Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata

In January 1945, three representatives of the major political forces of the Italian Resistance, Giuseppe Liverani, managing director of Il Popolo ("The People"), Primo Parrini, managing director of Avanti!, and Amerigo Terenzi, CEO of l'Unità, advanced the possibility to organize a news agency as a cooperative of newspapers, not controlled by the government nor private groups, replacing the work of the Agenzia Stefani, moved to Milan to meet the information needs of the Italian Social Republic. Their proposal had the approval from the Allied military authorities who, a few months later, favored the success of the new agency by closing the Italian Notizie Nazioni Unite (NNU; "United Nations News"), an agency created by Psychological Warfare Division.

Some antifascist newspapers immediately adhered, and a makeshift headquarters was set up in Rome, at 15 Moretto Street, unofficially entrusting the direction of former NNU director Renato Mieli. ANSA's first publication came on 15 January 1945, in the form of a news release and distributed in Rome. After a few weeks ANSA moved to the place formerly occupied by Agenzia Stefani, on Via di Propaganda.