Explore the world of international news agencies and discover the diverse range of organizations that shape global journalism.
Much of the material published by newspapers and presented by radio and television is not the result of the labour of reporters; in stead, it is taken from national and international news agencies. These news agencies sell this material to their.clients. Their role in providing news to mass media is vital Infact, radio news magazines all use wire services (news agencies) for their presentations.
Each news agency divides its flow of news into P M and AM reports, or cycles, the former for afternoon news papers and later for morning papers. These reports always budget, or checklist, the most important stories that are to be transmitted. The budget is the summary of the basic stories then available, or known to be forthcoming during the next few hours, plus sports and feature highlights. The news editor is thus able to plan its make up to ensure space for stories that the paper most likely will want to run
A big, fast breaking news agency, in some cases, may carry half a dozen leads, in a cycle. These are edited so compactly that he dispatch that ultimately appears in a client newspaper reads with smooth continuity, even though it may contain segments of several leads.
The major difference between news service and ordinary newspaper writing is that the news service correspondent must keep feeding the latest development in a spot story into news circuits immediately, even when their meaning and ramifications are not fully disclosed. The newspaper staff correspondent usually has more time before deadline to digest and consolidate the information. News service writers and editors usually work under time pressure.
News services have main trunk distribution circuits running across the country, serving the major metgropolitian newspaper. Regional and state circuits from regional centres serve the smaller papers in different areas of the country. The editors who control the flow of news onto these secondary circuits must see that the newspapers on each receive a balanced menu of regional news along with the most important national and foreign dispatches.
When the teletype circuit operated at 60 words a minute, news services faced the problem of having large stocks of copy on hand awaiting transmission. Newspaper received stories under this traditional method in the sequence determined by the editors who were news agencies gate keepers.
International Types of News Agencies
.AP, UPI, Reuter and AFP are the major foreign news agencies. The detail of each agency is as follows:-
Associated Press (AP)
In 1846 nine news papers from New York found as agency to exchange and disseminate news fro the state capital in Albany This Agency used the services of William Lacy to compile and file dispatches from Albany. The group become known Us the new York State Associated Press. In 1948 New York city newspaper publishers formed an news fetching oraganisation called the New York City associated Press, later to evolve into today’s associated Press (AP).
In the United States AP was responsible for much of the news disseminated during the civil war The opening of the Atlantic in 1866 gave AP a better access to European news, which were obtained through agreements of exchange of news with the reuters and other news services.
Regional AP groups ere constituted, the most power full of which was the Western Associated Press
The basis pf AP was its exchange of news on mutual grounds with other news agencies. Its organizational feature was not entirely democratic until a Supreme Court decision in 1945 Before that any member could prevent the entry of a direct competitor into the group by exercising a right of protest This “black balling” of a potential rival under the country club style of buy laws could be over ruled only by a four fifth vote of the entire membership.
William Randolph Hearst, Whose newly founded papers were denied AP membership, started the International News Service in 1909 Other agencies came and went but AP, UP and INS survived till 1958, when the Hearst’s in heritors liquidated a losing business by merging INS into UP forming united Press International (UPl).
Associated Press grew even stronger during the turmoil within UPI It collects and distributes news in 108 countries to more than 6000 newspapers and broadcast stations including about 1365 newspapers and 3950 broadcast stations in the United States. More than 1500 news staff members serve AP around the worked in 222 news bureaus. AP receives 150, 000 words from abroad daily, of which 50,000 go into its news circuits in the United States.
United Press International.
The UP-INS merger put United Press International in a position of competitive equality with its old rival AP in gathering and distributing the news until 1980, when substantial financial losses impaired its efforts to ensure that there would be an intense rivalry between tow well managed global news services. As the weaker organization, UPI has suffered more than AP from competition by the supplementary mews services.
United press International is a^brivately owned company, dealing in contract basis with newspapers, television and radio stations and other organizations that need news reports. Its clients influence changes the policy of the UPI. This influence of the clients is their suggestions and criticism, solicited by UPI has advisory boards of newspapers and broadcast clients of help management set goals and policies, it had only the smaller share of financial support from the United State’s newspapers.
United Press International operates in more than 100 ‘ countries, serving 5, 000 publications and radio stations in the United States, More than 1200 staff members work in 260 news bureaus.
Reuters.
In 1851 Paul Julius Reuter began his first full year of operating a European courier pigeon service relaying economic news to bankers between Aachen, Germany and Brussels, Belgium. There was a distance of lOOmiles between the two cities and the two were not linked by telegraph. Reuter exploited this opportunity and introduced a pigeon service. Soon Reuters hired help to run his pigeon service and moved to London to develop a strong base for his operations and also to have an access to the coming Atlantic Cable. Although London stock brokers were agreed to know economic news, the London newspapers were not It was not until 1858 that Reuter provided a free trial series to the newspapers.
In addition to delivering general news report to media in 158 countries the British agency provides and elaborates financial report to 35,000 subscribers in 112 countries. It operates 103 news bureaus in 74 countries including 11 in the United States. Although Reuters’ general news report is used by a few U.S. subscribers, the agency hopes to expand in the American market. World wide, Reuters has staff of 5400 persons, of whom 892 are journalists.
Agency France Press (AFP).
AFP is a major force among the international news services, having 12,000 subscribers in 160 countries. AFP distributes news in six languages, operates an international picture services, and employs 2000 full and part time persons around the world. An English news report of AFP is distributed in the United States through the Los Angeles times, Washington Post news service. It is an independent company run by a board of publishers of French newspapers.
Tass.
Tass, The news agency of the former Soviet Union worked till December 1991 under strict official control. It had 5500 subscribes around the world with a handsome number of staff members in all the major countries of the world. But now the Russian Government, the successor to the former USSR. is planning to start a new news agency in its place.