Last Updated: May 26, 1999
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ASNE on the move
Survey says ASNE members thought the ’97 convention
was pretty good
ASNE members responded to a questionnaire about the 1997 convention,
and here’s what they said:
More than three-fourths (76 percent) said the convention met their expectations;
7 percent said the ’97 meeting exceeded their expectations and 17 percent
said it did not meet their expectations.
Forty-two percent thought this year’s convention was at the same level
as previous conventions they had attended, 29 percent thought it was better
than average, and 29 percent thought it was not as good as previous conventions.
The mix of newspaper-focused sessions and public figures won the approval
of 70 percent of the respondents. The remaining 30 percent were evenly
divided — 15 percent wanted more newspaper speakers and the same number
wanted more public figures.
The shift in the starting and ending times of the convention was overwhelmingly
approved (88 percent). The ’97 convention began with a Tuesday afternoon
session and ended after the Friday luncheon. (The new schedule will be
followed again in ’98.)
The highest-rated speaker was Dilbert cartoonist Scott Adams (93 percent
good/excellent rating). Other top-rated speakers or sessions were:
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President Clinton, 86 percent good/excellent.
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Writing workshop, 90 percent good/excellent
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Madeleine Albright, 79 percent good/excellent
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"It’s Still the Content, Stupid," 81 percent good/excellent
The only session that failed to get at least 50 percent good/excellent
rating was the one on "Redefining Government" (35 percent good/excellent).
The J.W. Marriott received a 94 percent good/excellent rating, though
most (60 percent) rated the hotel "good" rather than "excellent" (34 percent).
ASNE asked for suggestions of major speakers for next year’s convention.
The top three were Colin Powell, Bill Gates and President Clinton.
Forty-one percent of the 384 members who attend the convention returned
the questionnaire. A complete report on the survey is available from ASNE.
