Here’s How TV News Is Commemorating the 20th Anniversary of 9/11

The television news networks are delivering in-depth coverage surrounding the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on America.

On the landmark day itself, Saturday, Sept. 11, the networks will present special programming from the early morning and into the evening. One example is Fox News’ 5 p.m. offering, The Five, broadcasting live from Citi Field before the Mets versus Yankees contest on Fox. Former Mets manager Bobby Valentine and former Mets catcher and Hall of Famer Mike Piazza will join the broadcast.

Below, the cliff notes of each network’s coverage plans, with links to the outlets’ respective press releases.

ABC (click here for full press release):

David Muir will anchor World News Tonight from Ground Zero on Friday, Sept. 10.
On Saturday, Sept. 11, a special edition of Good Morning America Saturday will air at 7 a.m. ET and lead into ABC News’ special live coverage 9/11 Twenty Years Later: America Remembers beginning at 8 a.m. ET. Muir will be joined for the special broadcast by Robin Roberts and Diane Sawyer from ABC News headquarters in New York.

CBS (click here for full press release);

John Dickerson will speak with photographer Richard Drew on CBS Sunday Morning about the photo he took of a man falling from the World Trade Center. This conversation will air on Sunday, Sept. 5.
Norah O’Donnell will interview former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on the CBS Evening News Friday, Sept. 10.
The CBS Evening News anchor and managing editor, O’Donnell will anchor a live CBS News Special Report 9/11: 20 Years Later, beginning at 8:30 a.m., ET, from Ground Zero. O’Donnell will be joined by Dickerson in lower Manhattan; David Martin from the Pentagon; Nikole Killion in Shanksville, Pa..; Mola Lenghi from a Midtown New York City fire station that suffered some of the greatest losses on 9/11; and Charlie D’Agata reporting from South Asia on the latest Afghanistan news.
On Sunday, Sept. 12, The 54th season premiere of 60 Minutes will be “dedicated to the heroism of 9/11.” Scott Pelley will lead the broadcast.

CNBC (click here for full NBCUniversal News Group press release):

Throughout the week leading up to the 20th anniversary of 9/11, CNBC will air special coverage during its Business Day programming, focusing on Lower Manhattan’s economy over the last 20 years, long-term healthcare for 9/11 survivors and first responders, the impact on travel and the financial toll the attacks had on survivors and families of 9/11 victims.
On Friday, Sept. 10, Shepard Smith will anchor live from Lower Manhattan for a special edition of The News with Shepard Smith, featuring interviews and stories that reflect on the significance of 9/11 and how it changed the world forever.

CNN:

CNN Films will air 9/11, followed by a special hosted by Victor Blackwell. The programs will air at 8 and 10 p.m. ET, respectively, on Tuesday, Sept. 7.
CNN will host a special Citizen by CNN virtual event on Wednesday, Sept. 8 at 12 p.m.. Dana Bash, Wolf Blitzer, Jim Sciutto and Clarissa Ward will discuss 9/11 and the aftermath in Afghanistan.
On Saturday, Sept. 11, programming will air on CNN throughout the day including live coverage of events in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington, DC. CNN anchor and chief Washington correspondent Jake Tapper will be live from New York. CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer will be live from the Pentagon in Washington, DC. Senior legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid will be live from Shanksville, Pa., for all ceremonies at the three locations.
CNN will air America’s Longest War, anchored by Tapper, on Sunday, Sept. 12 at 9 p.m. ET.

Fox News (click here for the press release):

