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🗞️ Story file #1828

FAA lifts nationwide ground stop after four-hour disruption

Nov 13, 5 PM ET to Nov 14, 7 PM ET · 3 outlets not rated for lean

👣 How this story traveled: from the front pages that broke it, out through TV, radio and the shows, into what people retold and what fact-checkers examined, and on into the saga it is part of. Everything here is matched to the story by our tools, so a link can be wrong; the trackers' pages say how each is made.

📰 read it at: HuffPostMSNBCNew York MagazineRaw StoryThe AtlanticThe Daily BeastThe Daily KosThe GuardianABC NewsAPAxiosBusiness InsiderCBS NewsCNBCLos Angeles TimesMediaiteNBC NewsNPRNew York TimesPBS NewsHourPoliticoSemaforStar TribuneThe IndependentThe Washington PostUSA TodayYahoo NewsBBCChicago TribuneFinancial TimesForbesFortuneMarketWatchNews NationNewsweekReutersScripps NewsTampa Bay TimesCS MonitorThe HillWSJFox BusinessJust the NewsThe Epoch TimesThe SunThe Washington TimesWashington ExaminerBreitbartFox NewsIJRNew York PostNewsmaxOANPJ MediaRed StateThe BlazeThe Daily CallerThe Daily WireThe Gateway PunditThe National DeskThe National PulseThe Post MillennialThe Western JournalTownhallCrooks and LiarsPunchbowl NewsThe Washington Sun

  1. Nov 13, 5 PM ET

    first on TV: BBC News

  2. Nov 13, 5 PM ET

    first on front pages: 42 front pages at once

  3. Nov 13, 5 PM ET

    first on the radio: NPR News Now

  4. Nov 13, 9 PM ET

    the news that day, One America News Network:

    “FAA lifts nationwide ground stop for all flights”

  5. Nov 14, 12 PM ET

    the news that day, News Nation:

    “Duffy blames contractor work for FAA ground stop”

  6. Nov 14, 12 PM ET

    peak: on 67 front pages at once

📰 Spread

the front pages that ran it, hour by hour

📡 Wire copy

2 outlets ran the AP, Reuters headline nearly word for word

Chicago Tribune, PBS NewsHour

💬 Quoted

  1. “Extraordinary Circumstances”2
  2. “routine maintenance”2
  3. “Didn't Meet the Moment”1
  4. “equipment issue”1
  5. “full operations”1
  6. “Operations Are Slowly Returning to Normal”2
  7. “EXTRAORDINARILY UNUSUAL”1
  8. “we are back at full operations”2

phrases its headlines put in quotation marks; the bar is how many outlets did

📌 Linked by aggregators

4 Drudge Report · Google News · Political Wire · Real Clear Politics

aggregators linking to it from their front page (they don't count as outlets covering it)

