A Letter From the Publisher

By Robert L. Miller

Among TIME's 31 million readers worldwide is an influential, highly educated professional woman who would be a valuable addition to any magazine's demographic profile: Raisa Maximovna Gorbachev, the focus of this week's cover stories on Soviet women. During the Washington summit last December, Mrs. Gorbachev spotted TIME Correspondent Nancy Traver, who spent 3 1/2 years as a journalist in Moscow and who speaks Russian, at a meeting in the Soviet embassy that was closed to the press. Mrs. Gorbachev took her hand, pulled her alongside and said there was nothing wrong with having an American reporter in - the room. "The American and Soviet press should work together to build peace," she said. The Soviet First Lady reported that she received TIME and read it regularly. Mrs. Gorbachev is not only a reader but now also a published contributor. When she learned the magazine was preparing a story on Soviet women, she sent the editors a letter on the subject, which is printed in this issue.

The principal reporting for this week's cover stories was done by Moscow Correspondent Ann Blackman. From observing the reactions of Moscow friends who visit her comparatively grand apartment, she knew how difficult many Soviet women have it at home. "The kitchen isn't exceptional by American standards," Blackman reports. "But the Soviet women are amazed to see a dishwasher, a toaster and a Cuisinart." Soviet men are bemused at the sight of her husband, Associated Press Moscow Bureau Chief Michael Putzel, helping in the kitchen.

The story on Soviet women was written by Associate Editor Jill Smolowe, who was struck by the difference in attitudes between East and West. "Soviet women seem largely undisturbed by issues of power, self-worth and recognition," says Smolowe. "They simply endure." Still, their prospects have improved dramatically under Gorbachev, notes Reporter-Researcher Sally B. Donnelly, who saw the plight of Soviet women while she was a student at the State Pedagogical Institute in Leningrad. "Today Soviet women are earning higher salaries, and some are able to take advantage of flexible work hours that allow them more time for family responsibilities," says Donnelly. "I think Gorbachev realizes that women are crucial to his economic reforms." Soviet women, including a certain TIME reader we know, probably couldn't agree more.