At a recent meeting of TIME'S advertising representatives from the U.S., Canada and overseas, Jim Tyson, TIME-LIFE International's research manager, reported on the results of several surveys TIME has just completed on magazine-reading habits of the most influential people in several walks of life around the world.

As a first step in the study, questionnaires in five languages were mailed out by International Public Opinion Research Inc. to cabinet ministers in 54 United Nations member countries. Later, follow-up interviews were conducted in 15 of the countries.-* Among the questions asked: What magazines do you read? What magazine do you consider the most important? When the results were tallied, TIME led both lists.

Thirty-nine percent of the cabinet members said they read TIME, compared to 29% for the next magazine. And, by a three-to-one margin, they voted TIME the "most important to statesmen and opinion leaders." Second on the "most important" list: the London Economist.

Tyson then set out to conduct four additional surveys among groups of people who would normally lead opinion in their own countries: 1) editors and publishers of the world's largest newspapers, 2) top radio broadcasting executives, 3) managing directors of the largest firms in Latin America and the West Indies, and 4) leading engineers. Questionnaires went out on "blind" letterheads, with no indication that the studies were being conducted for TIME. Those going to Spanish-speaking countries were printed in Spanish, the rest in English, regardless of the tongue spoken in the countries where they were sent. Language of the questionnaires, however, appeared to make little difference in the results. British and U.S. magazines dominated every list.

The percentage reading TIME was about two out of five in each group, enough to score first in readership among radio executives and editors and publishers of newspapers, and second among the corporate executives and engineers. (A similar survey was completed this spring by the research department of Boston University's Division of Journalism among 204 publishers, 279 managing editors and 212 city editors of U.S. newspapers. All three groups voted TIME their favorite magazine.)

All four of the international groups questioned voted TIME the most important magazine, in each case by a margin of approximately two-to-one over the next periodical on the list. The vote favoring TIME ranged from 16% of the editors and publishers to 31% of the managing directors of large companies.

Cabinet officials were also asked other questions related to worldwide exchange of information and ideas. More than half believed that censorship of news at the source was a leading barrier to the world's mutual exchange of information. Listed next in order were the control of information media by interests, trade restrictions special

which limit the import of publications and motion pictures, the newsprint shortage, and restrictions of movement by news reporters and photographers. In spaces provided for "other" barriers, 15 of the ministers specified the diversity of languages and need for a universal language.

The cabinet ministers considered the exchange of students and visitors the most effective medium for free intercourse in ideas among countries, followed by scientific and cultural exchanges, magazines and periodicals, newspapers and radio.

Cordially yours,

* Iron Curtain countries were left out of the survey after a test mailing to Poland brought only one reply, which said: "The Minister has been unable to reply to your questionnaire because of his long absence."

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