CompuServe Messages

John, I've been working on a the staff of a professional magazine(s) for almost seven years now. In all that time I have never, ever, I repeat never had a publisher or advertising type try and force any opinion of any product. Don't get me wrong – if the ad guys had their way we wouldn't write about anything that wasn't advertized. But its exactly because they think like this that they have no control over the editorial process. As for placement of ads – there are 'premium' positions in a magazine that advertisers pay extra for. Covers 2-4 (the inside of the cover plus the back), as well as near certain columns or sections. But in general editors – managing editors that is – work very hard to make sure that no ads appear anywhere near any edit that discusses the products in the ads. It still happens sometimes – but by chance, not on purpose. For example, I just got in the first issue of DTV World. Much to my displeasure I found an ad near an article on the Toaster a mail order ad that specializes on Toaster products. My first action on seeing it was to show it to my managing editor and said I don't like this. He replied that it only happened because in the dummy (where the magazine is laid out on a positional grid that represents teh different folios of the magazine) he merely saw the words mail order ad – and didn't knwo it was Toaster specific. Lou