Media blankets royal wedding coverage

The most covered wedding in history is about to begin, with each of the major cable and broadcast networks promising dozens of hours of coverage over various platforms -- from TV to Facebook.

Meanwhile, the obvious questions shadowing this royal wedding bonanza: Where to turn, and how much is too much?

NBC News disputed a recent report saying it had cut back coverage plans after private research suggested audiences were unenthusiastic about the Kate Middleton-Prince William nuptials. The network says it will air 20 hours of coverage on NBC and MSNBC, with reports from more than a dozen anchors and reporters on Friday alone. In addition, NBC will yoke almost every network under the NBCUniversal banner -- from E! to Telemundo and even The Weather Channel for coverage.

Matching coverage step for step, ABC says it too will have a total of 20 hours, with Diane Sawyer-Barbara Walters-anchored reports from Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey, along with Twitter reaction, Facebook posts and a steady stream of reports and observations from the Daily Beast's Tina Brown, and Colleen Harris, former press secretary to Prince Charles, and many others.

Some industry observers have wondered about overkill, or whether coverage will draw resources and attention from real news stories, from Japan to the Middle East. CBS News will devote somewhat less airtime to the wedding, while a one-hour prime-time special, "The Royal Wedding: Modern Majesty," airs Friday at 8 p.m.