Newsletter No. 61

From the Editorial Desk P r o l ogue Judging from the reading habits of the 212 respondents to our questionnaire, we can safely assume that they are regular readers of the Newsletter: as much as 40 per cent of them claim to read all the items in an issue and none claim to rarely or never read it. Of course, those who never or hardly ever read the Newsletter not have known about the survey in the first place, nor be inclined to respond to it. Those who have made their views directly known to us will naturally take priority on our agenda. Besides, their views may well be, to a certain extent, the views of the silent majority. It is by securing these readers that the Newsletter can hope to expand its readership. This is also the premise on which the following proposals for improvement are based. General Support for Existing Columns The weakest seems to be 'service to the community and international organizations'. But although it scored the least votes in the interesting/ useful category, and the most votes in the uninteresting/not useful category, the votes in the first instance come from 42 per cent of the respondents compared with only 29 per cent in the second. Table 1 on page 12 clearly shows that respondents interested in the existing columns largely exveed respondents not interested in them. Therefore, all columns will remain. Those that are less pupular will henceforth appear less frequently. Readers Desire Diversity of Voices The three most popular new columns are (1) exposition and analysis of University plans and policies by senior management, (2) letters to the editor, and (3) open forum. These preferences reflect a wish for a mélange of views in the Newsletter instead of purely official press releases. Not surprisingly, they also agree with answers to another question which reveal that close to 50 per cent of respondents find the shortage of analytical and commentative articles the Newsletter's major shortcoming. We are keenly aware of such sentiments. But the crucial question remains: Who will write these articles? On our part, we have already made plans to invite senior members of the University administration to write on new policies and plans; we also intend to invite people holding different posts in different departments to comment on specific topics. We will continue to encourage readers to express their views in the form of letters to the editor. These three columns will be our top priority. However, their success depends not only on good intentions and effort on our part but also on whether there is a climate for open discussion in the University. Other suggested new columns which gained less support from the respondents will be dealt with at a later stage. Will Readers Speak Their Minds? With all the enthusiasm for diversity of views in the Newsletter, less than 30 per cent of the respondents express the wish to air their views through the newsletter. This is a blatant contradiction: most readers want to hear other people's voices but few are ready to speak their own minds. We do understand what apprehensions our colleagues may have about raising open criticisms. So with an aim of allaying doubts, we stress that all personal information will be kept confidential and pseudonyms can be used. But of course, it is up to readers to trust us. On the other hand, there are certain principles of editing we do insist on. We will not accept aimless or tendentious criticism, slander or anonymous complaints. We will only publish substantiated claims and constructive criticism. Paper, Pictures and all the Rest We will use a different kind of paper next year since less than 30 per cent of the respondents keep every issue of the Newsletter. There will not be any changes in the amount of pictures and illustrations as our respondents deemed the present amount adequate. As for the size and frequency of issue, we have decided to take the matter into our hands for once. The new/Newsletter will be in A3 or tabloid size and published once every fortnight. We believe the nature of the new columns warrants these complementary changes. However, should our plans be over-ambitious and readers detect a drop in quality, please let us know in writing. Similarities and Differences Between Teaching/Research Staff and Administrative Staff We have analysed the responses of these two categories of respondents and found no major differences between them in terms of preferences in reading. The only noteworthy point is that more of the latter keep every issue of the Newsletter for future reference whereas most of the former discard it after reading. The former tend to favour analytical and commentative articles while the latter prefer articles of a more entertaining nature. Almost all respondents who are willing to be contributors are teaching/research staff. Comparing Chinese and English Readers We seem to receive more compliments from readers of the English version of the Newsletter than from readers of the Chinese version. Perhaps the English version is, in fact, better, or perhaps western culture is more conducive to explicit compliments. More than half of the respondents who are willing to be contributors to the Newsletter also happen to be non- Chinese readers of the English version. Many readers of the English version reiterated the wish to see all articles carried in English because they cannot read Chinese and do not want to miss out on any news. In contrast, as most of our Chinese readers are bilingual, there is far less of an insistence on reporting in Chinese. To cater to the needs of different groups, we'll make sure that all essential items such as announcements and University news appear also in English; personalia will be reported in both languages; features will be reported in either language and translated only if time permits. Contribu- tions from readers will be published in the original language, without translation. New Format Begins in January 1995 The Newsletter will appear in a new format on 4th January 1995. We call upon all regular readers and potential contributors to note the publication dates and deadlines for contributions. January to June 1995 Issue no. Date of publication Deadline for contributions 62 4th January 16th December 1994 63 19th January 4th January 1995 64 19th February 6th February 65 4th March 18th February 66 19th March 6th March 67 4th April 22nd March 68 19th April 3rd April 69 4th May 21st April 70 19th May 6th May 71 4th June 20th May 72 19th June 5th June NO.61DECEMBER1994 14