The first popularly circulated zines as we have come to know them today are traced back to 1930. They were created by the Science Correspondence Club in Chicago and were called The Comet. These early zines focused on science and science fiction as subject matter, but with the technological advancements of the 1970s, which allowed for easier and cheaper creation, led to the flushing of the medium for a variety of movements and subcultures. Particularly, the 70s and 80s popular zines were dominated by the punk scene, which brought with it a “do it yourself” aesthetic that called for handmade drawings, brandings, and written articles that were then photocopied (Arnold, 2016). By the 1990s, the medium was dying down only to once again be revamped by the Riot Grrrl zines, which tied themselves heavily to the feminist movement. This strong connection to politics leaves a legacy of reputation for zines as a more politically charged medium (Arnold, 2016). 

One of the benefits of zines as a medium of communication is that they are either self-published or published by a small, independent publisher (Van Leuven, 2017). This allows for marginalized and often cast aside voices to express themselves beyond the constraints of mainstream media by allowing them to control the publishing process. Zines became an alternative to the hierarchical and commodified realm of popular media. They were often created for niche audiences that were rarely represented in other forms of media consumption. They allowed for fans or those with specific interests to create networks, share ideas and understandings, and collaborate academically and artistically (which I argue is inherently academic in its own right).  

To create a zine, it is important to have a particular theme in mind. The finished product should have an overarching message or point that it is attempting to communicate. There are multiple forms of zines, including: titch-bound, perfect-bound, accordion, tiny matchbox sized, poster sized, and digital. Most zines aid in communicating their message through art as well with collaging and drawings that play with various color schemes and types of paper. Once complete with a master copy, the publisher can make copies and distribute them at will to spread their message (Burke, 2018).

I believe that a zine is the perfect medium for the topic that I am exploring. Political nostalgia as a weapon in democracy has been a topic that has been thoroughly explored by scholars following the 2016 election as Trump’s campaign slogan “make America great again” promised a return to the past. Trump’s success has made it clear that nostalgia can be a potent and dangerously successful tool to ignore the inequalities and marginalization of the past and bring it into the present (Ruiz, 2018). We have seen that this idea is also effective for Democrats as Biden called for a return to civility and a nostalgia for a simpler time in politics (Bowie, 2019). Overall, it is clear that nostalgia has become a dominant political strategy. I want to explore why this is, why it's effective, and what effect it has on our understanding of history. I think that a zine is a great outlet to explore this through.