Zines vs. Magazines: Top10 Showdown
JP
in any aspect of zining and magazining in the last
10 years and see who comes out on top. Heck, let's
go back 20 years even to give mags a better chance.
MAGAZINES:
*Utne Reader---alt.voices start squeaking out, quickly silenced
by limo liberals
*Salon, online
*Harper's (80's diversity template is hoary but innovative for its day)
*Ms----first no-ads mainstream mag, but stuck with being trapped
to preaching to the converted
(deficits)
great overall loss of readership
ZINES:
*ultra-short-run printing
*DIY publishing
*F5 (and other review zines)
*proliferation of networking, mail art and APAs
*perzines---about 10 top dogs with major mentions to: PatheticLife, Cometbus,
Gogglebox, PermaFrost, CrimeWave, HappyNotStupid
*moviezines like FilmThreat (only alt to mega- or academic pubs)
*Anarchy and Processed World---blew poli-mag status quo out of water
*AnswerMe, ReSearch, babysue, GunFag, MurderCanBeFun---facing the un-faceable
*Rollerderby---a new way of celebrity, sex, and critique
*Giant Robot---a new view of the East, helping to mainstream HK movies
and NHB-fighting events, which have changed movies and sports
*minor hobbies and voices coming out of the woodwork at expert levels
like never before: bike culture, messenger culture, animal rights, SEX
art, comics
*literature of the old mail art war horses gets its best chance ever,
starting with the breakthru of Buk, moving on to unprecedented
exposure of Jack Saunders, John Bennett, Al Ackerman & Company
----but only Buk really got anywhere even in the zine scene. ONE artist
got thru in past 30 years. ONE.
*THE INTERNET---it has helped make minor voices more accessible than
it has improved anything about the mainstream media.
*Teenage literary training ground for the neglected aspects of multiculturalism
(the suburbs? the literary arts in general?)
*INDY MUSIC LABELS! say no more
*Indy movie labels! ?
*folk culture revival----steady support for art brut, permaculture voices
like Plain
(deficits)
same same same dreadfully bad music reviews, interviews and diary stuff
and other unexamined shallowness
shock pandering---overboard on the hate, violence, murder, obscene revelry
not really developed or supported by establishment or by anyone
with clout as another viable media form yet---it has only just begun,
growth explosion followed by growing pains and sophomore blues,
but mainly all in a vaccuum, in a worse state than art brut....an insane
inmate has a better chance of getting exposure for his vision.
--
Jeff Potter jp@glpbooksDELETETHIS!.com delete 'DELETETHIS!' to reply
***"Out Your Backdoor": Friendly Magazine of DIY Adventure and Culture
http://www.glpbooks.com/oyb ... with a full line of books, bookstore & forum
JP
ZINES:
*Doug Biggert at Tower---first guy to create a national newstand zine presence
*FinePrint (RIP), DesertMoon---zine-friendly natl distro's to the mainstream
ellis_detripp
> PS: Oops, I forgot a couple biggies...
>
> ZINES:
> *Doug Biggert at Tower---first guy to create a national newstand zine presence
> *FinePrint (RIP), DesertMoon---zine-friendly natl distro's to the mainstream
>
I'll give the rest of your posts a more leisurely perusal later. It
looks like an interesting list, but I'm under deadline right now.
Gotta say, though, major distribution through Fine Print or Desert
Moon was a "breakthrough" for zines, like leech therapy was a
"breakthrough" for medicine.
Milo
Under magazines, you forgot Adbusters...nobody looks ast
comercialism/corperate culture quite like they do, and they give lots of
credit to culture jamming, of which zine making is a part.
-Milo
JP
[]
> Under magazines, you forgot Adbusters...nobody looks ast
> comercialism/corperate culture quite like they do, and they give lots of
> credit to culture jamming, of which zine making is a part.
Well, I suppose I forgot a few great impt mags, like Whole Earth Review,
Mother Jones. Maybe WER was the granddaddy of them all? I don't
recall why I didn't list them: maybe I thought that they preached to
the converted and were part of a co-opted marginalized world where
everyone can shop for their favorite flavor but nothing really rocks
anymore. But I don't mean to diss Adbusters. Just trying to sort
all this out somehow.