Field Poll was established in 1947 as The California Poll by Mervin Field and has operated continuously as an independent, non-partisan, media-sponsored public opinion news service. Each year the poll covers a wide range of political and social topics examining California public opinion. Surveys are made at frequent intervals throughout the year. Continuing measures are made of voter support for leading political figures vying for major state and federal offices, job ratings of important political figures and reactions to significant political events. Voter awareness, understanding and predispositions of major campaign issues and salient statewide ballot propositions are also tracked over time. The Field Poll currently issues forty to fifty reports per year. Each report consists of 3-10 pages of text and statistical data, and includes a background section providing details about the interviewing method, sample size, question wording and other technical data.