On the Front Lines of Social Issues

* December 1971: A double issue of New York magazine with an insert titled Ms. (dated spring 1972) goes on newsstands. It sells out in eight days.

* July 1972: With a $1-million investment, Ms. launches its first issue, which includes the “I Had an Abortion” petition to legalize abortion, signed by 53 women, including Steinem, writer Anais Nin and tennis legend Billie Jean King.

* April 1973: “Never Again” is one of the first stories in the national press dealing with the consequences of illegal abortion.

* August 1976: A cover story on battered women nearly sells out at newsstands and sparks increased national awareness.

* September 1977: A cover story titled “Why Women Hate Their Bodies” features personal stories about food and body obsessions. In the ‘70s, Ms. has a circulation of about 500,000.

* November 1977: Ms. holds a speak-out / rally on sexual harassment--in which people publicly tell their stories--in conjunction with the magazine’s cover story.

* January 1979: Ms. publishes one of the first stories in the national press dealing with alternatives to mastectomies.

* October 1981: Through a letter-writing campaign, Ms. readers help convince CBS to make the TV movie “Cagney and Lacey” into a series.

* January 1982: Circulation is 450,000; the latest survey from Ms. reveals male readership of 20%.

* July 1983: A piece on a New Bedford, Mass., barroom gang rape runs; it is eventually dramatized in “The Accused.”

* April 1985: “Is One Woman’s Sexuality Another Woman’s Pornography?” provokes often vitriolic debate among feminists.

* July 1988: Ms. magazine celebrates Cher, one of the main role models of the “surgeon’s designer-body” movement.

Sources: “Feminist Chronicles 1953-1993”; “WomanList”; Times files and wire reports