The Bureau of Meteorology no longer wants to be referred to as the "BOM" or "Weather Bureau", asking media to update their style guides as floods grip Australia's southern states.
The public agency on Tuesday asked members of the media to instead use its full name in the first instance and "the Bureau" in subsequent references.
Journalists took to social media with a storm of criticism and jokes in response to the request, which comes as life threatening-flooding impacts Victoria, New South wales and Tasmania while Australia's eastern residents are warned of more rain on the way.
The media alert said it was crucial the agency's information was "shared, understood and acted upon" and to support that need it was asking media outlets for the style change.
"This aligns with the Meteorology Act 1955," the alert stated.
Media outlets were also advised that the agency would be changing its main Twitter handle from @BOM_au to @TheBureau_au, with similar changes to come for its state pages.
It appears they were yet to make those changes, and within minutes of the media alert being released, the desired Twitter handles were claimed by other people.
It wasn't made clear whether the Bureau also wanted members of the public to stop referring to the agency as "BOM".
The ABC has contacted the agency for clarity around why the request for changes were made at this time.
