# Breaking news



## sunyaer

CNN has a programme called "Breaking news".

What does "breaking" means here? It means "come in the middle of a programme and break that programme into pieces"

Thanks.


----------



## Monkey F B I

Not exactly. It just means that it's extremely important news, generally happening at that very moment.


----------



## panjandrum

Monkey F B I said:


> Not exactly. It just means that it's extremely important news, generally happening at that very moment.


I would reverse these ideas.
Breaking news is about something that is happening right now that you would not have heard of before.
It is usually important, but not necessarily.


----------



## sunyaer

panjandrum said:


> Breaking news is about something that is happening right now...


 
So "breaking" has the meaning "happening" or "breaking out", the same as that in "The day is beginning to break." and "Ten minutes later storm broke."

Thanks for your further help.


----------



## FrankyFourFingers

sunyaer said:


> So "breaking" has the meaning "happening" or "breaking out", the same as that in "The day is beginning to break." and "Ten minutes later storm broke."
> 
> Thanks for your further help.


 

Sunyaer, this may even be true. 
But beware of something concerning this kind of comparison. 
When we learn a language, we are very eager to find patterns, repetitions that help us understand the way it works. 
The problem is that these patterns not always exist, so don't always rely on this logic, ok?


----------



## gasman

Breaking news is "The Prime Minister has just called an election. It will be held in 3 weeks!"


----------



## sdgraham

Wikipedia has a reasonably good description of breaking news, including the implication that details are sketchy at the moment.


----------



## sunyaer

sunyaer said:


> CNN has a programme called "Breaking news".
> 
> What does "breaking" means here? It means "come in the middle of a programme and break that programme into pieces"
> 
> Thanks.


 
I would change my first interpretation to:

_It means "come in the middle of a regular programme and break that programme into pieces._


Back in the day, “breaking news” meant literally that — we had _JUST_ broke into our regular programming to bring people urgent information. Nowadays, especially on the American cable news networks, that “breaking news” banner can last all day on the same story.


Additionally, the coverage may be passed to a reporter at the location of the breaking event, possibly sharing more information about the story as it breaks.

Based on the foregoing observations, my interpretation is:

"Breaking" has two meanings "break into regular programming" and "as it breaks(happenning)".


----------



## cycloneviv

sdgraham said:


> Wikipedia has a reasonably good description of breaking news, including the implication that details are sketchy at the moment.



I seem to remember that forum members from China are unable to access Wikepedia (am I correct?), so here is a bit of information from that site:

_*Breaking news* is a current event that broadcasters feel warrants the interruption of scheduled programming in order to report its details.

[...]

The term __breaking news has come to replace the older use of __news bulletin. There has been widespread use of __breaking news at the local level, particularly when one station in a market wants to emphasize the exclusivity of coverage. Not all viewers agree that stories assigned __breaking news rise to the significance or level of interest that warrant such a designation._


----------



## gasman

> _ The term __breaking news has come to replace the older use of __news bulletin_



I wonder. I vaguely remember that during the war, the regular news program was introduced by the announcement-here is the six o'clock news bulletin and I am Wilfred Pickles reading it-or words to that effect.


----------



## cycloneviv

gasman said:


> I wonder. I vaguely remember that during the war, the regular news program was introduced by the announcement-here is the six o'clock news bulletin and I am Wilfred Pickles reading it-or words to that effect.



In fact, I agree. To me the regular news on TV is a news bulletin. Perhaps I shouldn't have copied that bit across from Wiki...


----------



## Karlsson

Many newspapers or tv-channels says they have "breaking news". I have got many mails tlling that they have again "breaking news". What "breaking" means in this case? Latest news?


----------



## ewie

_Breaking_ here means 'brand new', 'happening right now as we speak', 'just appearing now', Karlsson


----------



## entangledbank

News, or a news story, _breaks_ if it's sudden or unexpected.

The story of the drugs raid broke in yesterday's _Times_.
The reporter broke the story in yesterday's _Times_.

An expected announcement, or a government report being published, or a lifestyle story on 'Does yoghurt make you happier?', would not be described as breaking: they are not sudden intrusions into the ordinary news.


----------



## Spira

News has broken for ages in newspapers.
The term "breaking news" as a title or sub-title was introduced by CNN about 20 years ago, I believe.


