Do editors think e-mail efficiency is reduced by spam (junk mail) and personal e-mail?
METHODS This study is based on data collected from mail questionnaires using a one-shot survey design. Self-administered questionnaires were mailed to each of five editors (News, Arts/Entertainment, Sports, Business, and Opinion sections) at the 100 largest daily newspapers in the U.S. The sizes and newspapers included in the study were determined using circulation data from the latest edition of the Editor & Publisher International Year Book (Anderson, 1998). It is logical to assume that the editors of the newspapers with the nations largest distributions serve the largest audiences. In turn, these editors are targets for correspondence with the highest number of readers, co-workers, writers, and story idea-pitchers (e.g., public relations professionals). Questionnaires were sent to five different editors at each of the newspapers to both increase the chances of hearing about e-mail use at a particular newspaper and to examine differences in e-mail usage among section editors. Even if
