Fanzines in Historical and Interdisciplinary Perspective

The issue presents a discussion about fanzines in the specific historical context of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), where zines have not yet been a subject of focused scholarly research. Alternative subculture scenes have played a significant role in the transformation of CEE societies in past four decades, and their impact can be seen in the political and cultural debates of societies at large. Alternative narratives that were presented on the pages of fanzines represent an important source for the social history studies of the late socialism and post-socialism periods in Czechoslovakia and its successor states, the Czech and Slovak Republics.
The authors of the nine articles propose various interdisciplinary approaches to fanzine studies and analyses (media studies, political science, human geography, literary history, cultural studies and history) and demonstrate how different methodologies can contribute to our knowledge of independent publishing and alternative cultures in general.