October 7th marks the eighth anniversary of the start of the war in Afghanistan, and the broadcast nets have ramped up their coverage in conjunction with that.

Tonight, CBS’s “Evening News” will begin its special coverage titled “The Road Ahead” that will occupy half of each broadcast until the 7th. David Martin, Terry McCarthy, and Lara Logan will all have special reports. Katie Couric will also interview John Kerry and John McCain remotely for as they provide side by side responses to the same questions.

Chris Cuomo reported live from the ground in Jalalabad this morning for ABC’s “Good Morning America.” He’ll also be reporting for “World News” this evening. MSNBC is airing a one-hour, Richard Engel-hosted documentary based on the emmy-winning NBC “Nightly News” series “Tip of the Spear” Sunday.

B&C’s Marisa Guthrie reports on the increased network focus on the war, as well as the cost of the reports, financially and ratings-wise. CBS News and Sports President Sean McManus told her, “This isn’t something we’re doing for ratings…Stories on wars normally don’t get good ratings.” Anderson Cooper recently spent a week in Afghanistan reporting for “AC360″ and he reiterated that sentiment to Guthrie: “I know for a fact that not a lot of Americans, no matter what they say, are interested or are willing to spend a lot of time watching. I think polls reflect that, ratings reflect that.”