▸ ✏️ 63 outlets ran more than one headline on it (reworded, or a follow-up)
  • ABC News (5 wordings): “Rare nationwide ground stop ordered at airports over communication issues: FAA” → “Timeline of the FAA nationwide ground stop: How it developed”
  • AP (11 wordings): “Flights halted at airports across US due to air traffic control communications problems, FAA says” → “Timelapse illustrates how US airspace cleared during nationwide ground stop”
  • Axios (5 wordings): “FAA issues nationwide ground stop due to "extraordinary circumstances"” → “FAA back at "full operations" after Friday outage, Transportation Sec. says”
  • BBC (6 wordings): “'We'll get home one day' - US travellers impacted by nationwide ground stop” → “How telecoms upgrade work sparked US flight chaos”
  • Breitbart (10 wordings): “FAA Issues Nationwide Grounding of All Flights Traffic Control ‘Communication Issue’???” → “Transportation Sec. Sean Duffy: Routers ‘Got Overloaded with Data’”
  • Business Insider (10 wordings): “FAA grounds flights nationwide after communications issues spark massive delays” → “Here's what officials say caused the FAA's nationwide ground stop”
  • CBS News (7 wordings): “FAA issues nationwide ground stop” → “Travelers stranded, flights canceled after ground stop. Here's what we know”
  • CNBC (8 wordings): “FAA issues nationwide ground stop citing communication issues affecting ‘multiple’ air traffic control facilities” → “'Root cause’ of nationwide ground stop is unknown, FAA says”
  • Chicago Tribune (9 wordings): “Federal Aviation Administration grounds flights nationwide” → “Chicago travelers frustrated, relieved as impacts from FAA ground stop reverberate”
  • Crooks and Liars (2 wordings): “FAA Orders Nationwide Ground Stop” → “Trump Blames Biden For FAA Outage Debacle”
  • Financial Times (4 wordings): “US aviation regulator grounds all departing flights” → “Passengers face widespread disruption after US air traffic control outage”
  • Forbes (2 wordings): “Ground Stop Ordered At All U.S. Airports Over ‘Extraordinary Circumstances,’ FAA Says” → “Nationwide Ground Stop At Airports Lifted, FAA Says”
  • Fortune (2 wordings): “Travel chaos worsens as communications problem causes ground stop at all U.S. airports while European airlines reel from wave of bomb threats” → “FAA lifts ground stop as homeland security chief blames tech upgrades for ‘overwhelming’ antiquated systems and rules out cyberattack for now”
  • Fox Business (6 wordings): “Nationwide FAA ground stop raises urgent questions about cause” → “Nationwide FAA ground stop lifted but cancellations, significant delays to continue: transportation secretary”
  • Fox News (13 wordings): “LIVE UPDATES: FAA says communications issue causing ground stop is not a cyberattack” → “NFL official to referee two games in one day due to FAA ground stop travel disruptions”
  • HuffPost (11 wordings): “Flights Halted Across U.S. As FAA Cites 'Extraordinary Circumstances'” → “MORE: Shutdown Exposes Deepening Air Traffic Network Crisis”
  • Independent Journal Review (6 wordings): “FAA Orders Nationwide Flight Ground Stop” → “SEC shifts Ole Miss-Oklahoma game to Sunday after FAA delay”
  • Just the News (7 wordings): “FAA issues nationwide ground stop on all departing flights” → “Trump admin rips Biden admin handling of air traffic control after FAA ground stop”
  • Los Angeles Times (6 wordings): “FAA issues nationwide ground stop due to ‘extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety’” → “How college football, NBA and NHL teams have been affected by national ground stop”
  • MSNBC (4 wordings): “Nationwide ground stop issued in U.S. for all aircraft in ‘extraordinarily unusual’ move” → “FAA grounding caused by faulty equipment or upgrade work, officials say”
  • MarketWatch (5 wordings): “FAA declares rare nationwide ground stop on flights, with nearly 10,000 canceled so far” → “U.S. air travel could take days to recover after FAA’s lifting of rare nationwide ground stop”
  • Mediaite (6 wordings): “BREAKING: FAA Orders Nationwide Ground Stop Over ‘Extraordinary Circumstances’” → “Duffy Appears to Throw Longtime FAA Contractor L3Harris Under the Bus: ‘Didn’t Meet the Moment’”
  • NBC News (15 wordings): “BREAKING: FAA orders nationwide ground stop ‘due to extraordinary circumstances and for reasons of safety’” → “Travel disruptions throw college football into chaos, but NFL is safe”
  • NPR (4 wordings): “FAA issues nationwide ground stop for all U.S. airports” → “FAA blames Friday's ground stop on 'equipment issue' during telecoms network upgrade”
  • New York Magazine (5 wordings): “FAA Grounds All U.S. Flights: Live Updates An extraordinary nationwide ground stop is underway, and it’s still not clear why. Here’s the latest.” → “Air Travel Chaos Continues After FAA Ground Stop: What Happened Upgrade work by an FAA contractor triggered the systemwide collapse.”
  • New York Post (17 wordings): “All planes halted across US as FAA issues nationwide ground stop over ‘extraordinary circumstances’” → “More than 5K flights still canceled as FAA ground stop continues to snarl travel: ‘I’m tired and ready to go home’”
  • New York Times (5 wordings): “A Nationwide Ground Stop” → “Here’s Why It Could Take Days for Flights to Return to Normal”
  • News Nation (5 wordings): “FAA orders nationwide ground stop due to 'extraordinary circumstances'” → “Duffy blames contractor work for FAA ground stop”
  • Newsmax (8 wordings): “US Grounds Flights Nationwide Amid Air Traffic Control Comms Outage” → “After Ground Stop Lifts, Airlines Still Face Days of Disruptions”
  • Newsweek (7 wordings): “Latest FAA Issues Rare National Ground Stop Due to ‘Extraordinary’ Circumstance” → “FAA Ground Stop: What Major Airlines Are Offering Stranded Passengers”
  • One America News Network (4 wordings): “FAA: National ground stop issued due to 'extraordinary circumstances and... reasons of safety'” → “Duffy: Flights ‘returning to normal’ after routine telecom upgrade triggers rare U.S. ground stop”
