[citation needed] During the late 1990s, Newsworld International's Sunday evening newscast at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time aired on CBC-owned CBET in Windsor, Ontario as a replacement for the ABC family movie anthology series The Wonderful World of Disney, which aired on most other CBC stations in that timeslot (Windsor is part of the Detroit market for programming purposes, as such, stations in Southwestern Ontario near the U.S.–Canada border pre-empt certain U.S.-based programs whose rights are held by Canadian networks to avoid paying higher advertising rates).

[citation needed] In May 2000, Newsworld International was sold along with sister cable channel Trio to Barry Diller's USA Network for $155 million.

In 2004, Newsworld International was purchased by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and Joel Hyatt, who acquired it mainly for the channel's digital cable and satellite coverage reach, and were not interested in maintaining the network's existing format.

[3] Newsworld International produced Special Assignment, a half-hour documentary series hosted by veteran CBC correspondent Bill Cunningham, featuring a different country in each episode.

The format included a segment of historical context on the featured country with archive footage narrated by Cunningham, followed by a recap of recent political developments and current events.