Bill Hemmer will anchor a special, titled, Lost Calls of 9/11, on Sunday, Sept. 5 at 10 p.m. ET. The special will re-air on Saturday, Sept. 11 at 7 p.m. ET.
- Hemmer told TVNewser about his special: “Of the thousands of stories we hear each year – all of them remarkable and unique in their own deeply personal manner–this is a story that has yet to be told. Who could imagine an answering machine from the World Financial Center in New York City would wind up in Texas? The quest was to find the people attached to the voices so they could hear it for the first time. There’s a moment in the program with a picture of the New York Times cover from September 16, 2001. It reads ‘Bush Readies Military For War.’ We, as a nation, are about to give a lot of thought to the last 20 years. And the last 20 days.”
On Friday, Sept. 10, FNC will begin the day with a special edition of Fox & Friends with co-hosts Ainsley Earhardt, Brian Kilmeade and Steve Doocy. Fox & Friends Weekend co-host Pete Hegseth will offer contributions on the ground live from lower Manhattan at a location overlooking the National September 11 Memorial at Ground Zero.
On Sept. 11, FNC will air the moments of silence corresponding with the attacks, beginning in the 8 a.m. ET hour.
Additionally, Fox & Friends Weekend, America’s Newsroom, Cavuto Live with anchor Neil Cavuto, and Fox News Live will all present their respective programs from lower Manhattan.

MSNBC (click here for the full press release):

Willie Geist will co-host Morning Joe from Ground Zero on Friday, Sept. 10.
Alex Witt, Lindsey Reiser and Kendis Gibson will anchor live coverage on Saturday, Sept. 11 beginning at 5 a.m. ET from Ground Zero.
At 8 a.m. ET, MSNBC will air live rolling coverage of the annual commemoration ceremony with anchors Ali Velshi and Stephanie Ruhle from Ground Zero, Hallie Jackson and Andrea Mitchell from Washington, D.C and Geoff Bennett from Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Nicolle Wallace and Brian Williams pick up continuing coverage at 12 p.m. ET from Ground Zero. NBC News White House correspondent Mike Memoli will also join live coverage throughout the day from the White House.
The film Memory Box: Echoes of 9/11, a co-production of NBC News Studios and Yard 44, premieres Wednesday, Sept. 8th at 10 p.m. ET on MSNBC and will simultaneously begin streaming exclusively on Peacock.

NBC (click here for full press release):

Lester Holt will anchor a special Dateline on Friday, Sept. 10 at 10 p.m.
On Saturday, Sept. 11 at 7 a.m. ET, Today’s Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb will anchor a special edition of Today from Ground Zero.
At 8:30 a.m. ET, NBC Nightly News’ Lester Holt will anchor an NBC News Special Report alongside Guthrie and Kotb as the nation pauses for moments of silence to commemorate the victims and families of 9/11. The special coverage will also stream on NBC News Now.
Guthrie and Kotb will be joined by Today news anchor Craig Melvin from New York; Meet the Press moderator and NBC News senior political director Chuck Todd, NBC News chief Washington correspondent Andrea Mitchell and NBC News chief White House correspondent Peter Alexander from Washington, D.C.; NBC News senior national correspondent Tom Llamas and NBC News White House correspondent Geoff Bennett from Shanksville, Pa.; NBC News Capitol Hill correspondent Garrett Haake from Capitol Hill; NBC News White House correspondent Monica Alba from the White House.
Holt will anchor Saturday’s NBC Nightly News from Ground Zero.

Spectrum Networks:

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Spectrum Networks will air live national coverage of the annual commemoration ceremony beginning at 8:30 a.m. ET.
Spectrum News NY1’s Ruschell Boone will anchor Remembering 9/11: 20 Years Later, and be joined by Spectrum News’ Josh Robin and Bob Hardt live from the NY1 studios.
NY1 reporter Gloria Pazmino will offer contributions on the ground from ground zero, while Spectrum News D.C. Bureau reporter Kevin Frey will be live at the Pentagon and D.C. Bureau reporter Taurean Small in Shanksville, Pa.

Telemundo (click here for full press release):

On Saturday, Sept. 11 at 8 a.m. ET, Noticias Telemundo anchors José Díaz-Balart and Arantxa Loizaga will anchor a three-hour news special, “20 Years Later: We’ll Never Forget” live from Ground Zero. The special coverage will also stream on Noticias Telemundo’s digital platforms including NoticiasTelemundo.com, Noticias Telemundo’s mobile app, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.
Díaz-Balart and Loizaga will be joined by senior Washington correspondent Cristina Londono and New York correspondent Karla Amezola and Washington correspondent Javier Vega. It will also feature reports from anchors Julio Vaqueiro and Nacho Lozano and correspondents Rebeka Smyth, Edgar Munoz, Maria Vargas-Pion and others.