It really is a Big Issue, so think twice! (The Big Issue)

Name: micksheff

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Product:	The Big Issue
Date:	20/10/07 (128 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Helping people less fortunate

Disadvantages: Some vendors suffer abuse

Most people living in one of the large cities of the UK will have a little knowledge of what the Big Issue magazine is since they will have undoubtedly seen it being sold on the streets of their city. Many people will know a little about the concept behind the magazine and a few people will part with their money in exchange for this publication on a frequent basis, but few of us could actually realise how such a seemingly insignificant thing like a magazine could change hundreds of people lives each year, and change those lives for the better, for ever.

This review was inspired by one particular vendor in my home city of Sheffield called Paul who sold the Big Issue on my local streets for around 6 months. During this time his life slowly began to change for the better, and therefore, before I begin I would just like to say, "Paul, if you should ever find yourself in front of a PC reading this review, sometime in the future when your life is finally sorted, then I would like to dedicate this review to you....."

WHAT IS THE BIG ISSUE MAGAZINE?

The Big Issue magazine is a magazine that covers a wide range of issues within the news and current affairs sector. It is published weekly and sold exclusively by homeless people or people who can prove that they are on the brink of homelessness.

THE BACKGROUND

The inspiration behind the Big Issue magazine came from a newspaper called "Street News" which is sold by the homeless people of New York.

Gordon Roddick, of the Body Shop empire saw this particular newspaper being sold in the late 1980's and asked lots of questions about how the vendors benefited from selling this newspaper. The answers that he received inspired him enough to speak directly to some of the vendors on the streets, who told him fascinating stories about how being given the opportunity to sell "Street News" had quite literary saved their lives.

Gordon Roddick on his return to England discussed the concept with a media publicist called John Bird and together as partners they launched the first issue of the Big Issue Magazine in September 1991.

Initially the magazine was published monthly and sold only within London, but its popularity soon grew, helped by favourable press coverage who commented on the magazine's raw edge of journalism which was often quite close to the bone and hard hitting.

In June 1993 the magazine went weekly. It was still sold only within London but now had a weekly circulation of close to 25,000 copies. Later that year the Big Issue Magazine went national and set up regional offices throughout the UK.
The regional publications of the Big Issue Magazine are currently as below:
Manchester - The Big Issue in the North
Glasgow - The Big Issue Scotland
Cardiff - The Big Issue Cymru
Bristol - The Big Issue South West
Birmingham - The Big Issue Midlands

The version sold in Sheffield is the Manchester publication "The Big Issue In The North" which currently retails at £1.20. The London version simply called "The Big Issue" currently costs £1.40.

In the last few years International editions have also been launched in Sydney - Australia, Cape Town - South Africa and Los Angeles - USA.

THE CONCEPT

The Big Issue magazine is sold exclusively by homeless people and is designed to give these people a feeling of self worth as well as to provide them with a legitimate means of income. Anyone wishing to become a vendor can apply to be one providing that they meet the criteria of homelessness.

Once accepted all vendors undergo a training session during which the "Big Issue Code of Conduct" is read out to them and explained in detail. This agreement is then signed and the vendor is given an official badge and a bright yellow fluorescent jacket. They are also given 10 complimentary issues of the magazine to start them on their way.

The Code of Conduct lays down many different rules that must be adhered to. These include no begging, no harassment of the public, and no drinking of alcohol whist in possession of the magazines.

Once the vendor has been badged up they are then free to sell their Big Issue magazines. Following the initial sale of the first 10 copies they can then purchase further copies at a heavily discounted price. Currently 70p from the version of my regional Big Issue goes directly to the vendor, although this figure is 80p in London.

THE SUCCESS STORY

The success story of the Big Issue magazine is obviously two fold. On one hand there are the hundreds of personal success stories of the vendors who have managed to turn around their lives, and on the other hand there is the commercial success of the magazine itself.

To put things into perspective there are now over 10,000 vendors badged up annually in the UK and over 150,000 copies of the magazine are now sold every week. The magazine itself is a non profit making publication with the remaining revenue from sales going towards not only the publishing costs of the magazine, but also contributing towards the Big Issue Foundation which is a wider project that provides counselling, vendor support, shelter, and a whole range of other services to help the homeless. The Big Issue Foundation is a registered charity in the UK.