----------



## ladymarinii3

sunyaer said:


> CNN has a programme called "Breaking news".
> 
> What does "breaking" means here? It means "come in the middle of a programme and break that programme into pieces"
> 
> Thanks.


it basically means that they are running/reporting half a story where they only understand part of the "story".
   So, they use this to be able to update the story now and then and keep it alive for several days or even weeks as they get more information or get verified more information.


----------



## Nunty

No, that is incorrect.

"Breaking news" just means it is "new news". (See post 13 for a better description.)


----------



## overdue

Whether or not they understand everything at the moment, or if they plan on continuing to run it is irrelevant to the expression "breaking news."
"Breaking news" simply means, as has already been stated, that "regular programming" has been interrupted, or "broken," to give you news of something that has just been found out. 
_We interrupt your regularly scheduled program to bring you this breaking news: Elvis has just been found to be alive and well, and living comfortably in the Bahamas. These photos show him sun bathing and sipping what looks like  cranberry juice.  And now, back to your regularly scheduled program, the series finale of Lost. 

_​As you can see, the news itself is not exactly "new," as nothing has changed for Elvis himself, but for us it's new discovery. Maybe they'll continue to cover it, but it seems all the info we need to know has been revealed.


----------



## Phil-Olly

I'm sorry, I really think there's a confusion between the idea that news 'breaks', which has been perfectly standard English for years

('I had to break the news to her about her father')

and that news flashes sometimes happen to interrupt or 'break' into television or radio programmes.  

A hot current news item would be 'breaking news' whether it interrupted a programme or not.


----------



## overdue

Maybe there's a difference between the verb, "to break" and the adjective, "breaking"?

"To break" seems to suggest the news is being delivered for the first time, but in a thoughtful, respectful manner; while "breaking" conveys, yes, news being delivered for the first time, but in a rushed, out of breath way, and if something else happens to be happening at the same time, that activity would be...."broken" to deliver the urgent news? 

As Phil-Olly points out: the person that "had to break the news..[...] about her father..." surely didn't rush in and blurt out the bad news, but took the time to make sure the person was was sitting, etc.


----------



## Spira

Breaking News has become more or less a proper noun or title, coined by CNN, I believe, for what would have been called a NEWS FLASH in earlier times.


----------



## ewie

Phil-Olly said:


> I'm sorry, I really think there's a confusion between the idea that news 'breaks', which has been perfectly standard English for years
> 
> ('I had to break the news to her about her father')


At the risk of sounding like a very dreary pedant, that isn't _news breaking_, Phil ~ that's _someone breaking news_.


----------



## Forero

I agree with Ewie.

_Breaking news_ = _late-breaking news_ = _news "just in"_ = new news.


----------



## overdue

ewie said:


> ....that isn't _news breaking_, Phil ~ that's _someone breaking news_.


Hey! That was my argument!


----------



## sunyaer

Can we say that "the news is breaking ", meaning "the news is happening"?


----------



## Phil-Olly

ewie said:


> At the risk of sounding like a very dreary pedant, that isn't _news breaking_, Phil ~ that's _someone breaking news_.



Agreed - but it's not much of a stretch to go from active to passive, is it?  And we are talking about the language of journalism!

_I broke the news to her about her father
The news was broken to her about her father
The news about her father has been broken in the village
The news about her father broke in the village_


----------



## JustKate

sunyaer said:


> Can we say that "the news is breaking ", meaning "the news is happening"?



Not as far as I know, Sunyaer. _Breaking news_ is a set phrase, and that means it's difficult to alter it while still retaining the meaning.

It is, however, possible to talk about when a story (news story) broke - that is, when it became public knowledge - and to talk about the reporter who broke the story.


----------



## sunyaer

sunyaer said:


> Can we say that "the news is breaking ", meaning "the news is happening"?





JustKate said:


> Not as far as I know, Sunyaer. _Breaking news_ is a set phrase, and that means it's difficult to alter it while still retaining the meaning.
> 
> It is, however, possible to talk about when a story (news story) broke - that is, when it became public knowledge - and to talk about the reporter who broke the story.




I found the sentence "the news is breaking" at elitedaily.com in an article titled "_Why Twitter Will Eclipse The News", _although this sentence is preceded by the word "when":_

http://elitedaily.com/elite/2013/twitter-ultimate-news-source/

"These days, when the news is breaking, the first place you’re likely to find out about it is on Twitter."

_I think "_the news is breaking_" means "the news is happening". 

Comments?


----------



## sdgraham

sunyaer said:


> I think "_the news is breaking_" means "the news is happening".



Not really. News is *always* happening, particularly on CNN.

