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There used to be something here that couldn't be migrated - please contact us at info@journalism.co.uk if you'd like to see this updated! CNN has launched a new online tool to show readers how stories have developed during reporting.

The BackStory feature shows significant events in the development of a news item as a slideshow, which can be scrolled through by the reader.

The articles are displayed along a timeline and links to profiles of a story's 'key players' are also provided.

The background information, which is linked to in a panel on the article page, is intended to give a 'quick recap' of events, Rachel Clarke, CNN.com's senior producer, said in an introduction to BackStory .

The interactive tool has been put to use for the first time in the website's coverage of the FBI's investigation into anthrax attacks in 2001.

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Written by

Laura Oliver
Laura Oliver is a freelance journalist, a contributor to the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, co-founder of The Society of Freelance Journalists and the former editor of Journalism.co.uk (prior to it becoming JournalismUK)

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