The Texas News Service (TNS) is media outlet that claims to be “an independent public-interest news service.” ¹ It operates under the Public News Service (PNS), a nonprofit that operates 53 “bureaus” that produce and distribute news stories throughout the United States. ²

Parent Organization

The Texas News Service is one of 53 bureaus of the Public News Service which produce news on a state and national level to be sold to media outlets throughout the United States. The PNS is financed by memberships and 400 nonprofits. In 2024, it produced over 4,000 stories distributed to 6,114 radio stations, 928 print outlets, and 133 television stations. ^{1 3 4 2}

Individuals and organizations that sign up for PNS membership gain access to the content produced by all 53 bureaus, including the TNS, as well as Spanish translations, a PNS podcast, discounts on a public relations support program, and discounts on leadership training programs provided by Media in the Public Interest, the sister group of PNS. ⁵

Distribution

The Texas News Service produces news stories that are distributed to local and national print, radio, TV, and online media outlets, including the Huffington Post, Clear Channel, the News Talk Network, CBS, Sirius Satellite Radio, and Native Network News. The TNS claims to have distributed stories to tens of thousands of media outlets, including to 8,000 outlets “regularly,” reaching 24 million individuals per week. ¹

In 2024, TNS produced 147 stories, which aired a minimum of 4,241 times on 95 radio stations and were used by 84 print/online outlets and 23 television stations, for a total of 202 media outlets in Texas and neighboring states, and 147 other outlets nationwide. ¹ TNS also produced 215 Spanish stories that were distributed in 14 states. ⁶

The Service’s news coverage covers a wide range of topics, with “health issues,” “environment,” and “livable wages/working families” being the three most prominent topics. Other popular topics include “children’s issues,” “budget policy and priorities,” and “immigrant issues.” ¹

Sample Stories

In July 2025, the TNS published an article titled “Gender pay gap still a problem for TX women,” which reported on a study from the National Association of Colleges and Employers that alleged that female college graduates in Texas made an average of 18 percent less than similarly educated men primarily due to “segregated work environments.” ⁷

In June 2025, the TNS published an article titled, “’One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ could mean big changes for TX environment,” which criticized a provision of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act backed by the second Trump administration originating from the Biden administration that set new standards for oil and gas operators to minimize leaks and burning of excess methane. The article cites the executive director of Livable Arlington, who claims the provision is insufficiently strict and will permit considerable pollution from Texas’s large oil and gas industry. ⁸

In April 2025, the TNS published an article titled “Texans brace for financial impact of trade wars,” which anticipated that there would be negative economic impacts from tariffs imposed by the Trump administration. ⁹

Leadership

As of January 2026, Josh Wise was working as the publisher and managing director of the Public News Service, positions he had held since February 2022. He has worked for the organization since April 2019. Wise previously worked for the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, One Voice Mixed Chorus, the Minnesota Fair Trade Commission, and the SEIU Minnesota State Council. ¹⁰

As of 2026, reporters Freda Ross and Eric Galatas were writers for Texas News Service. ^{8 7 11 12}

1. “Our Reach.” Texas News Service. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://publicnewsservice.org/statepages/our-reach.php?abbr=TNS.
2. “Mission.” Public News Service. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://app.publicnewsservice.org/mission.
3. “Annual Reports.” Texas News Service. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://publicnewsservice.org/statepages/annual-reports.php?abbr=TNS.
4. “Homepage.” Public News Service. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://app.publicnewsservice.org/.
5. “Member Benefits.” Texas News Service. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://publicnewsservice.org/statepages/member-benefits.php?abbr=TNS.
6. “Spanish News.” Texas News Service. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://publicnewsservice.org/statepages/spanish-news.php?abbr=TNS.
7. Ross, Freda. “Gender pay gap still a problem for TX women.” Public News Service. July 10, 2025. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://www.publicnewsservice.org/2025-07-10/economic-policy-justice/gender-pay-gap-still-a-problem-for-tx-women/a97585-1.
8. Ross, Freda. “’One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ could mean big changes for TX environment.” Public News Service. June 23, 2025. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://www.publicnewsservice.org/2025-06-23/climate-change/one-big-beautiful-bill-act-could-mean-big-changes-for-tx-environment/a97357-1.
9. Ross, Freda. “Texans brace for financial impact of trade wars.” Public News Service. April 14, 2025. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://www.publicnewsservice.org/2025-04-14/livable-wages-working-families/texans-brace-for-financial-impact-of-trade-wars/a96255-1.
10. “Josh Wise.” LinkedIn. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-wise-95943111/.
11. “Freda Ross.” LinkedIn. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/in/freda-ross-baa04b138/.
12. “Eric Galatas.” LinkedIn. Accessed January 8, 2026. https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-galatas-75761b7/.