A~::B~. 9-U.'~ J E R: : : •: : •• : •, • •• E • E ~~ Ai!Viaer =-=1 ACKN'an"Ledcjvl:ENT
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A C<HPARATIVE STUDY OF THE CONTENTS OF THE CARIBBEAN EDITION OF SELECCIONES DEL READER'S DIGEST AND THE u.s. EDITION OF THE READER'S DIGEST With An Analysis Of The Basis For The Selection Or Reje<Y.tian Of Articles Fran The 1951 Editions Of The Reader's Digest For Republication In Selecciones Del Reader's Digest ---·----·-- A Thesis Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts By MARY ADELAIDE GARDNER,, B• .A. /; THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY 1953 ... ..... .- . ..... ·. : . : .... : : . .. .... -.~ . .. ~.:::=••"' ... .. .. ... .. ....: :: . ........... ·::·...... ···: ··:.. .. A~::b~. 9-u.'~ j e r: : : •: : •• : •, • •• e • e ~~ Ai!viaer =-=1 ACKN'an"LEDCJvl:ENT The writer wiahes to extend her appreciaticm to Dr• Jamee E• Pollard, Director, School of Journalian, Ohio state University, for his guidance in the preparaticm of this thesis and to Adrian Berwick, International Editions editor, Reader•a Digest, for his cooperaticm in making available inf'ormaticm and records to llhioh the author otherwise W01ld not have had aooesa. ii A 096:33 TABLE OF CONTENTS CH.A.PTBR -PAGB I. INTRODUCTION • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 1 II. HISTORICAL REVIEW • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • III• FORMAT OF SELJilCCIONES • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 9 Cover • • • • • ••• • • • • • • • • • • • •• 9 General Makeup • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 10 Advertising • • • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • 13 IV. ARTICLES REPUBLISHED • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 15 Preliminary Information • • • • • • • • • • • • 15 Business & Industry • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 17 Ccmmunista • • • • • • • • • • • • ••• • • • 18 Crime • • • • • • • • • • .. • • • • • • • • • • 19 Defense • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 20 Econanics •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 22 Educaticm • • • • ••••• • • • • • • • • • • 23 Government & Politics • • • • • • • • • • • • • 24 International Relations • • • • • • • • • • • • 26 Living. A.rt or • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 28 Medical Science & Health • • • • • • • • • • • 29 Nature & Animals • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 30 Science & Invention • • ••••••••••• • 31 War • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 31 General • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 33 iii iv CHAPTER PAGE Fran Digest issues other than 1951 •••••• 34 Problem ot Tran1lation • • • • • • • • • • • • 36 v. ARTICLES NOT REPUBLISHED • • • • • • • • • • • • 41 Preliminary Information • • • • • • • • • ••• 41 Business & Industry • • • • • • • • • ••••• .42 Conmunists • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 44 Crime • • • • • • ••••••••••••••• 46 Defense • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 47 Econanics • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 48 Education • • ••••••••••••••••• 49 Government & Politics •••• • •••••••• 52 International Relations • • • • • • • • • • • • 54 Living, Art of •••••••••••••••• 56 Medical Science & Health • • • • • • • • • • • 57 Nature & Animals • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 58 Science & Invention • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 59 war •••••••••••••••••••••• 59 General • • • • • • • • • ••••• • •••• • ~ 60 VI. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS • • • • • • • • • • • • • 6~ BIBLIOGRAPHY • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 75 APPENI>IX • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ••••• 78 Tables I x • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• 78 LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE I• PUBLICATION, CIRCULATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF THE FIVE SPANISH VERSIONS OF THE READER'S DIGEST IN LATIN .AMERICA • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 79 II• CONTENT DISTRIBUTION BY PAGES OF EDITIONS OF SELECCIONES DEL READER'S DIGEST, MARCH 1951- DECJ!MBER 1951, INCLUSIVE, WITH TIME SPAN OF THE REPUBLICATION OF ARTICLES INDICATED BY MONTHS • • • 80 III. CONTENTS OF AN AVERAGE ISSUE OF SELECCIONES DEL READER'S DIGEST OF 1951 BY TITLE, ARTICLE ORIGIN, AND PAGES. AS PUBLISHED • AUGUST 1951 ••• • • • • 81 IV. CONTENTS OF THE ~EST ISSUE OF SELECCIONES DEL READER'S DIGEST OF 1951 BY TITLE, ARTICLE ORIGIN AND PAGES. AS PUBLISHED • JULY 1951 • • • • • • • • 84 V. CONTENTS OF THE LARGEST ISSUE OF SELECCIONES DEL READER'S DIGEST OF 1951 BY TITLE, ARTICLE ORIGIN AND PAGES. AS PUBLI~ • DECFMBER 1951 • • • • • • 87 VI. ARTICLES FRCM ISSUES OF READER'S DIGEST, 1951, REPUBLISHED IN THE SPANISH EDITIONS 1951-62 • • • • 90 VII. ARTICLES FROM ISSUES OF THE READER'S DIGEST, 1951, 'WHICH WERE NOT REPUBLISHED IN THE SPANISH EDITIONS, 1951-52 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 104 VIII. ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN SPANISH EDITIONS, MAR '51 - DEC '51, FROO: AMERICAN EDITIONS OTHER THAN 1951 •• • 116 v vi TABLE PAGE IX. DISTRIBUTION OF ARTICLES PUBLISHED IN SELECCIONES DEL READER'S DIGEST BY SUBJECT CATEGORY, AND BY TREATMENT OF SUBJECT MATTER ACCORDING TO CODE· • • • • • • • ••••• • • ••• 119 x. DISTRIBUTION OF ARTICLES NOT REPUBLISHED IN SELECCIONES DEL READER'S DIGEST BY SUBJECT CATEGORY, AND BY TREATMENT OF SUBJECT MATTER ACCORDING TO CODI • • • •• • • • ••• ••• • • • • 120 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Purpose ot the Study This study was undertaken in an ertort to detem.ine llhat articles fran a year's issues or the U•S• edition ot the Reader•a Digest find their way into the Spanish language edition or the sae year, and to analyH the basil for the aeleotion or rejection of: articles tor republication. The Reader• a Digest A.saociation, Inc., Pleasantville, w... Yorlc, publishes the Spanish language edition in five versions monthly for Latin .Alllerica. In October, 1952, still another veraion began publica tion for distribution in Spain. This particular study is based upon the u.s. edition ot the Reader•• Digest for 1951 and the Caribbean version ot the Spanish edition, Selecciones Del Reader• a Digest, for the same year. In tracing the articles tran the AJD.erican edition, it became apparent that much time elapsed between publication in the u.s. edition and subsequent republication in the Spanish edition. Articles trca the Januaey 1951 u.s. edition, for example, did not appear in the Spanish until the Maroh 1951 edition, and tor this reason, the study or the articles in the Spanish iHues runs only tran March 1951 to December 1951, inolusive • All the articles in the U .s • edition tor the year were studied, however, even though acme of them were not republished in the Spanish l 2 edition in 1951 but were oarried over into 1952. These artiolee are lieted in Tablee VI and VII, Appendix. There aleo appeared in the Spanieh iesues studied, acme articles f're:111. U.s. iesues other than 1951, and theee artiolee are listed separately in Table VIII, Appendix. The articles f'rcm the indicated issues of' Seleociones were traced by title, author, and source to the parent .American ieauee• The article• f'rcm the .A11lerican ieeuee which were republiehed in the Spanieh were then classified into eubject categoriee by uee of the Reader'• Dig;eet' a own June, 1951, and December, 1951, index••• .Article• which were not lieted in one of' the thirteen main categories selected :fran the Digest'• index were classified into one of' those categoriee by the writer, or placed in a "General• category. The article• :frcm the American iasues which were not republiahed in the Spaniah iHuea were then olaeaified into subject oategoriea in a aimilar manner. The article• on both lista were studied and an attempt wae made to detennine the baeie tor the eelection or rejection of' each article. A code wae devi aed to indi ca.te wh7, ae :far ae thi • W'ri tar could judge or detennine, such articles were or were not republiehede Naturally, acme articles appeared in the Spanish edition onl7 · becauae they were of' general interest and similarly there were many article• of' general or epeoifio interest that did not appear due to lack of' apace• The purpose of thi a etudy wae to di eoover whether there wae a definite trend ton.rd the rejection, or the selection, or article• dealing with certain subjects. CHAPTER II HISTORICAL REVIEW De Witt and Lila Acheson Wallace, editors and owners of the Reader's Digest, discussed publication of a Spanish language edition o:r the Digest as early as 1936. In conference with their buainesa manager, .A.· L· Cole, and Barclay .Acheson, the present director o:r the International Editions, they considered the problans involved in auoh a publication without oCllling to a clear cut decision. Few mage.sines in Latin Ameria had been able to reach a circulation of more than 26,000; the illiteracy rate was too high to provide any sizeable market; the magazine would have to be priced too low in order to reach the consumer; the mail system in Latin .America was not always punctual or reliable; and it would be difficult to put oat an edition that would have a wide appeal to the readers of all the Latin .A.m.erioan countriea.1 They authorized a survey of the market in 1937 but learned very little to encourage the publication of a Spanish edition• The idea was t•porarily shelved. In 1940 at a luncheon in the Pleasantville office, the idea again cropped up and the good neighbor value or such an edition was discussed. Cole suggested that the price be cut in halt for the Spanish edition and a limited amount of advertising be accepted. It lworman Cousins, "l,200,000 .Ambassadors," The Saturd~ Review Of Literature, XXVI (April 10, 1943), P• 13. 3 4 was estimated that the potential ciroulation would be around 20,000 and oertainly no higher than 50,ooo. As Don Wharton explained, "When Seleociones was being planned it was viewed partly as a servioe, partly as an experiment, and not as a money maker."2 The wallaoes decided to go ahead with the venture and launched plans for the magazine• a publication.