The early morning breaking news event of Alexei Navalny’s death in Russia caused cable news networks to rapidly adjust their planned morning news coverage. The major cable news networks went wall to wall with Navalny coverage, while the broadcast nets quickly adjusted their A blocks to include the breaking news story.
Here are the approximate times each cable news network broke the Navalny news.
CNN – 6:38 a.m. ET
MSNBC – 6:43 a.m. ET
Fox News – 6:50 a.m. ET
Scripps News – 6:52 a.m. ET
NewsNation – 7:00 a.m. ET
NBC News Now – 7:00 a.m ET
As the ramifications of Navalny’s death continue to unfold, the networks are planning continuous coverage of this major international story. Read their plans below:
CNN
CNN is using its global positioning to provide in-depth coverage of the unfolding event. Chief international anchor Christiane Amanpour is live from Munich at the Munich Security Conference, where Navalny’s wife, Yulia, spoke earlier on Friday.
The network has been re-airing Amapnour’s interview with Navalny from Dec. 2020 before he returned to Russia in Jan. 2021. Chief international security correspondent Nick Paton Walsh is also reporting on the story from Munich.
CNN’s chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward – who interviewed Navalny in 2020 as part of the CNN-Bellingcat investigation into his poisoning – and Matthew Chance, the network’s chief global affairs correspondent (who has previously interviewed both Navalny and Putin) are reporting on the story from London.
From a programming standpoint, the Oscar-winning film, NAVALNY, will air Saturday at 9 p.m. ET on CNN and CNN International.
NBCUniversal News Group
The newsgroup said it will continue to cover the fallout from Navalny’s death across its platforms – NBC News, MSNBC, NBC News NOW and nbcnews.com. NBC News’ chief foreign correspondent Richard Engel will report from Ukraine, while chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell and correspondent Courtney Kube will provide additional reporting from Munich, where they are currently covering the Munich Security Conference.
Sunday’s Meet the Press will air an exclusive interview with House Intelligence Chair Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), who joins the broadcast from the Munich Security Conference, where earlier today, he spent time with Navalny’s widow.
The flagship broadcasts, NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt and Today will provide the latest during their respective broadcasts.
NewsNation
NewsNation will present special coverage of the Navalny’s death throughout the day and into primetime. Contributions will be provided by Washington correspondents Tom Dempsey and Joe Khalil, along with Kellie Meyer on the White House’s response. Additionally, national correspondent Robert Sherman will get reactions from world leaders.
CBS News
Senior White House correspondent Weijia Jiang will be covering from the White House for the CBS Evening News with Norah O’Donnell.
On the streaming front, CBS News Streaming Network Streaming carried President Joe Biden‘s press conference live. It will continue to cover the unfolding situation throughout the day with the latest updates from CBS correspondents during the live hours today and the Weekender at 7:00 p.m. ET tonight. Jiang also will be joining the Weekender tonight to discuss the Navalny news.
CBS News intelligence and national security reporter Olivia Gazis is also in Munich and has been covering the news.
Over the weekend, Natalie Brand will join CBS Saturday Morning to discuss the latest developments.
Fox News
Fox News has its correspondents Benjamin Hall and Alex Hogan covering the unfolding situation from its London Bureau. National security correspondent Jennifer Griffin, as well as the White House reporting unit of Peter Doocy and Jacqui Heinrich, are covering the news for the network.
On Saturday, correspondent Stephanie Bennett will cover the story from the London bureau.
ABC News
ABC News has been covering this story across its shows and platforms.On ABC, Good Morning America led off coverage this morning, while ABC News Live, The View, GMA3: What You Need to Know, ABC News Digital, ABC News Radio and others have continued covering it throughout the day. Navalny’s death will also be covered on the Friday edition of World News Tonight with David Muir.