World news is the media jargon for reporting on global events. It’s sometimes called international or foreign coverage, although the distinction between these two is blurred in some contexts. A reporter who specializes in world news is often a foreign correspondent (a full-time staffer with a single news organization, filing regularly). Correspondents may be sent to specific locations or assigned to cover particular international subjects, such as war or the annual meetings of international organizations.
At the birth of modern journalism, most news came from abroad and was published in newspapers known as courants in 17th-century Europe. After innovations in telecommunications allowed more information to be sent over long distances, news agencies began to be established. These prepare hard news stories and other material for multiple outlets with minimal modification, and distribute it to them electronically through wire services – originally by telegraphy and later via Internet. The resulting articles are also often sold to individuals, companies and analysts. This is known as “wire service journalism”. Some notable news agencies include AP, Reuters and the BBC.
