Real-time news is the immediate reporting of an event as it unfolds, often leveraging digital platforms to deliver updates instantly. It prioritizes speed and immediacy over traditional news reporting timelines and has reshaped the journalism landscape by encouraging audience interaction and engagement with live sports coverage and other dynamic events.
However, despite its increased efficiency, real-time news coverage can also be decontextualizing for audiences as it often reports information without a clear understanding of the situation or the context surrounding a story. This was the case with both the Ukraine uprising in 2014 and the Gaza-Israel conflict in 2022, which have prompted journalists to find new ways of reporting on fast-moving stories that prioritize reader trust.
While this change has pushed journalists to prioritise transparency and the editorial process, it also puts greater emphasis on time-consuming tasks such as fact-checking and providing a coherent narrative. This is why publishers must consider implementing a flexible, customizable and scalable real-time news format that can meet the demands of today’s audience.
The best way to track new media mentions in real-time is with a powerful tool like CisionOne, which provides the most complete industry overview and offers critical features for monitoring competitors. It allows you to set up notifications and receive alerts in Slack, making it easy for teams to share and discuss the latest press coverage. This ensures that you have a competitive advantage and are the first to know when your competition gets mentioned by a major news outlet.