As Physical Review Letters grows and evolves to respond to the changes in the vast scientific landscape to be covered, the acceptance criteria of the journal necessarily change. As of January 1, 1982, a modification in the acceptance criteria, approved by the APS at the recommendation of the Publication Oversight Committee, is put in place. The modified acceptance criteria emphasize the requirements for accessibility and interest to the general readership of the journal. This formulation of priorities further evolves to what is known today as "the importance and broad interest criteria."
See Minor Contributions in Phys. Rev. Lett. 45, 1605 (1980) (pictured) and Phys. Rev. Lett. 47, 1421 (1981).