".