Breaking news workflow
A streamlined editorial process designed to publish urgent news in minutes — fewer approval steps, automatic alerting, and instant multi-channel push.
A breaking-news workflow is a separate, faster path through the editorial system reserved for urgent news. Where a standard story might require two editors and a copy-edit pass, a breaking-news story might require only one editor, with a guarantee that another editor will review post-publication.
The core idea: speed wins for breaking news. Being first to publish — even with a one-line story — drives meaningful traffic compared to being third or fourth. Newsrooms with a defined breaking-news workflow consistently beat those without one.
A well-designed breaking-news workflow includes: a single click to skip the long approval chain, automatic push notification to mobile-app subscribers, instant social-media auto-post, an alert in the editorial Slack/dashboard, and a built-in upgrade path to convert the bare-bones breaking story into a full article with reporting and quotes.
The workflow also defines who has "breaking news authority" — usually senior editors and a handful of designated reporters — so the speed comes from clear delegation, not from skipping process altogether.