Many of today’s editorial writers and commentators reflect on the contrast between the public enthusiasm for the 6th Santo Domingo International Book Fair, which opened yesterday, and the actual levels of readership amongst Dominicans. List?n Diario’s editorial comments on a poll published yesterday which reveals that just 15% of those questioned said they read books on a daily basis while 37% admitted they never read. 75% claim to spend just one hour a week engaged in any type of reading. The writer makes the connection between this “intellectual poverty” and the country’s poor development. The conclusion is that the authorities, while investing resources and energy in prestigious and popular events such as the current Book Fair, should also employ real measures aimed at promoting reading to all sectors of Dominican society. Hoy carries a shorter editorial on the same subject, calling on the public to support this event, which it describes as having become a “national institution” and a “fountain of knowledge”.