2
A P R I L 2 0 2 0 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N
Subscribe for half-price. See p. 34
Seek, but shall ye find? First, I want to start out by admitting I their own suggestions. We explained the am guilty of the very pet peeve I want to reason was to help our publication appeal share today. I’m speaking to a larger pool of readers about the classic error of conwho might object to being laducting a survey that’s misbeled “senior.” aimed from the outset. The We had a solid response to Beacon did such a survey of the survey. Many voted for readers more than 15 years one or more of the suggesago. tions we offered (my personLong-time readers will real favorite was “Healthy, call our publication was Wealthy and Wise”), and a named “Senior Beacon” at its surprising number proffered inception in 1988. In the early their own new name (ranging 2000s, we decided that the FROM THE from serious proposals to time had come to drop the PUBLISHER tongue in cheek names like By Stuart P. Rosenthal term “senior” from our name “Geezer Gazette”). because we found many But to our surprise and adults in their 40s, 50s and 60s who would shame, the vast majority voted to retain have found our publication helpful were re- the name “Senior Beacon,” a number of luctant to pick up anything with that label them taking umbrage at the thought that in the title. we would even consider changing our So, we ran a full-page survey one month name to appease a younger generation. telling readers we were conducting a conThat’s when it hit us that we were surtest for a new name and asking for their veying entirely the wrong audience. If we vote on several possibilities, as well as were concerned that people “out there” PLEASE NOTE: Due to the increasing number of cancellations of public gatherings due to the coronavirus, be sure to confirm any programs or events mentioned in the Beacon Bits in this issue before you set out. Also, if you would like to receive the Beacon FREE via email each month or subscribe to the print edition at half price ($6/year + tax), email roger@TheBeaconNewspapers.com or call (301) 949-9766.
Beacon The
I N
F O C U S
F O R
P E O P L E
O V E R
5 0
The Beacon is a monthly newspaper dedicated to inform, serve, and entertain the citizens of the Greater Baltimore area, and is privately owned. Other editions serve Howard County, Md., Greater Washington, DC and Richmond, Va. (Fifty Plus). Subscriptions are available via third-class mail ($12), prepaid with order. Maryland residents add 6 percent for sales tax. Send subscription order to the office listed below. Publication of advertising contained herein does not necessarily constitute endorsement. Signed columns represent the opinions of the writers, and not necessarily the opinion of the publisher. Publisher/Editor – Stuart P. Rosenthal President/Associate Publisher – Judith K. Rosenthal Vice President of Operations – Gordon Hasenei Vice President, Sales & Marketing – Alan Spiegel Managing Editor – Margaret Foster Art Director – Kyle Gregory Director of Operations – Roger King Advertising Representative – Steve Levin Editorial Assistant – Ivey Noojin
The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915 (410) 248-9101 • Email: info@thebeaconnewspapers.com Submissions:
The Beacon welcomes reader contributions. Deadline for editorial is the 1st of the month preceding the month of publication. Deadline for ads is the 1st of the month preceding the month of publication. See page 31 for classified advertising details. Please mail or email all submissions.
© Copyright 2020 The Beacon Newspapers, Inc.
were not picking up the Beacon because the name “senior” put them off, when why were we asking the readers who very happily picked up the Beacon every month what we should change our name to? It was non-readers we needed to survey. Duh! In our defense, I will say that we surveyed the audience that we had, not the audience we didn’t have. That was the easiest thing to do, of course, even though in retrospect it made no sense. So that brings me to two recent examples of organizations who should know better doing exactly the same thing. First, a national membership organization of people over 50 conducts a periodic survey to determined how many of its members are comfortable with using technology. One of the chief goals of these surveys is to show the rest of the world (and potential business partners and advertisers) that people over 50 are “tech-savvy.” The organization crowed in a press release about the most recent results, as their survey “found that 83% use mobile phones, for instance. And more than half (52%) own a tablet. According to the survey, older adults are adopting devices such as smartphones, wearables, home assistants/smart speakers and smart-home technology at nearly the same rate as adults ages 18 to 49.” All well and good, until you go to the actual report and read the fine print on “methodology.” Turns out, the entire survey was only done online and took approximately 15 minutes on average to complete. If you’re trying to find tech-savvy people, it makes sense to look online. But if you’re truly trying to learn what percent of Americans over 50 are comfortable using technology, I think you’d get a truer picture if you also surveyed people who never or seldom go online, who would be unlikely to learn about a survey done online, or would not be comfortable filling out a 15minute survey online. By omitting all those people from the survey base, they certainly got the results they wanted, but they are hardly representative.
A similar error was made, in my opinion, by a county government that had been discouraged to hear time and again that many older residents were not at all aware of the useful services the county offered. The county wanted to know what additional services such people might need, and most of all, how to better convey to them and their families what the government could do for them. So, they developed a 111-item survey asking about every possible aspect of life where older adults might be having issues or concerns that government could help with. Then they posted the survey online and allowed three weeks for people to reply. When it was brought to their attention that people who would learn of and complete the survey online were probably the folks who already knew exactly how to find out the information they need, they said they were also going to have printed versions of the survey available at all their senior centers and libraries. When it was pointed out that people who already frequent senior centers and libraries also probably know that the government offers such services, they said they are also going to do focus groups. What can I say? In all of these cases, surveyors have their heart in the right place, but due either to limited budgets or limited imaginations go to exactly the wrong place to find out what they say they want to know. I don’t have any easy answers. To really reach the people who are most cut-off from the internet and government services, you probably would have to go door-todoor, and work with the nonprofits and religious institutions that feed and care for the neediest. That takes time, effort and money. It’s certainly easier to post a survey online, which has the added benefit in most cases of showing that you really don’t have to do that much more than you’re already doing. That said, the Beacon is still interested in finding out what our current readers think and want. So, it is no mistake that we See FROM THE PUBLISHER, page 33
Letters to the editor Readers are encouraged to share their opinion on any matter addressed in the Beacon as well as on political and social issues of the day. Mail your Letter to the Editor to The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915, or email info@thebeaconnewspapers.com. Please include your name, address and telephone number for verification. Dear Editor: The March issue of the Beacon was very well written. [The cover story about] Ms. McDermott is interesting. In the second paragraph, she said, “What makes all Americans Americans, regardless of their hyphenation, is that they are from someone, or are someone, who left their home, whether for reasons of ambition or desperation.”
As a black or African American whose ancestors were slaves, I have to disagree with her. Some were brought over against their will to be human property for life. That’s a stain America would like to forget, but “immigrants” has a different meaning to different people. Dora McPherry Towson, Md.
