The answers to your question are largely in agreement with my understanding of
what the TAS news service consists of.

	The early descriptions of the TAS in canon gave one of the benefits was access
to the Library Terminal in the TAS offices, which would include the News from
elsewhere. A few of the TAS News entries contain references to the "TAS
Reporter" asking questions of important people. And several of the Rebellion era
reports contain statements of news being censored.

	My vision of the process is as follows:

	Most news services are local to a single world or small cluster, both within
and outside of the Imperium. It's too expensive to send people out further. TAS
has agreements with many of these local news organizations to swap news (which
may also include money). The local news is reviewed by a TAS news editor (or
simple expert system computer program) and loaded into the TAS News packet and
sent by mail and x-boat to all the other TAS offices.

	The local TAS office news editor again filters the reports by importance and
posts the most interesting ones to the local news services and the library
terminal. By digging through the "Library Data" terminal in the TAS office you
can find news from across the Imperium, though usually out of date. A benefit of
membership.

	The larger TAS offices maintain a small staff of reporters who go to press
conferences and ask questions or confirm the local stories.

	In the old days, TAS would accept reports from members about interesting
experiences on worlds just across the border and the like. But generally doesn't
any more. They're not going to post unsubstantiated rumors or hearsay.

	There are a number of TAS Investigative Reporters, who travel between worlds to
do deeper investigations of problems or interesting goings on. What's not clear
is who qualifies for the TAS-IR or why.

	There are three sources of news: The Local News services, which have their own
slant and political leanings, the TAS Reporters, who are pretty limited in what
they will do, and the Investigative Reporters who are few and far between.

	News posted to the local TAS office has been twice filtered: Once at the source
for being interesting to the larger TAS audience, once at the local office for
relevance to the locals. Though if you have some skill with computers you can
dig through all of the posted news items for interesting patterns.

	And yes, the local news services, nobility, and Imperial Navy have the
authority to block or refuse to allow the publication of specific kinds of news.
And sometimes tries to block the gathering of the same news to much less effect.

On 2/10/2021 5:29 AM, xxxxxx@gmail.com wrote:
>
> I'm not sure I ever recall seeing anything that really covered how the Traveller
> News Service works (in a range of respects) nor do I recall how news services
> generally are acquired and consumed by players in a TU.
>
> Specific points I'm curious about:
>
> a) What will the Traveller News Service report on? What sorts of things rise to
> their attention versus do not? Obviously not all news entries do. What criteria
> would guide their choices?
>
> My answer: Things affecting commercial activity, passenger travel, Imperial
> military or diplomatic activity, situations between polities within and near to
> the Imperium, perhaps major disasters, plagues, conflicts, etc, traffic
> information that is relevant to interstellar travel, and changes to travel zones
> or other sorts of restrictions that would apply to travellers or commercial
> entities doing business between star systems.
>
> b) Does the TNS have scope on their reports? We know travel distance and time
> will be a challenge - do I really expect every TNS posting from the far edges of
> the Imperium to make it to Capital or the other far side of the Imperium? Or
> would each post be given some sort of scope or radius? What would then be given
> shorter scope versus further?
>
> My answer: Since the focus is on commercial travel between stars and things that
> would be of relevance there, many TNS postings would have a scope. If one system
> is having an outbreak, maybe everywhere within a J-6 distance (or 3 jumps as
> another way to look at it) would get the bulletin, but people further away might
> reasonably not need or want it.  For something like a Zhodani action that has
> put the Imperium into a potential war posture could be expected to have Sector
> or Domain scope and eventually (if things went bang), one would expect even Core
> would find out.
>
> c) Do the TNS get all their stories from direct employee journalists? Or some
> from them and some from freelancers? Or all from freelancers (or at least most)?
> What's the split?
>
> My answer: I think there are some TNS journalists out poking around, but much
> data could come their way from freelancers so I think they must use them. The
> editors would then decide how to summarize reliable information and what scope
> it should have before putting it into the network. I'm assuming a high % of
> articles prepared by TNS journalists would be printed and a lower % of
> freelancer stuff would be (because of difficulty verifying or poor
> writing/dubious sources) but that could still mean more freelancers got
> published due to the vast amount of potentially interesting any decently
> populated system could have to write about and try to sell to TNS.
>
> d) Does the Imperium at any time have authority (or be able to claim it) to stop
> or delay articles being published into the network? Does any such authority have
> limits or must cause be shown to those who are being required not to produce an
> article or to delay it?
>
> My answer: Yes. There may be times, to save life or limb or in some manner
> related to active military actions, where a story should be delayed. Total
> cancellation could only happen in the rarest of situations and where a clear
> public danger would exist.
>
> e) Are there other local system, subsector, sector, domain, etc. level news
> publishers?
>
> My answer: Of course! Lots of them. Some good, some bad, some slanted (TNS has a
> slant....).
>
> f) Are there any common standards for journalism in the Imperium?
>
> My answer: IMTU, yes. Reputable news agencies will adhere to them. Others will
> claim to but shade the boundaries. Others yet are simply opinion or ideology
> more than news.
>
> g) When Captain Bob shows up at the starport, what news will he get? And how
> will he pay for it, if at all?
> Does he get all current TNS stuff? Does he have to pay for that? If so, how much?
>
> My answer: TNS would release warnings relating to health and safety freely.
> Other content would have a modest cost. Some of the more interesting but none
> critical pieces might be behind a higher tier of premium content. Same with most
> news agencies. The ones that give it away likely have an agenda.
>
> h) I'm assuming other agencies that have scope of Bob's current stop would have
> new packets that they would give part of away (as a hook or public service) and
> other bits would be paid for based on my assumptions about the TNS. Does that
> sound reasonable?
>
> My answer: In some cases, more 'intelligence' like news (perhaps business news
> or stuff to do with upcoming changes in a conflict or political alignment) would
> be in the premium cost tier. Like getting access to Jane's strategic roundups
> for the week.
>
> i) How much are player characters coming in from other places with info going to
> be able to get for their stories / things they know that haven't reached their
> current location? What's a tip or article worth?
>
> My answer: I don't know.
>
> j) Do interface locations (borders or domain boundaries or sector boundaries,
> etc) tend to be dealt with by smaller scope news agencies by way of peering
> arrangements? Like CBC reports some American news and some of the US channels
> report some Canadian news?
>
> My answer: One would think so.
>
> k) Is TNS conceptually modelled after the news wires like the Associated Press
> or Reuters? More focused on moving around news and monetizing it than in doing
> free work in the public interest?
>
> My answer: Kind of. It may have some reporters, but it is more like a big news
> wire in our modern world.
>
> Thoughts? Commentary? Other queries or quandries about how TNS and other news
> services work in play?
>
> TomB
> PS - I blame Jeff Z. for starting something in my head.
>
>
> --
> “The only stable state is the one in which all men are equal before the law.” ―
> Aristotle
>
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--
         Thomas Jones-Low
Work:	xxxxxx@softstart.com
Home:   xxxxxx@gmail.com