It's the *event *that's happening, or has just happened.

It means that (usually fragmentary) reports are arriving concerning significant events.

This statement is a bit odd, but fits rather nicely in this particular article. As such, it should not be considered to justify preconceptions.


----------



## JustKate

It can. The meaning of _is breaking_ here is really "is being disclosed," but sometimes the disclosure occurs simultaneously with the occurrence. 

News organizations certainly want you to think that they are there reporting on something as it happens, but of course often they aren't - they are there right after it happens, or as it's just ending. But so long as they can be said to be covering events "live" - that is, in real time - they can call it breaking news.

_(Cross-posted with SDG)_


----------



## sdgraham

It should be noted that "breaking news" has become a tiresome cliché among American TV stations seeking to attract attention of viewers. 

Occasionally, it's complete nonsense.

If local stations don't have enough "breaking news," they sometimes did deeply into the mass of "mildly interesting" to elevate the ordinary for purposes of marketing .

I don't know if stations still sell special advertising for what used to be called "bulletins," but I would not be surprised.

A while back, we had a truck crash on a major highway and the clueless talking head on the local station said "it's been breaking news all morning long."

It wasn't of course. The truck crashed and nothing new was left to report on (except the cleanup, of course).

Like most clichés, particularly manufactured ones, "breaking news" should not become a part of your normal vocabulary.


----------



## sunyaer

JustKate said:


> It can. The meaning of _is breaking_ here is really "is being disclosed," but sometimes the disclosure occurs simultaneously with the occurrence.
> _...
> _



So _is_ _breaking_ here means "is being disclosed, or "is breaking out" / "is spreading out"? 

Is it correct?


----------



## JustKate

Yes. When you're talking about news, all _breaking_ really means is that this is news that is being *disclosed* right then. It doesn't necessarily meant that it is *occurring* right then. 

However, as described by SDG, the term is often misused (sometimes slightly misused, sometimes very much misused) by news organizations to make their news sound more current and more real-time than it actually is.


----------



## wandle

Chambers English Dictionary (1990) gives the following under *break* (verb intransitive):

(of news) _suddenly to become generally known_.

The key point is that it passes very quickly from being known by a few people to being known by very many.
In practice, this is something that happens only with important information.

Therefore although the phrase does not in itself _mean_ 'important news', it nevertheless _refers to_ important news.


----------



## sunyaer

sunyaer said:


> ...
> 
> So _is_ _breaking_ here means "is being disclosed, or "is breaking out" / "is spreading out"?
> 
> Is it correct?





JustKate said:


> Yes. ...




So, what you are saying is that "breaking" could be replaced with "breaking out" or "spreading out":

_"These days, when the news is breaking out/spreading out, the first place you’re likely to find out about it is on Twitter."  

_Does this sound natural? 

(Even though the meaning might be a bit different from the original)


----------



## monalisa!

overdue said:


> "To break" seems to suggest the news is being delivered for* the first time*, but in a_ thoughtful, respectful_ manner; while "breaking" conveys, yes, news being delivered for the first time, _but in a* rushed*, out of breath way_,.


Why do you think "breaking" implies "in a rushed way" or "breaking" the program? 
("break the news to someone" doesn't imply  "being calm or thoughtful or respectful", I suppose it is used only with "bad/sad" news :
it conveys the idea you have to be careful *not to shock *the other person, if you are the first to report it. Don't you agree?)

Isn't it just short for "_[we are] breaking news_"= " this is the* latest* news", ?
that used to be "_stop press news_" in newspapers, and, I suppose, even then the press was *not* really stopped, just emphatic!


In most TV's it is just written, rather than spoken, and  it is short , (it used to be  a _"news flash"), and afterwards they may expand on that!_


----------



## sdgraham

monalisa! said:


> Why do you think "breaking" implies "in a rushed way" or "breaking" the program?



Probably because that's exactly where it comes from.



> Isn't it just short for "_[we are] breaking news_"= " this is the* latest* news", ?



No it is *not*.



> that used to be "_stop press news_" in newspapers, and, I suppose, even then the press was *not* really stopped, just emphatic!



In nearly 30 years in the news/newspaper business, I never heard this expression and certainly not in the sense you offer.