  • PBS NewsHour (3 wordings): “FAA grounds all flights at U.S. airports due to air traffic control communications problems” → “What to know about flights after the U.S. nationwide ground stop”
  • PJ Media (2 wordings): “BREAKING: What's Going On? FAA Issues Nationwide Ground Stop Due to 'Extraordinary Circumstances'” → “What's Going On? FAA Issues Nationwide Ground Stop Due to 'Extraordinary Circumstances'”
  • Politico (3 wordings): “Duffy points finger at FAA contractor for nationwide ground stop” → “'Incompetence' or faulty equipment? Duffy blames air contractor and demands $50B from Congress.”
  • Raw Story (3 wordings): “‘Chaos’: FAA grounds flights nationwide amid 'extraordinary circumstances'” → “'I'm stuck': Sean Duffy blames key services 'provider' for airport ground stop”
  • Red State (3 wordings): “FAA Orders Flight Ground Stop Nationwide Over ATC Radio Outage Issue” → “Trump Gives Critical Update on What Went Wrong As the FAA Lifts Its Nationwide ‘Ground Stop’”
  • Reuters (10 wordings): “US FAA grounds all departing flights due to extraordinary circumstance, safety reasons” → “DHS chief says no reason for public to be afraid after FAA ground stop”
  • Scripps News (8 wordings): “FAA orders nationwide ground stop, citing 'extraordinary circumstances'” → “Airlines report additional cancellations after FAA issues historic ground stop”
  • Star Tribune (7 wordings): “FAA nationwide flight grounding brings departures to a halt at MSP” → “Flight disrupted at MSP airport due to ground stop? Here’s what to know”
  • Tampa Bay Times (3 wordings): “FAA halts flights across US due to unspecified ‘extraordinary circumstances’ • News comment” → “Nationwide ground stop lifted, but many at Tampa International had flights canceled, delayed • News comment”
  • The Atlantic (2 wordings): “Airport Chaos Began Long Before the Ground Stop” → “Scenes From the Nationwide Ground Stop”
  • The Blaze (2 wordings): “Nationwide GROUND STOP on all departing planes, says FAA” → “FAA lifts nationwide ground stop: Live updates”
  • The Christian Science Monitor (2 wordings): “First Look FAA grounds flights nationwide, citing communications outage By David Shepardson / 2 min” → “First Look FAA says flights can resume following nationwide ground stop By Josh Funk and Will Weissert / 4 min”
  • The Daily Caller (3 wordings): “FAA Issues Nationwide Ground Stop, Halting All US Flight Departures” → “Duffy Floats $50 Billion Price Tag For Congress To Prevent Repeat Paralysis Of US Air Travel”
  • The Daily Wire (3 wordings): “FAA Orders Nationwide Ground Stop At All U.S. Airports” → “FAA Rules Out Cyberattack As Ground Stop Wreaks Havoc Nationwide”
  • The Epoch Times (8 wordings): “FAA Grounds All Flights Across the US” → “Duffy Asks Congress for $50 Billion After Nationwide Flight Halt”
  • The Gateway Pundit (6 wordings): “National Weather Service Reports Radar Outage Less Than an Hour After FAA Grounds ALL Departing Flights Across America” → “Contractor Blamed By Sean Duffy for Friday’s Nationwide Ground Stop Breaks Its Silence”
  • The Guardian (4 wordings): “Flights grounded at all US airports due to air traffic control ‘communication issue’, transport secretary says” → “US officials say flight stoppage stemmed from ‘routine maintenance’ as travel chaos continues”
  • The Hill (6 wordings): “FAA orders nationwide ground stop” → “3,000+ flights canceled after FAA’s ground stop”
  • The Independent (5 wordings): “FAA issues ‘ground stop’ for all flights across US over safety issue” → “Sport stars scramble to make games amid flight chaos”
  • The National Desk (6 wordings): “FAA issues nationwide ground stop, cites 'extraordinary circumstances'” → “'The worst is behind us': Air travel fully resumes after nationwide ground stop, FAA says”
  • The National Pulse (2 wordings): “BREAKING: FAA Grounds Every Departing Flight in America Over ‘Extraordinary Circumstances’.” → “FAA Lifts Nationwide Ground Stop After Halting Every Departing Flight in America for Hours.”
  • The Post Millennial (4 wordings): “BREAKING: FAA issues nationwide ground stop over 'communication issue'” → “BREAKING: FAA says error during copper wire replacement or faulty router to blame for nationwide ground stop”
  • The Sun (7 wordings): “PLANE CHAOS FAA grounds all flights in US for 2nd time since 9/11 in ‘extraordinary circumstances’ with millions stranded” → “SEEING RED Duffy reveals cause of FAA chaos & is told to resign as cancellations continue”
  • The Wall Street Journal (9 wordings): “FAA Issues Groundstop for Flights Across U.S.” → “Outage That Swamped Air Travel Blamed on ‘Routine’ Work to Replace Copper Wire”
  • The Washington Post (5 wordings): “FAA grounds flights at U.S. airports, citing ‘telecommunications outage’” → “Travel chaos, flight cancellations continue following nationwide ground stop - The Washington Post”
  • The Washington Sun (5 wordings): “FAA Issues a Nationwide Groundstop” → “Duffy Blames Federal Contractor for Friday’s Abrupt Ground Stop”
  • The Washington Times (3 wordings): “FAA expanded AI air traffic tool to all centers days before nationwide ground stop” → “Sean Duffy blames tech contractor for FAA outage”
  • The Western Journal (4 wordings): “Breaking: FAA Issues Ground Stop at All Airports 'Due to Extraordinary Circumstance'” → “College Football Chaos: Nationwide Flight Freeze Strands Ranked Teams, Forces Ole Miss-Oklahoma to Move Game Day”
  • Townhall (2 wordings): “FAA Grounds All Flights Nationwide Due to 'Communication Issue'” → “Nationwide Ground Stop Lifted After Hours-Long Freeze on US Airspace”
  • USA Today (11 wordings): “FAA orders nationwide ground stop at US airports citing safety reasons” → “What halted thousands of US flights? Probe focuses on a single router”
  • Washington Examiner (2 wordings): “WATCH LIVE: Sean Duffy and Markwayne Mullin brief media on FAA ground stop” → “WATCH LIVE: Duffy, Mullin brief media on FAA ground stop”
  • Yahoo News (11 wordings): “FAA issues nationwide ground stop due to 'extraordinary circumstances'” → “Duffy says contractor work disrupted communications leading to grounded flights”
📰 Every outlet's headline 67left to right by AllSides rating

