Meanings
plural news cyclones
- The 24/7 publishing of often unscheduled news reports, replacing the traditional news cycle.
One can see the possibility for limitless content for a 24/7 world: churnalism, hamsterization, the news cyclone—names to describe the condition keep coming.
2014, Nikki Usher, Making News at The New York Times, page 2321 more example
Julia Gillard has decided to take on the news cyclone. It used to be called the news cycle, but things move so quickly in the new media age that cyclone is a far more accurate word.
2013, Laurie Oakes, Remarkable Times: Australian Politics 2010-13
Origin
Punning blend of news cycle + cyclone, coined by American sociologist Eric Klinenberg in 2005.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
news cyclone. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/news%20cyclone
“news cyclone.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/news%20cyclone. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “news cyclone,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/news%20cyclone.
Source: news cyclone on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.