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The early morning shooting death of Brian Thompson, the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare, on a Manhattan sidewalk last week shocked the nation, and sent law enforcement on a mad scramble to find the killer.

Close behind the police were the reporters chasing answers to their questions about the crime, the motive and the man responsible for the killing. He was caught on surveillance video shooting Mr. Thompson and then fleeing in anonymity.

Like the police, journalists traced the gunman’s steps. They worked the phones. They raced to Altoona, Pa., where the suspect, Luigi Mangione, was finally arrested on Monday following a dayslong manhunt, and they were there when he was charged with the murder. They then traveled to Maryland, where Mr. Mangione grew up, in an effort to understand his upbringing.

It has been a busy time for people like Maria Cramer, who covers crime and the New York Police Department for The New York Times.

Catching her breath on Wednesday, Ms. Cramer spoke with Times Insider. This interview, about the art of police reporting and the mechanics of covering a rapidly developing news event, has been edited.

During the manhunt, it was clear that the public was going to play a role in finding the suspect. Did that change the way you reported, or the way the police shared information with journalists?

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