Steve Mallory, founder of PACSAT and Capitol Television News Service (CTNS), has announced he’s shutting down his business at the end of the month. Mallory launched the satellite truck and video service in 1987 to provide TV news stations around the state video coverage of Capitol events and features. CTNS has had its own staff of reporters, camera crews and engineers who produce several stories daily. Their work is fed via satellite to subscribing stations from its headquarters at 1629 S Street in Sacramento. Mallory said after a long career in broadcast journalism, he was ready to retire. “I am an aging septuagenarian and the tread on my tires is wearing thin,” he said. He got the journalism bug when he delivered newspapers at the age of 12. He studied broadcast journalism at San Diego State University and has held several jobs in TV news, including Capitol bureau chief for KNBC in Los Angeles in the mid-70’s, and foreign correspondent for NBC News with stints in London, Tokyo, Moscow and Beirut, Lebanon. After 10 years of working overseas, he and his wife, Kathy, decided it was time to settle down in California and raise their family. That’s when he had the idea to produce and distribute video reports about California government and politics for TV news programs around the state. “I believed such a service was necessary and important,” Mallory said. “I thought the people of California needed to know what was happening in their government.” Mallory started with a single satellite truck traversing the region and gathering news. At the company’s zenith, he had 18. Now, six are in operation. Mallory said he tried to find a media company or individual to take over the service. He even tried to give some of it away for free, including its video library with three decades worth of clips. But, no such luck. “It’s very unfortunate. It’s disappointing,” he said. Mallory’s plans for retirement include moving to Nevada, reading and traveling. He says he’s proud of the work he and his staff produced and is satisfied with his career, but says he doesn’t have an interest in watching the news today. “I used to risk my life to get the truth, to get the story,” Mallory explained. “Very few are reporting the truth now. It’s a disgrace.” The service will officially cease on May 31. Contact: 916 446 7890.