10 live blog examples and what you can learn from them

This post is also available in: English Deutsch

Nowadays, readers increasingly seek concise and impactful narratives when informing themselves about current events. The modern reader demands rapid access to essential headlines and key occurrences. This high expectation continuously drives the newsroom to look for ways to deliver swift story publication, a decisive factor in breaking the news first before your competitors do.

This article showcases ten outstanding examples of live blogs across diverse topics, offering insights into how newsroom editors can maximize the impact of this dynamic format. Each live blog offers some unique aspects in delivering immediate and comprehensive coverage of specific events or stories with their common goal to reach and engage new audiences.

1. Sky News: Live updates on the Iceland volcano

Whether these are news of war, events, meteorological occurrences or geological phenomena, there is a sense of urgency in delivering the latest information about any events that pose a threat in any way. Particularly important for local and national audiences, minute-by-minute coverage of the latest developments allows the population to stay informed and reach critical decisions. Sky’s live blog covers the Iceland volcano event over many days, thus creating a historical chronology of evolving events.

Highlights of this news live blog:

• Key points: Similar to a bookmark function, readers can view the key points right away and jump to distinct sections in the live blog to read up on explanations, analysis, eyewitness testimonials, and so on.
• Reverse chronology: Late-comers who want to follow the evolution of events from the beginning are able to reverse the post orders and switch from oldest to newest posts. A great way to bypass a lot of scrolling.
• Ads-free: Some live blogs encounter accessibility issues when regular ads pop up on the screen. Sky opted for an ad-free live blog to optimize the reading experience.
• Rich media: This live blog is a great example where supporting videos and pictures illustrate the coverage and provide an on-the-ground feeling.

2. DirtFish: Rally Japan 2023 Live Blog

The Rally live blog as created by DirtFish is a great example of how a race can come to life in the form of a live blog. By nature, any sports game or race is time-bound, and updates must happen as the race or game unfolds. Live blogs are particularly well-suited for this type of dynamic environment and enable sports fans to follow the event if they haven’t been able to watch it live, or give them a place to return to at a later stage to read up once again on race highlights and key events.

Highlights of this sports live blog:

• Main purpose: This live blog aims to deliver race highlights to fans and engage audiences
• The blog post made use of custom icons on the side to indicate at one glance what the entry is about
• One key post is highlighted in color, directing the reader towards this particular entry which links back to a static, in-depth post on another page – this is a great way to lead readers on to more, relevant content.
• At the bottom, readers are encouraged to rate the post and to join the discussion or rate comments – a great way to open the dialogue with fans and keep the engagement high.

 

3. Star Tribune: US Presidential Election Coverage

The Star Tribune live blog during the US Presidential Elections in 2024 exemplifies how to use live blogging to provide comprehensive, dynamic election updates. Using Live Center, the blog highlighted real-time poll results from each state as they were announced, ensuring readers stayed informed on key outcomes. Additionally, it tracked progress on Senate seat results, offering a complete picture of the electoral landscape, creating one go-to-source to get all the latest updates. Star Tribune’s use of Live Center demonstrates the power of combining data visualization with real-time updates to create an informative and immersive election coverage experience​​.

Highlights of this election live blog:

• Dynamic Updates: Continuous real-time reporting on state-by-state poll results kept the blog current and engaging.
• Integrated Visuals: Charts and infographics visualized the electoral map, helping readers easily grasp shifting dynamics.
• Contextual Reporting: Alongside numbers, the blog provided expert analysis and contextual insights into the significance of the results.

4. Cambridgeshire-News: A14 – Cambridgeshire Live Traffic Updates

Live road traffic is essential for regular drivers who might be affected by traffic or travel disruptions. Cambridge Live delivers live updates to travelers using the A14 in the UK. The blog intends to provide comprehensive coverage of any delays, incidents, accidents and general roadworks in the area that may disrupt the commuter.

Highlights of this road traffic live blog:

• Main purpose: This live blog aims to inform the local population
• Responsive and instant: Upon a major traffic incident, a traffic blog becomes the go-to place, focusing on essential information for drivers.
• Postcode prompting window: a popup window with the option to enter a postcode enables the reader to get tailored updates related to users’ immediate area or area of interest.
• Social media post integration: The live blog also integrates with social platforms, allowing editors to add feeds from various sources.

5. NZ Herald: New Zealand Elections 2023

NZME covered the 2023 New Zealand elections by having one centralized live blog on the NZ Herald that offered minute-by-minute national updates, enabling local newsrooms to cherry-pick posts from this hub to enrich their coverage and provide context to local elections. The live blog also contains podcast placements, prompting readers to tune in and listen to detailed coverage of particular speeches or occurrences.

Highlights of this election live blog:

• Main purpose: This live blog aims to inform the population while also introducing subscriber content.
• Podcasts: frequent podcast placements throughout the live blog encourage readers to listen and subscribe NZ Herald’s podcast series.
• Social media integration: posts and pictures from Facebook/Meta were added to the coverage to illustrate specific updates.
• Guiding readers to subscribe: feeds within the live blog offer premium content and encourage readers to subscribe to their Premium Politics newsletter.

6. Jyllands-Posten: Football live coverage

Sports news coverage is a very competitive space. Because popular sports disciplines like football attract massive audiences – from sports enthusiasts and casual followers to dedicated fans – newspapers are fighting to capture their attention. This also implies growing monetization opportunities for publishers, with affiliate revenue and ads.
In this live blog, Jyllands-Posten covered a football game using Ritzau, a sports data provider and integrated the received information directly into their live blog using a scoreboard.