> In most TV's it is just written, rather than spoken,



Perhaps in broadcasts (Not TVs), you've watched, but not in my experience


----------



## JustKate

sunyaer said:


> So, what you are saying is that "breaking" could be replaced with "breaking out" or "spreading out":
> 
> _"These days, when the news is breaking out/spreading out, the first place you’re likely to find out about it is on Twitter."
> 
> _Does this sound natural?
> 
> (Even though the meaning might be a bit different from the original)



"The news is disseminating/spreading out" is what "breaking" means here, but neither is an idiomatic way to say this. Neither is "the news is breaking," in my opinion - I know you didn't write it, Sunyaer, and I also realize that it was presumably written by a native speaker, but it doesn't sound quite right to me. As SDG noted, the statement is a bit odd, and though it fits fine in that particular article, I don't think it would work everywhere.

I really think it's best to use the phrase "breaking news" if that's what you're talking about, rather than playing around with the order of the words in order to try to invent something new. So how about this: "These days, the first place you're likely to find out about breaking news is on Twitter."


----------



## sunyaer

JustKate said:


> ... and I also realize that it was presumably written by a native speaker, but it doesn't sound quite right to me.
> ...



Yes, it sounds that the article was written by a native speaker, and seems to flow quite well. However, what is curious to me is that it doesn't sound natural to you, another native speaker.


----------



## JustKate

sunyaer said:


> Yes, it sounds that the article was written by a native speaker, and seems to flow quite well. However, what is curious to me is that it doesn't sound natural to you, another native speaker.



It could be that the author wanted it to sound a bit unusual - to make it stand out.


----------



## sunyaer

JustKate said:


> It could be that the author wanted it to sound a bit unusual - to make it stand out.



So the author used rhetorical method in his writing, showing a high level of skill in the context.


----------



## JustKate

sunyaer said:


> So the author used rhetorical method in his writing, showing a high level of skill in the context.



Yes, exactly. This is just a guess, of course, but I think the author was may have just been playing with the idea of "breaking news" and came up with this alternative.


----------



## George French

sunyaer said:


> Yes, it sounds that the article was written by a native speaker, and seems to flow quite well. However, what is curious to me is that it doesn't sound natural to you, another native speaker.



To this native English speaking cynic the term breaking news is nothing more than a tautology that is used to tempt people into believing that breaking news is somehow more important than news.

Something happens and then someone makes a fuss about it and it becomes news. If you want to be verbose then call it breaking news.

GF..

All (breaking) news becomes old very quickly.


----------



## wandle

Oxford Dictionary Pro version online gives the following as meaning 6 for the verb '*break*':

6 [no object] (of news or a scandal) *suddenly become public*:
_since the news broke I’ve received thousands of wonderful letters_

This meaning is the same as that given by Chambers (see post 34).
When news breaks, that means that it suddenly becomes known to the public at large.

A couple of good examples from the internet:

Marathon Runners’ Defiance 
_Chris (31) went straight on to Internet runners' forums when the news broke._

Rumours sent even senior policemen into a tizzy
_Apr 18, 2013 – When the news broke on live TV, senior police officers who were on the spot were left fumbling for answers._

What this tells us is that the phrase _*'breaking news'* seen on the TV screen _ means _*'news that is just becoming known to the public now'*_.


----------



## sdgraham

wandle said:


> What this tells us is that the phrase _*'breaking news'* seen on the TV screen _ means _*'news that is just becoming known to the public now'*_.



I like this one.


----------



## monalisa!

> What this tells us is that the phrase _*'breaking news'* seen on the TV screen _means _*'news that is just becoming known to the public now'*_.


I like this one. 

Isn't that just synonymous of _*"this is the latest news" *?? what is the difference??

P.S._


> In nearly 30 years in the news/newspaper business, I never heard this expression and certainly not in the sense you offer.



They are just* synonymous: stop press = very recent news = breaking news:

**Stop press** refers to a particular space on the front or back page of a newspaper that contains** very recent news** that was added to the newspaper after the printing process had started.*http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/stop-press
*StopPress: Breaking news from New Zealand Marketing magazine*
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_press
https://www.google.it/search?q="sto...PIeWj4gSaxYH4Aw&ved=0CEAQsAQ&biw=1241&bih=593
http://www.wordreference.com/es/translation.asp?tranword=stop press*
*http://www.wordreference.com/enit/stop press


----------



## wandle

monalisa! said:


> They are just* synonymous: stop press = very recent news = breaking news:*



They are not synonymous.

(a) 'Stop press' as a newspaper column heading means (in theory) that the printing process had to be stopped to include this news.
Thus it is _the latest news which that paper could print_.
(b) 'Very recent news' is a general expression, not linked to any publishing process, which means _'news that has been known for a very short time'_.
(c) 'Breaking news' seen on the TV screen means _'news that is just becoming known to the public now'_.

