The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1905-06-29
FOREIGN NEWS GATHERING.
Four Great Agencies Formally Cover
the Happenings of the World.

Four Great Agencies Formally Cover
the Happenings of the World.
Annually the members gather iii gen
eral convention in New York and elect
a board of directors Of fifteen members.
By common consent, the members OF
this board are chosen from different
parts of the country, so that each I'M
portant division is represented. They
are trained newspaper men, who bring
to the discharge Of their duties an inti-
mate knowledge of the business and
high sense Of responsibility. The board
of directors in turn elect president.
two vice presidents, secretary and
general manager, an assistant secre-
tary and assistant general manager,
and a treasurer, and designate from
their own number five members to
serve as an executive committee.
The world at large Is divided, for
the purpose Of news-gathering, among
four great agencies. The Reuter- Tele-
graph Company, Ltd, Of London, gath
ers and distributes news in Great Brit
ain and all her colonies, China. Japan
and Egypt. The Continental Tele-
graphen Compagnle of Berlin, popular
ly known as the Wolff Agency, per-
forms a like office In the Teutonic, Slav
and Scandinavian countries; and the
Agence Havas Of Paris operates in the
Latin nations. The field of the Asso-
ciated Press includes the United States,
the Hawaiian Islands, the Philippines,
and Central America, as we'll as the
| islands Of the Caribbean Sea. Each of
these agencies has a representative in
| the offices of the others. Thus the AS
sociated Press bureau in London ad-
| ioins the Reuter- offices. The kilograms
| to the Reuter- company are written on
manifold sheets by the telegraph and
| cable companies, and copies are served
simultaneously to the Associated Press
bureau, the Wolff representative, the
| Hayas men, and the Reuter- people. A
like arrangement obtains in Paris, Ber-
| lin and New York, so that in each of
these cities the whole panorama of the
days happenings passes under the eyes
| of representatives of each of the four
| agencies.
But the scheme is much more elabo-
rate than even this arrangement would
Indicate Operating as tributary to the
great agencies are a host of minor
| agencies-virtually one such smaller
| agency for each of the nations of i'm
portance. Thus in Italy the Stefani
Agency, with headquarters in Rome,
| gathers and distributes the news of
Italy. 1t Is the official agency. and
to it the authorities give exclusively
| all governmental information. 1t is
controlled by Italians, but large mi
nority of its shares are owned by the
Agence Havas of Paris. and it Ope-
rates in close alliance with the latter
organization.
Milan, the "Secolo," the leading news
paper Of that city, would instantly tel
egraph a report of it to the Stefani
Agency at Rome. Thence 1t would be
telegraphed to all of the other italian
papers, and copies Of the "Secolo's'
message would also be handed to the
representatives, in the Stefani head
quarters, of the Reuter-, Wolff. Havas
and the Associated Press agencies.
In like fashion, if the fire should
happen in Chicago. the Associated
Press would receive its report trans
NIT it to the American papers. and fur.
nish copies to the representatives, OF
the foreign agencies stationed in the
New York office of the Associated
Press
OF the minor agencies the most inn
portant are the Fabri Agency of Mad
rid, the Norsky Agency of Christiania
the Swiss Agency of Bern, the Svensky
Agency Of Stockholm, the Correspond
enz Bureau of Vienna. the Commercial
Agency Of st. Petersburg. and tie
Agence Balcanique of Sofia.
But the Associated Press Is not con
tent to depend wholly upon these ofti
cial agencies. 1t maintains Its OWL
bureaus in all the important capitals
and reports the more prominent event:
by its own men, who are American:
and familiar with American newspaper
methods. These foreign representative:
are drawn from the ablest men in the
service, and the offices they fill are OBJ
viously of great responsibility. They
must be qualified by long training II
the journalistic profession, by familiar
ity with number of languag ges, ant
. by a presence and bearing which will
enable them to mingle with men O
J the highest station in the countries t.
which they are accredited.-From Mel
, Vile E. Stones "The Associated Press
in the Century.