[Vocabulary] The subtlety between "dispatch" and "cable"

[Jucydko]

Hello,
as I am new to this forum, let me take this opportunity to say hello to everyone.
*HELLO* ;-)
I am currently working on a text that often cites intelligence documentation. Some of these files are referred to as "dispatches" while some other are called "cables".
Could anyone please tell me what could be the difference between the two?

All the best, Julia

 

[probus]

I suspect that in current usage they have become synonymous. In the past, there was a distinction based on the technology used in communication: a cable was a telegram, while a dispatch was a paper communication, usually sent via the "diplomatic bag." Nowadays, of course, virtually all such communications are sent over computer networks, so the distinction has become obsolete.

 

[Jucydko]

Thank you very much for your help! As I am working on a text that refers to the past a lot, this explains a lot to me.