Highlights of this sports blog:

• Main purpose: This live blog aims to deliver a full report of a game
• Scoreboard: This is a great way to present readers with specific game details at once glance, for example, by highlighting who scored a goal, at what minute, and any other game action.
• Sports data integration: integrating with a data provider allows the publisher to showcase the numbers right from the source.

7. The Verge: Apple’s “Show Time” TV and news services event

In 2019, Apple announced the new Apple TV Service and News Subscription Plan at an event conference – this new service had been highly anticipated as it would rival other online entertainment services such as Amazon and Netflix. The live coverage done by the Verge immediately highlights what the blog is about and reports on the event minute by minute.

Requiring speed and accuracy for this kind of coverage, the live blog included live image snippets and commentary of the event, capturing live speeches of Apple’s CEO and informing the readers on every action taken during the presentation. The live coverage includes regular real-time updates while remaining in a reader-friendly layout to keep audiences interested. 

Highlights of this event live blog:

• Main purpose: This live blog aims to bring a conference to life with informative updates.
• Accurate: The blog provides instant updates with the use of quotes to capture commentary reactions of the CEO and other celebrities.
• Relevant information pinned to the top: Pinning posts enables readers to view key events of the coverage at the top, without having to scroll through the live blog.
• Informal language: The language used in the coverage is somewhat casual, reflecting the shift in readers’ preference for simpler language.

8. Sky News: Evergreen Money Blog

 

Evergreen live blogs serve as dynamic knowledge hubs, combining the immediacy of updates with the longevity of reference content​​.

Sky News’ Money blog stands out as an example of an evergreen live blog, providing continuous updates on financial topics. From interest rate changes to consumer spending trends, this blog is designed to be a long-term resource for readers seeking reliable financial insights.

Highlights of an evergreen live blog:

• Persistent Relevance: Unlike event-specific live blogs, evergreen blogs are maintained continuously, ensuring they stay up-to-date and valuable.
• Search Optimization: Regular updates and keyword-rich content keep these blogs ranking high on search engines, attracting new readers over time.
• Reader Interaction: Comments and inquiries from readers can guide the inclusion of new topics, ensuring the blog remains aligned with audience interests.

9. TVNZ’s 1News: Live Q&A on New Zealand’s Water Issues

Live Questions-And-Answers (Q&A) blogs, are ideal for tackling complex or controversial topics, offering clarity and direct engagement while boosting audience loyalty​​. TVNZ’s news site, 1News, hosted such a live Q&A blog with expert John Campbell, offering a unique format for engaging readers directly. This format allows audiences to submit questions on pressing topics and receive real-time responses, creating an interactive and highly engaging experience.

Highlights of a live Q&A blog:

• Reader-Driven Content: Questions submitted by readers shape the blog’s direction, making the coverage highly relevant and personal.
• Real-Time Updates: Responses from experts, journalists, or public figures provide immediacy and depth.
• Enhanced Engagement: Features like comment moderation and question highlighting foster a sense of inclusion and dialogue.

10. NRK: Comprehensive Coverage of the 2024 Olympic Games

During the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Norway’s national broadcaster, NRK, delivered an all-encompassing and data-driven live coverage of the event. By leveraging strategic partnerships with streaming licenses, news agencies, and data providers, NRK ensured its reporting was both timely and insightful. Real-time live blogging updates were a cornerstone of their journalistic coverage, particularly during athletics events, which included key moments like the marathon and triathlon. Journalists were able to capture the grandeur of the opening and closing ceremonies in their live blogs, blending live updates with multimedia elements.

Highlights of this event live blog:

• Data-Driven Insights: Real-time statistics and athlete performance data provided depth to the coverage.
• Live Multimedia Updates: Integrated video clips, photos, and social media posts enhanced the storytelling experience.
• Broad Accessibility: The combination of live streaming on NRK1 and NRK TV with live blogs ensured viewers could follow the games seamlessly across platforms.

NRK’s innovative use of live blogging alongside multimedia integration created a rich, engaging experience that captivated audiences during one of the year’s most significant sporting events​​.

Remaining visible amongst similar coverage: how does Live Center achieves this?

Live Center helps publishers remain visible in crowded coverage by optimizing live blogs for SEO and user engagement. With a live-blogging approach, editors are able to ensure a fresh and frequent flow of updated content – a critical factor for search engine ranking. Additionally, features like multimedia integration—such as videos, images, and social media embeds—improve user engagement metrics like dwell time, which is taken into account by Google’s metrics along with a live-blog schema markup, and keyword optimization to enhance discoverability.

Another differentiating factor are the unique interactive features that Live Center provides, such as live Q&A sessions and integration with real-time polls, which distinguish a publisher’s content from competitors. Editors are able to quickly create branded, localized live blogs that help tailor content for specific audiences, making it both more relevant and less directly competitive​​.

 

Conclusion

Live blogging has proven to be a versatile and powerful medium for engaging audiences, whether for breaking news, sports events, elections, or ongoing topics. As illustrated by the examples in this article, live blogs offer a unique blend of immediacy, interactivity, and depth that resonates with readers in ways traditional formats cannot. From fostering real-time dialogue in Q&A blogs to providing persistent resources in evergreen formats, live blogs are an indispensable tool for modern newsrooms.

If you’re considering elevating your content strategy, live blogging is a compelling way to boost reader engagement, drive traffic, and build lasting audience relationships. Explore how platforms like Live Center can streamline your live blogging efforts and transform your event coverage. Start experimenting today to deliver content that keeps readers coming back for more.