What you need to know

The 24-hour news cycle describes the constant stream of news broadcast via the media. From radio, to television, to the internet, we’re always kept up to date with current affairs.

In 1980, US television channel CNN became the first news channel to broadcast 24 hours every day. The UK got its own 24-hour rolling news channel in 1989, when Sky News was launched.

Today, rolling news channels aren’t the only resource for people who want to know what’s going on at all hours of the day and night. The news is constantly being reported online, over social media, and on news apps and the radio, too.