Cable news networks scrambled this morning to cover a Malaysia Airlines flight that was shot down along the Ukraine/Russia border.
All three broadcast networks provided special coverage of the crash. NBC News cut in at 11:39amET with Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie anchoring in New York and Tom Costello reporting from Washington, DC.
CBS News cut in at 11:40amET with Margaret Brennan anchoring in New York and Bob Orr reporting from Washington, DC. ABC News cut in at 11:41amET with David Muir anchoring in New York.
CNN’s John Berman first reported on the crash at 11:22amET. Fox News’ Jon Scott first reported the news at 11:27amET. MSNBC’s Tamron Hall broke the news at 11:33amET. Al Jazeera America has switched to Al Jazeera English to cover the plane crash, live from Moscow.
Developing…
>>Update: Reuters is reporting the plane was shot down by militants killing all 295 passengers aboard.
>>Update: Scott Pelley took over for Margaret Brennan at 11:57amET.
>>Update: George Stephanopoulos took over for David Muir at 12:08pmET.
>>Update: Anderson Cooper took over coverage from John Berman at 12:17pmET. Shepard Smith took over coverage from “Outnumbered” at 12:30pmET.
>>Update: Brian Williams took over for Matt Lauer and Savannah Guthrie at 12:59pmET.
>>Update: CNN’s Nic Robertson, Ivan Watson, and Phil Black are en route to Ukraine; Erin McLaughlin is heading to Amsterdam; Matthew Chance is en route to Moscow.
>>Update: CNN is preempting “The Sixties” tonight for special coverage of the Malaysia Airlines crash with Anderson Cooper anchoring from 8pm-10pmET.
>>Update: Malaysia Airlines will hold a press conference at 4pmET.
>>Update: CBS News is sending Foreign Correspondent Mark Phillips to Ukraine; CBS News Correspondent Seth Doane to Malaysia; and CBS News Foreign Correspondent Elizabeth Palmer to Amsterdam.
>>Update: President Obama made a statement at 2:10pmET. The president said the U.S. is currently trying to find out whether there were American citizens on board.
>>Update: CBS ended its special report at 2:30pmET.
>>Update: NBC News ended its special report at 2:57pmET
>>Update: In a Fox Business exchange on who shot down the plane and why, Charlie Gasparino said to The Wall Street Journal‘s Simon Constable, “you’re so goddamn dumb.” We’re hearing Gasparino is calling Constable to apologize. Watch the segment here (the fireworks start around 2:45 and heat up again around 5:00).
>>Update: ABC News ended its special coverage at 4pmET.
>>Update: The Wall Street Journal reports confirmation that a surface-to-air missile fired at the Malaysian jet, citing U.S. intelligence officers.