1.	You've pretty much been down on the current crop (2002) of annual reports to shareholders. True or false? Answer: True. On balance—though obviously some excel, especially those of Tellabs and AFLAC and DTE (Detroit Energy)—far too many don't live up to my standards, at least.
	2.	One thing you advocate is use of the boss' picture leading off his (or her) letter to shareholders. True or false? Answer: True. There's a reason columnists, for instance, in newspapers and magazines use a photograph to lead off their work—to (1) draw the reader's attention to the work and, thus, (2) help make the column more memorable. No one has studied this, but I believe the use of the writer's photograph causes a more-forceful impression than a picture-less piece. There's no evidence supporting my position (not to my knowledge, at least), but you'll never convince me I'm wrong.
	3.	Isn't this much ado about nothing—a paper tiger you've created? Most companies listen to you—concerning use of the boss' picture. And they do show him or her alone, the photograph leading off the letter, as you advocate. True or false? Answer: You decide: Fewer than nine in 10 reports for 2002 contain the boss' picture in conjunction with the shareholder letter. In only seven of 10 reports did the photo lead off the letter, just under three in four times with the boss shown alone—that is, without another top officer to share the blame, if any.
	4.	This is your 18th year of polling producers of annuals? Why bother; things haven't changed all that much. True or false? Answer: True, somewhat. Three of four continue to assess working on an annual report a high-hazard endeavor. And, to be sure, women continue to make less than men producers—almost 9% less.
	5.	CEOs, your Producer Poll shows, actually have adopted a hands-off policy toward what you describe as "the key corporate communiqué. True or false? Answer: It depends. Among 1996 annuals from around the world, going on two in three CEOs (57%) were reported essentially to write their own letter to shareholders. That's off to just under three in 10 (31%) currently. Still, nearly 92% say the boss is actively involved. Vs. two in three CEOs among 1985 reports, first year of my exclusive poll. This shows that CEO involvement in the annual report is near its peak level, surpassed only by 93% a year earlier as well as among 1999 reports—not a significant variance.
	6.	Repeating a question posed last month: Whether you like government regulations or not, you'll have to concede the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOx) has helped annuals regain some semblance of glory. True or false? Answer: False, most definitely, I continue to maintain. SOx has simply enabled the bad guys—and, sadly, they outnumber the good ones—to glom onto a loophole that makes it possible to mouth support for the shareholder's right to know, while deep-sixing full disclosure. Companies cleverly latched onto the legalistic Form 10-K, which never was intended or envisioned for public consumption, foisting it on increasing numbers of stockholders. This year, for instance, the legalistic Form 10-K appears in more than one in five reports (22%), a record. Worse, more than four of five (82.5%) to go that down-and-dirty route failed to warn stockholders the document they were receiving wasn't tailored for other than accountants, lawyers, bean-counters, others possessing green eyeshades.