📡 Broadcast

TV, radio, and the shows that talked about it

📺 On TV

minutes its captions were on screen, by channel; the disc is the network's lean

  1. 🫏 CNN 1095 min
  2. 🐘 Fox News 310 min
  3. ⚖️ BBC News 270 min
  4. 🫏 MSNOW 184 min

📻 On the radio

hourly newscasts that carried it, by show; beside the count, how often it was the lead story, or the highest it came in the running order

  1. 🫏 ABC News Update 25× · 🥇 led 25
  2. 🫏 NPR News Now 25× · 🥇 led 24

🎙️ On the shows

podcasts, newsletters and streams that talked about it, by show; the bar is episodes; the disc is the show's lean by reputation

  1. ⚖️ Bloomberg News Now 4
  2. 🐘 Benny Johnson 2
  3. 🐘 Erick Erickson 1
  4. ⚖️ Up First (NPR) 1
  5. ⚖️ Reuters World News 1
  6. ⚖️ BBC Global News Podcast 1
  7. 🫏 The Young Turks 1
  8. 🐘 Timcast IRL 1
  9. 🫏 CNN 5 Things 1

🕵️ Investigated, joked about

🕵️ investigative reporting on it and 🃏 satire joking about it (jokes, never counted as coverage); the bar is pieces

  1. 🃏 The Babylon Bee 1
  2. 🃏 The Hard Times 1

🧶 Retelling

what people online made of it

Nobody's retelling it online yet, as far as the daily reports of the last week can tell.

🗣️ Names in it

FAA

🔎 Checking

what the fact-checkers looked into

No fact-checker has taken it on yet.

🧵 Persistence

the running story it belongs to

A story of its own so far: no saga yet.