During prime time, the network may interrupt a regular newscast with breaking news. This may be a local story or an announcement from a political figure. The local station will likely resume the newscast after a brief pause.

In some cases, a reporter may be at the scene of the breaking news, allowing him or her to share additional details with the audience. For example, the April 2017 Shayrat missile strike interrupted a new episode of Scandal.

The coverage of breaking news is often sketchy, owing to limited information at the time. A good example of this is the September 11 attacks in 2001. The coverage provided by CNN and CBS News was crude and reflected the technology of the time.

In some cases, a breaking news story may last more than an hour, while other stories may only last for a few minutes. Generally, a breaking news story will be accompanied by a graphic with music or a reverse countdown. Often, the reverse countdown will be from five seconds.

During a break in the coverage, the network may pause for a few seconds to allow other network affiliates to join the feed. This allows them to share the story with other stations.

The anchor might also remind viewers that a full wrap-up of the news will be on the local news. Depending on the length of the coverage, the local station may join the network feed or continue with their own newscast.