Wires and syndication
Wire services and syndication explained
Short answer
- AP, as described in 1918
- Co-operative incorporated under New York's Membership Corporations Law 1
- Reuters Trust Principles
- Created in 1941 2
- AFP legal basis
- Law No. 57-32 of 10 January 1957 3
- dpa shareholders
- More than 170, per the Bundestag lobby register 4
- EFE owner
- SEPI, 100% 5
What a wire service does
An agency collects news through its own staff and partners and distributes it to clients. The clients publish it under their own names, often with an agency credit. AFP says it produces text, photo, video, infographic and audio content, with 2,400 staff in 151 countries through 201 offices, according to a French Ministry of Culture presentation 3. SEPI's 2024 annual report says EFE distributes about three million items a year and is present in 110 countries 5.
The model is old. In 1918 the US Supreme Court described AP members supplying their local news to AP and to no one else, and AP distributing news daily to its members for publication 1.
Ownership models
| Agency | Model | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Associated Press | Co-operative of newspaper members, as described by the US Supreme Court in 1918 1 | INS v. Associated Press, 248 U.S. 215 1 |
| Reuters | Part of Thomson Reuters. A Founders Share Company set up in 1984 holds special rights, including consent rights over any sale of the Reuters news business 2 | Trust Principles 2 |
| AFP | Independent body under private law since 1957, with a five-year objectives contract with the French State 3 | French Ministry of Culture 3 |
| dpa | GmbH with more than 170 shareholders 4 | Bundestag lobby register R007655 4 |
| EFE | Owned 100% by SEPI, the Spanish state holding company 5 | SEPI Annual Report 2024 5 |
| Xinhua | Listed as an institution directly under the State Council of China 6 | State Administration of Foreign Exchange 6 |
Independence rules written into the structure
- The first Reuters Trust Principle says Reuters shall at no time pass into the hands of any one interest, group or faction 2.
- French law requires AFP not to take into account influences or considerations likely to compromise the accuracy or objectivity of the information, according to the Ministry of Culture 3.
- dpa's register entry says its more than 170 shareholders guarantee the independence set out in its articles of association 4.
State money and agency services
Some agencies receive public payments for defined services. The French 2023 Finance Bill proposed €135 million for AFP, of which €113.3 million was compensation for general interest missions, according to the Ministry of Culture 3. The ministry says client subscriptions are AFP's main source of funding 3.
SEPI's 2024 report says EFE's state compensation for a service of general economic interest stayed at €53.9 million, and the net cost of the service was €2.2 million higher 5.
How syndicated copy is credited
Newsroom codes ask outlets to say where agency material came from. NPR's ethics handbook says no material from another source should be included verbatim, or substantially so, without attribution 7. The Washington Post says facts not produced by its own reporting must be attributed, and that it is the paper's policy to give credit to other publications 8.
Credit lines matter when tracing a story. A report credited to an agency and printed by many outlets is one source, not many 7.
Common questions
Is AP owned by the government?
No. The US Supreme Court described AP in 1918 as a co-operative organisation of newspaper members incorporated in New York 1.
Who controls Reuters?
Reuters is part of Thomson Reuters. The Thomson Reuters Founders Share Company holds a Founders Share with special rights tied to the Trust Principles 2.
Is AFP a state agency?
AFP has had the status of an independent private law body since Law No. 57-32 of 10 January 1957. It has a five-year contract with the State and receives compensation for general interest missions 3.
Does a story in many papers mean many sources?
Not if they all reprint the same agency copy. NPR asks staff to attribute such material and not to treat other outlets as confirmation 7.
Rules and charges change. Check the official source linked on this page before you pay or travel. Spotted an error? Email hello@evidencefamily.com.
Sources
- Cornell Law School LII: International News Service v. Associated Press, 248 U.S. 215 (1918)
- Thomson Reuters: The Trust Principles
- Ministère de la Culture: Presentation of Agence France Presse
- Deutscher Bundestag Lobbyregister: dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH, R007655
- SEPI: Informe Anual 2024
- State Administration of Foreign Exchange: State Organs
- NPR: Accuracy (NPR Ethics Handbook)
- The Washington Post: Policies and Standards
Related
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- How to trace a story to its source
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- Circular reporting explained
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- Single-source and two-source rules
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