Cable networks roll out special looks for Queen Elizabeth coverage

U.S. cable networks offered extended coverage of the death of Queen Elizabeth II starting Sept. 8, 2022, and extending into the following day.

CNN

CNN’s Jake Tapper broke the news Sept. 8, 2022, after the network ran its breaking news stinger that the network has pulled back from using as much as it has in the past (and, in this case, it was probably warranted).

On Sept. 9, 2022, CNN updated its schedule to offer “Special Coverage” from noon to 3 p.m. eastern, when “CNN Newsroom” is expected to air and likely continue to give Elizabeth’s death prominent placement. 

That coverage, split-anchored by Anderson Cooper in New York and Don Lemon in London, used an extended version of the Elizabeth open the network first started using Sept. 8, with a distinctive script typeface used for the queen’s name and title — complete with an elegant tail on the “h” that flowed up and back around to end in a flourish that intersects the second “I” in “II,” which appears to be set in Trajan (which also appears to be used, in a slightly bolder format, for the “1926-2022” notation below.

The open itself features a motif of frames depicting images from Elizabeth’s life along with a waving Union Jack background with images of royal decrees and Buckingham Palace overlaid before ending with a profile portrait of the late queen.

CNN is using a combination of the queen’s name along with her birth year and death year on-screen, including in a narrow bar running along the bottom of the screen, which uses what appears to be two different typefaces from what is used in the open.

MSNBC 

MSNBC anchor Chris Jansing was on the air Sept. 8 to report the news of the queen’s death.

Later that day, the network started using a look similar to the one used when Prince Philip, the queen’s late husband, died in 2021, which includes a full animated open that contains angular elements inspired by the Union Jack flag. These spaces serve to frame historic and more modern imagery of Elizabeth. 

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The network is using the banner “Remembering Queen Elizabeth II.”

Of course, the network updated the elegant, sans serif gold typography with Elizabeth’s name. The “Q” and both “I”s are set larger than the rest of the letters, with the “E” in “Elizabeth” taller — but not quote as tall — as well. In what appears to be an effort to maintain the footprint of the logotype, the network did not include a noticeable space between Elizabeth’s name and numerals.

Fox

Fox’s cable network is using the standard black and gold look it uses when notable people die. The design is essentially a template that allows the network swap out text, including the name and birth and death years, along with imagery. 

Fox is also inserting a “Remembering Queen Elizabeth II” sliver in its lower third design, again something it typically does when someone famous dies.