Inter Press Service

Inter Press Service (IPS) is a global news agency. Its main focus is the production of independent news and analysis about events and processes affecting economic, social and political development. The agency largely covers news on the Global South, civil society, and globalization.

History

Inter Press Service was set up in 1964 as a non-profit international cooperative of journalists. Its founders were the Italian journalist Roberto Savio and the Argentine political scientist Pablo Piacentini. Initially, the primary objective of IPS was to fill the information gap between Europe and Latin America after the political turbulence following the Cuban revolution of 1959 (Giffard in Salwen and Garrison, 1991).

Later, the network expanded to include all continents, beginning with a Latin American base in Costa Rica in 1982, and extended its editorial focus. In 1994, IPS changed its legal status to that of a "public-benefit organization for development cooperation".

In 1996 IPS had permanent offices and correspondents in 41 countries, covering 108 nations. It had as subscribers over 600 print media, around 80 news agencies and database services, and 65 broadcast media, in addition to over 500 NGOs and institutions.

Press service

Press service is typically a department within an organization of some kind whose function is to communicate with mass media on topics related to that organization by issuing press releases and using other various means such as public speeches at news conferences, answering questions by telephone or on the Internet.

The main (or only) public figure who makes announcements is usually called a press secretary, press officer or spokesperson.

For example, there is a press service for the European Parliament.

See also

References