Nets Go Live With Obama React To Paris Attacks

The broadcast nets joined cable news outlets in going live Friday night with special reports covering President Obama's response to the multiple terrorist attacks in Paris.

He called the attacks "an outrageous attempt to terrorize innocent civilians," adding that it was an attack "on humanity."

CNN aired some Vine footage of an explosion at a soccer match, while Fox's Geraldo Rivera was getting info from his daughter in Paris, who was at the soccer game where the explosion occurred, he said.

She reported hearing at least three different explosions.

Fox was reporting that there were attacks in four different locations including a concert hall, where a hostage situation was still in progress at press time, according to CNN and Fox News.

Multiple news outlets were reporting at least 60 dead. Fox was reporting that French authorities had confirmed 40 dead and 60 wounded.

NBC, which has been increasingly breaking into regular programming for special news reports, did so again early on in the story (at 4:47 p.m.), with Lester Holt anchoring, joined by correspondent Keir Simmons, according to the network.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.