Federal News Service (FNS) is a
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
–based company providing
transcription services
Transcription refers to the process of converting sounds (voice, music etc.) into letters or musical notes, or producing a copy of something in another medium, including:
Genetics
* Transcription (biology), the copying of DNA into RNA, the fir ...
. FNS produces on-demand verbatim transcripts of newsworthy events in DC (including speeches, congressional hearings, and interviews) for its clients.
["CQ Roll Call Acquires Federal News Service"](_blank)
(press release), CQ Roll Call (December 1, 2014). FNS "is one of the chief sources of transcripts from presidential appearances and
Capitol Hill
Capitol Hill, in addition to being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington, D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues. It is one of the ...
events".
["Dolan Co. acquires Federal News Service"](_blank)
''The Washington Post'' (August 16, 2010).
History
FNS was incorporated in 1985.
''The New York Times'' (July 27, 1987). Before the creation of FNS, many years "the only way to find out what exactly was said at a Washington hearing or briefing was to be there. Harried journalists, lawyers and Government staff workers dashed from session to session, then relied on scribbled notes and individual tape recordings to reconstruct what happened."
The creation of the Federal News Service filled a market niche; ''The New York Times wrote in 1987 that "this high-technology transcription company with a low public profile has quickly, and quietly, made itself indispensable to news organizations, many branches of Government and even foreign governments by covering news conferences, briefings and other sessions among Washington's comment mills: the press offices and
public affairs offices of the departments of
State
State may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Literature
* ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State
* ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States
* ''Our S ...
and
Defense
Defense or defence may refer to:
Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups
* Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare
* Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks
* Defense industr ...
, the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
,
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
and television talk shows."
Im December 1995, the
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. The FTC shares jurisdiction ov ...
approved a consent agreement with the Reuters America unit of Reuters Holdings P.L.C. and with Federal News Service Group Inc.
[Associated Press]
Transcript Services Settle Charges with F.T.C.
(December 28, 1995). This agreement settled charges that the two firm, the United States' largest producers of verbatim transcripts, had an
anti-competitive agreement.
Under the agreement, no party admitted any wrongdoing.
In July 2009, FNS filed a
lawsuit
-
A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil actio ...
in
federal court in Washington against ''
Congressional Quarterly
Congressional Quarterly, Inc., or CQ, is part of a privately owned publishing company called CQ Roll Call that produces a number of publications reporting primarily on the United States Congress. CQ was acquired by the Economist Group and combined ...
'', as well as CQ's then-parent companies (the
Times Publishing Company
Times Publishing Company is a newspaper and magazine publisher. Its flagship publication is the ''Tampa Bay Times'' (formerly the ''St. Petersburg Times''), a daily newspaper serving the Tampa Bay area. It also publishes the business magazine ''Flo ...
and the
Poynter Institute for Media Studies
The Poynter Institute for Media Studies is a non-profit journalism school and research organization in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. The school is the owner of the ''Tampa Bay Times'' newspaper and the International Fact-Checking Netw ...
), CQ's subsidiary CQ Transcriptions, and a CQ vendor, Morningside Partners.
[Reuters]
"Transcript Service Sues Congressional Quarterly"
(July 2, 2009). FNS accused CQ of
corporate espionage
Industrial espionage, economic espionage, corporate spying, or corporate espionage is a form of espionage conducted for commercial purposes instead of purely national security.
While political espionage is conducted or orchestrated by governmen ...
, alleging in court documents that CQ had paid a FSN employee to provide it with confidential business information and that CQ had used a customer password to access FNS transcripts.
In August 2010, it was reported that FNS had been purchased by the
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
-based Dolan Company, a publisher of business journals and
trade media.
Dolan purchased FNS from the
trustee of the bankruptcy estate of FNS's former owner, Cheryl A. Reagan.
On December 1, 2014, CQ Roll Call announced that it was acquiring FNS from Dolan for an undisclosed sum.
CQ Roll Call is a
wholly owned subsidiary
A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company (law), company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company ...
of
The Economist Group
The Economist Group (legally The Economist Newspaper Limited) is a media company headquartered in London, England. It is best known as publisher of ''The Economist'' newspaper and its sister lifestyle magazine, '' 1843''. The Economist Group spe ...
and was formed from the merger of ''Congressional Quarterly'', ''
Roll Call
''Roll Call'' is a newspaper and website published in Washington, D.C., United States, when the United States Congress is in session, reporting news of legislative and political maneuverings on Capitol Hill, as well as political coverage of c ...
'', and
Capitol Advantage
Capitol Advantage is a Fairfax, VA based technology company. Roll Call acquired Capitol Advantage for $43 million in August 2008.
Company Description
The company is the largest publisher of Congressional directories in the country as well as th ...
.
"About CQ Roll Call"
CQ Roll Call.
References
External links
Official website
{{Authority control
Mass media companies based in Washington, D.C.
Mass media companies established in 1983
American companies established in 1983
1983 establishments in Washington, D.C.