WHAT'S IN THE MAGAZINE?

When I first started buying the Big Issue magazine the first thing that struck me was that this is actually a very well pieced together publication.

Each magazine is generally quite topical as you would expect from a weekly magazine and the particular issue to hand that is still lying around my bedroom (June 5th-11th 2006) has a picture of David Beckham on the front on the cover above a caption which reads " I still consider myself to be a working class boy." Inside there is a two page interview with the man himself giving his views on England's chances in the World Cup.

Another main story within this issue covers transracial adoptees, which discusses black and ethnic minority people who have been adopted and raised by white families. This feature deals with many of the issues concerning how a lot of these people were viewed by society in general, and how they were often treated differently from those ethnic minorities raised within their own cultures.

One other interesting feature concerns itself with the designs of modern city housing estates. This particular feature is entitled "Designs for Life" and proves to be a very interesting read. The article is actually written from the view of the burglar or criminal and discusses how these estates are designed to look aesthetically pleasing, but how their designs make them magnets for crime.

The magazine does contain a fair bit of advertising but I don't really have a problem with this as it can easily be skipped past and the revenue from this is helping to contribute towards a worthy cause.

There are also many regular features too. These include music, film, book and theatre reviews, including a round up of the latest pop singles and albums released that week plus a full week's TV guide.

There are also recruitment pages, a large section relating to voluntary work opportunities, classifieds, editorial comments and a readers letter's page. Plus competitions and puzzles.

Overall the Big Issue magazine has a good balance of interesting articles but it also manages to retain its dignity. There are few sensational showbiz gossip style articles and most tabloid style stories are avoided for more sensible or sensitive issues.

That said however the Big Issue magazine is not without its occasional scoop and back in 1996 following George Michael's "act of lewd conduct" it was with the Big Issue magazine that he finally decided to break his silence and he spoke frankly and exclusively to this magazine surrounding the events of that day in a LA Park.

MY FINAL THOUGHTS

I think that the idea behind the Big Issue magazine is ingenious and I receive a certain amount of satisfaction each time that I part with my £1.20, knowing that 70p of this amount is going directly to the vendor.

Many people believe that giving money to these vendors is unethical and I have heard it said that the money they earn only goes towards buying alcohol or drugs and helps to fuel the addictions of these people. However, I take a different view, and I believe that these people have the right to earn their own money and therefore they have the right to take responsibility for themselves on how they choose to spend this money.

Where I live there are many people begging on the streets and asking for 50p for a bus fare or food, and although it is often difficult I tend to choose not to give to these people. My reasons behind this are because I believe that anyone that has taken the decision to become a Big Issue vendor has already made a conscious or subconscious decision to try and improve their own personal situation, and although in a perfect world we should help all of those less fortunate than ourselves, I personally believe that those that are making an effort to help themselves are more worthy of the help of others.

I accept that many of these vendors do have alcohol and drug problems but simply by signing up to the scheme and becoming a vendor these people are then given access to many forms of counselling and help. There is a careful vetting process for all vendors, but any vendor looking to try and scam the system will generally fall at the first hurdle and blow the income from their first complimentary batch on a fix, whilst those genuine vendors will invest some, or all of that initial money into buying their next batch of magazines.

We must remember that these people are vulnerable within society and all too often they are considered to be outcasts, people surviving on the very edge of our society, but before you cast them all aside just remember this, these people are no different to anyone else but many of them do have mental issues and other problems that need to be addressed. I believe that they deserve a chance....

... and finally before you call them losers consider that Paul who I referred to at the beginning of this review graduated from University with a first class honours degree and had a very good job until the breakdown of a relationship led to mental problems and his ultimate downfall. Yes, he did slide down the slippery slope of drug abuse, and yes, even 12 months on from quitting from selling the Big Issue he is still battling with a heroin dependency but he now has a much more positive outlook on life now and he is now on a drug rehabilitation programme which keeps him clean for long periods of time, and his relapses are becoming fewer and further between.

So the next time you pass a Big Issue magazine vendor on the street before you walk on by, think twice, you really could quite literally be saving somebody's life.

Summary: A national magazine sold by homeless people