Faculty Development Day, 17 May 2010

1. ZINES & THE 15%
Tom Eland, librarian
thomas.eland@minneapolis.edu
Jenny Sippel, librarian
jennifer.sippel@minneapolis.edu
MCTC Faculty Development Day Session 2010

2. What is ―Alternative Press/Media‖?
There is no one, simple definition, but here are a couple to get us started…
 “Alternative press, at its best, is a source of accurate, well-documented, counterhegemonic,
investigative reporting and analysis that can advance social movements and serve as the basis
for effective social and environmental justice activism. The term alternative press is most often
used to refer to noncorporate social and environmental justic print, and more recently, Internet
media. Other times, it refers to all sources of alternative media, including books, radio, video,
film, and television.‖ –Andrezejewski, Julie R. ―Alternative Press.‖ in Encyclopedia of Activism
And Social Justice. Gary L. Anderson, and Kathryn Herr, Eds. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage
Publications, 2007. Print.
 “Alternative media are media (newspapers, radio, television, movies, Internet, etc.) which are
alternatives to the business or government-owned mass media. Proponents of alternative
media argue that the mainstream media are biased. While sources of alternative media can
also be biased (sometimes proudly so), proponents claim that the bias is significantly different
than that of the mainstream media, hence these media provide an "alternative" viewpoint. As
such, advocacy journalism tends to be a component of many alternative outlets.‖ --Wikipedia
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

3. What is ―Alternative Press/Media‖?
How do you define, according to
your discipline/perspective?
Additional
RESOURCES… Eland, Thomas. ―Critical Thinking, Deviant Knowledge and the
Alternative Press.‖ Update Newsletter. Dec. 2004: 4-6.
Atton, Chris. Alternative Media. London: SAGE, 2002. Print.
(available in the MCTC Library)
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

4. THE 15%
“The MCTC Library will devote up to 15% of its materials
budget each year for the purchase of alternative press
material. In addition the library will seek out
supplemental funds to support the ongoing development
of the collection.” –from Minneapolis Community & Technical
College Library Collection Development Policy:
Appendix A: Alternative Materials
Alternative press material is integrated into the general
library collection. Exception: The Zine Collection
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

5. Examples of MCTC Alt Press Collection
 Subscription Databases
 Alt HealthWatch (Alternative Health Watch)
 Alt-Press Watch
 Alternative Press Index
 AltPress Index Archive
 Ethnic News Watch
 International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest
 The Nation (Archive)
all databases listed here are accessible via Library‘s
website as well: www.minneapolis.edu/library
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

6. More examples of MCTC Alt Press Collection…
 Print Periodicals (a few from the A‘s)
 Adbusters
 Advocate
 Al- Raida
 American Indian Art Magazine
 Anarcho - Syndicalist Review
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

7. Even more examples of MCTC Alt Press Collection…
 Books (the latest 3 titles)
 Nace, Ted. Climate Hope: On the Front Lines of the Fight
Against Coal. San Francisco, Calif.: CoalSwarm, 2010. Print.
 Martínez, Carlos, Jojo Farrell, and Michael Fox. Venezuela
Speaks!: Voices From the Grassroots. Oakland, Calif.: PM ,
2010. Print.
 Bukhari, Safiya, and Laura Whitehorn. The War Before: the
True Life Story of Becoming a Black Panther, Keeping the
Faith In Prison & Fighting for Those Left Behind. New York
City: Feminist Press at the City University of New York,
2010. Print.
(for more, search MCTC library catalog for ―Alternative Press Collection‖)
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

8. Get to know ‗em, or, What‘s a zine?
 ―Zines (pronounced "zeens," from fanzines) are cut-and-paste, "sorry
this is late," self-published magazines reproduced at Kinko's or on the
sly at work and distributed through mail order and word of mouth. They
touch on sex, music, politics, television, movies, work, food, whatever.
They're Tinkertoys for malcontents. They're obsessed with obsession.
They're extraordinary and ordinary.‖—Chip Rowe, Watcha Mean What’s a Zine?,
http://www.zinebook.com/whatcha1.html
 ―Self-publishing has long been a way for voices out
of the mainstream to be heard.‖ -Gianoulis, Tina. "Zines." Bowling,
Beatniks, and Bell-Bottoms: Pop Culture of 20th-Century America. Ed. Sara Pendergast and Tom
Pendergast. Vol. 5: 1980s-1990s. Detroit: UXL, 2002. 1162-1164. Gale Virtual Reference
Library. Web. 14 May 2010.
 Book of Zines: Readings from the Fringe (a great
web resource!)
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

9. Find ‗em
Question: Where is the MCTC Zine Collection Located?
Answer: Here!
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

10. Find‗em
Browse ‗em…
Search ‗em in the
Zine Catalog…
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

11. Zines in school?
Cohen, Barbara. "The Zine Project: Writing with a
Personal Perspective." Language Arts 82.2 (2004):
129-138.
http://www.ncte.org/library/NCTEFiles/Resources
/Journals/LA/0822-nov04/LA%200822Zine.pdf
Abstract: How can teachers help their students write
effectively and purposefully in a variety of genres
despite the challenges of increased testing and
curriculum mandates? [focus is on Elementary, but
provides good overview and resources]
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

12. Sample zines, assignments, rubrics, etc.
Tom Eland‘s Zine/Media Project
assignment & rubric for INFS 2520:
Alternative Knowledge: How Radical
Ideas are Communicated in Society
Parecon Media
A zine from MCTC‘s collection
front/back scan. Project
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010

13. Closing Question
 can you imagine using zines (or media project)
as an alternative to a current assignment
or developing/creating a new assignment?
 if no, why not?
 if yes, what are you waiting for? GET STARTED!!
 spread the word: www.slideshare.net/mctclibrary
THANK YOU!
Zines & the 15% 17 May 2010