The Press: End of a Pioneer

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When Herbert Moore was laid off by CBS in 1934, he got an idea: Why not set up a service to supply news copy for radio-station broadcasts? At the time, network radio stations were limited by the big press services to only two five-minute broadcasts a day, and most stations had only the sketchiest of news-writing services. Moore, a former United Pressman, raised $150,000, founded Transradio Press Service in Manhattan to supply news to radio stations by teletype and shortwave. Transradio prospered; by 1939 it had 400 radio and newspaper clients, 600 correspondents and stringers around the world.

It worked out new radio newscasting ideas, got some good beats, was dubbed by one admiring opposition boss "the University of Transradio" because so many of its trained men graduated to bigger, better-paying outfits. Transradio was too successful; U.P., I.N.S. and A.P. realized they had missed a bet in the radio field, began to peddle news themselves, put the squeeze on Transradio. Said Transradio President Robert Moore (brother Herbert branched off into the publishing business in 1942): "We lost one client here and one client there. We just kept getting smaller and smaller."

Last week, with only 50 clients and 25 staffers left, Transradio folded.