Now that the changes to QST are official policy, I'd like to explain why =
it happened, what it means, and why I voted as I did.
Ever since the League started doing readership surveys, we have known =
that
section news and contest line scores have very low readership. We also =
know
that they serve an essential function, that's why we have kept them. =
Several
years back, when we began our WEB initiative, we were hopeful that the =
web site would eventually reach a level of sophistication and member =
acceptance that
would allow it to take over some of the "narrow casting" that we have =
been
forced for so many years to squeeze into QST. We realized then that the =
WEB
could potentially do a much better job of providing special interest =
member
communications, since it would be free from the severe restrictions on =
space
and the deadlines that go along with being in QST, thereby freeing space =
for
more feature articles in the journal. That day has now arrived.
While this will allow us to reduce our page count, to call this a cost
saving move would miss the real point. This is not a short term cost =
saving
move that was just thought up. We have been considering this for at =
least
five years. It is a common sense business decision that makes sense =
outside
of any cost saving considerations. QST is our most tangible member =
benefit,
and it's also a general interest magazine (we support some significant =
special
interests with NCJ, QEX, the WEB, and the DX Annual). We must give our =
editorial staff the ability to choose material for QST that is going to =
have the
greatest overall appeal to our membership. We know that section news and
contest line scores are important to publish, but pages of numbers and =
callsigns don't have much general appeal. Even those who are regular =
readers are likely to read just a tiny part of the coverage. Yet, =
together they consume over 170 pages each year. Those pages are worth =
$4,437 each. Do the math. This is not a trivial allocation of League =
resources.=20
Today, we are doing a better job for section news and contest results on =
the
WEB than we ever could do in QST, and we've just begun. It's simply a =
more
appropriate medium for delivering the info.We have an exceptional web =
site,
staffed by real pro's. For contests, we can release results months =
sooner,
and in searchable, sortable data base files. Now, we will have the =
freedom
to focus on the how, why, where, and fun of contesting in QST, rather =
than
publishing rows of numbers and call signs in tiny print. Now, we can use =
QST
to provide articles about the most interesting section or contest
activities - articles that will actually be read by most of the 160,000 =
hams
who receive the publication. We will actually have the ability to =
promote
these activities through expanded feature stories.
There are some who will view this proposal as a sign of decreased =
support
for contesting or section activities. That is definitely not the case. =
This
is simply a change. As both management and the board know from =
experience,
change does not occur easily at the League. Whatever the issue, there is
always a vocal minority that prefers things to stay as they are. And =
that's fine. Changes like this shouldn't be easy. However, change is =
absolutely necessary for the continued success and viability of any =
organization, including the League. We now have the opportunity to =
improve our reporting of section activities and contesting, while also =
improving the value and quality of QST to the majority of our members. =
Let's make the most of it.
73, Walt W0CP
ARRL Director (RM)
(and past chairman of the Contest Advisory Committee)
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