Advertising Most of our paid for adverts continue to be in three of the four regional editions of the Big Issue - London, the North & Wales (the Scottish edition produced relatively poor results and has been temporarily suspended).  In the first six months of 2004 we spent #xxx on Big Issue advertising.  We obtained discounted rates by not changing the copy and for a year or so the adverts have been for the Socialist Standard. Although Big Issue has been costly in terms of pounds per response, we ask members to bear in mind that the value of advertising is not measured in terms of short-term responses only. In May this year we paid £600.00 for a half page advert in the New Internationalist, listing our major publications.  This produced a disappointing response and we do not propose to repeat this expenditure, at least for a while. We considered a request from a member to pay £180.00 for a series of four large-ish ads. in Private Eye.  But because of a nil response to a previous small ad. we rejected the proposal. We paid £125.00 for a one sixth page in an issue of Tribune corresponding with the Labour Party Conference.  We used it to advertise our book, Socialism or your money back. M. Browne S. Parker