If you compare the three definitions in italics, you can see that they are very different:

(b) is unconnected with any form of publishing at all: it could be a comment made by one person  to another in a bar;
(a) is a printed claim which is confined to one particular publication only;
(c) is the strongest claim of the three: it means not only that it is the latest news that the TV channel can offer, but that this news is being made public now for the very first time, by any media anywhere (though it is not claimed to be exclusive).


----------



## monalisa!

wandle said:


> They are not synonymous.
> (a) 'Stop press' as a newspaper column heading means (in theory) that the printing process had to be stopped to include this news.
> Thus it is _*the latest news *which that paper could print_.
> (b) *'Very recent news*' is a general expression, not linked to any publishing process, which means _'news that has been known for a very short time'_.
> (c) 'Breaking news' seen on the TV screen means _'news that is* just becoming known* to the public now'_.
> ).


I think that 's splitting hairs.
Stop press ( I am glad you know  this term, _wandle,_ in UK it was _very_ popular before the advent of TV, _maybe not in Oregon, US, sdg?_) was *the latest (*_ very recent_*) news *a paper could print (not as a _column heading_ but usuallly on the last page as a_ red banner_)
Breaking news is *the latest news* a TV channel can print, the fact that CNN often _claims to be the first in the world _does not affect the real meaning of the term:
 "this is the latest news;
in the example I quoted they are clearly printed side by side as synonyms:

*StopPress: Breaking news from New Zealand Marketing magazine*


----------



## wandle

monalisa! said:


> I think that 's splitting hairs.


Why? Each phrase is distinctly different, each has a distinctly different definition and each refers to a situation which is distinctly different.


----------



## monalisa!

wandle said:


> Why? Each phrase is distinctly different, each has a* distinctly different definition *and each refers to a situation which is distinctly different.


Can you provide a *distinct* definition, wandle?, and prove you are not the victim of suggestions?

*breaking news* (= _news that is arriving about events that have just happened_) [Oxford]
does that mean " very recent/_ latest news_" ? ( any hint about _being first_, being _the first time,_ being _thoughtful_ etc.?),

as it is shown in the WR links, which I am not allowed to quote, in all other languages it is translated with "_last minute_ news"

Then, if you do not acknowledge that Cambridge's "_very recen_t" is  equivalent to _"latest_", I can't help it!.
They are absloutely identical, _mutatis mutandis_, i.e. very emphatical. _ "stop press"_ cried loud _: look folks, we nearly stopped the press to give you* last minute *news !!!!. 
Breaking_ is just a way to emphasize that the news  is_ new, (and_ the word is often_ in red _and _flashes)_


----------



## Nunty

Wandle does not have to _prove _anything.

Regardless of the usage in other languages, in English _breaking news_ is not merely the latest news. It is the news that is happening right now, as the reporting takes place. _Latest news_ may include breaking news, but it refers to all the most recent news, even if the story is over.


----------



## monalisa!

Nunty said:


> Wandle does not have to _prove _anything.


I suppose you, too, Nunty .


----------



## wandle

monalisa! said:


> Can you provide a *distinct* definition, wandle?


I have done that. Your phrases in post 46 are:





monalisa! said:


> They are just* synonymous: stop press = very recent news = breaking news:*


In post 47 I gave each phrase, (a), (b) and (c), a distinct definition (in _italics_) and then showed that each one referred to a different situation.

It is true that those three phrases all involve the concept of news that is very fresh, but it does not follow that they all mean the same thing.

Take the phrases: 'a very old man', 'the oldest man in the village' and 'the oldest man in the world'.
These all involve the concept of a very elderly man, but they do not have the same meaning.


----------



## monalisa!

wandle said:


> I have done that.


Could you please quote the source of those definitions, wandle?
Oxford's definition is not adequate?
P.S. "the latest news" is the latest news in all situations, I suppose.
Of course in the case of a paper it refers to the night before, in the case of a TV it refers to 15 minutes before, or less if there is live coverage.
But, if you watch TV, it applies to such a wide range of situations, that can only be described as "the latest news"


----------



## wandle

Earlier in the thread, I quoted the definitions given for the verb 'to break' (in connection with news) by Chambers and by the Oxford English Dictionary Pro version online. I have not checked my other definitions in a dictionary, as they are not central to this thread, but I stand by them.


----------

