Swiss telegraphic Agency

The Swiss telegraphic Agence (ATS) was founded the September 25th 1894 by the principal Swiss newspapers of the time. Principal Swiss News agency of , the company is a Public limit company occupying 220 collaborators who ensure the diffusion of approximately 180 ' 000 dispatches per annum, 24 hours a day.

History

Before the creation of the agency, the market of the Swiss Written press was mainly controlled by the news agencies Havas with Paris and Wolf with Berlin. To put an end to this situation, several newspapers whose Newspaper of Geneva, the Neue Zürcher Zeitung and Bund of Bern have creates in 1893 the Syndicat of Swiss newspapers for the improvement of their telegraphic service . This trade union succeeded in breaking the opposition of the great foreign agencies. The ATS was then founded in 1894, to begin its activities and to deliver its first dispatches on January 1st 1895. The company counted 8 then journalists. Its mission consisted in receiving information of the great agencies German, French, Italian and different, and to draw from it a service from new objective, balanced, in which the Swiss newspapers can in their turn make their choice.

Beginnings

As of its foundation, the ATS has to solve problems of technique of transmission. At the beginning of the 20th century, it was not possible to telephone directly of Bern to the correspondents of Berlin or Paris. The ATS thus had to install, in 1906, a bilingual office in the frontier city of Basle.

Radiophonic information

From 1932, the Swiss telegraphic Agency assumed the full responsibility for the design and the realization of the news bulletins Radiophonique S in the three national languages. That was to last until in 1971 for the radio German-speaking Switzerland and the radio French, and until in 1976 for radio Italian Switzerland. In 1997, the service is reactivated to face at the request of the local radios. It will be again removed in 2002 for financial reasons.

Since 1950, the ATS offers also a Service of information per telephone

Independence

Before the First World War, the ATS collaborated mainly with Havas and Wolf. At the beginning it conflict, in order to guarantee the diffusion of impartial information and objectifies, the company extends its collaboration to other agencies. It then will treat with Reuters and Stefani in particular. It will then indicate on its dispatches the agency source of information.

The ATS still reinforced its reputation of independence and Intégrité during the Second world war and that in spite of the heavy pressures to which the Germany National-Socialist subjected.

ATS today

One century later, the Swiss telegraphic Agency remains an instrument common to the various media of information in Switzerland: written press, radio, Télévision are the only shareholders and the principal subscribers. The ATS carries out a Turnover of 42 frank million .

The services of the ATS are written and distributed 24 hours a day, week and Sunday, in the three official languages. Each service being conceived according to the needs and of the wishes of each linguistic area.

The principal drafting of the ATS and its direction are with Bern. Regional draftings are established in all the areas of Switzerland.

The ATS has as a rule to give all important information in the fastest way and in the most objective possible form. It guarantees moreover the diversity of the sources of the foreign news and the systematic cover of all national and cantonal information.

External bonds

Site of the ATS ''' (Fr) '''

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