marinko.P65


362  College & Research Libraries July 1998

 

Representations of the Alternative 
Press in Academic Library 
Collections 

Rita A. Marinko and Kristin H. Gerhard 

This study uses the list of periodicals indexed by Alternative Press In­
dex to examine the holdings rates of alternative press titles in U.S. ARL 
libraries. Holdings rates are examined by library, by title, and by subject 
category. Alternative press titles are not widely held in U.S. ARL libraries. 
Titles falling into categories such as leftist/Marxist politics, gay/lesbian, 
and labor are particularly underrepresented in library holdings, as are titles 
that are newsletters or magazines. The impact of these low holdings rates 
on scholars, students, and archival library collections is discussed. 

he importance of a free press 
to democracy is a frequently 
repeated sentiment among li­
brarians. Articles in library 

journals often address issues of censor­
ship and the representation of all view­
points on controversial issues. One as­
pect of the freedom of the press that has 
been little discussed, however, is the 
actual place of the alternative press in 
library collections. According to Ellen 
E. Embardo, “alternative publications 
constitute primary research materials, 
providing an invaluable record of so­
cial and political movements for radi­
cal change.”1 How well are academic 
libraries meeting the need for scholarly 
access to alternative press titles? This 
study uses the list of periodicals in­
dexed by Alternative Press Index to ex­
amine the holdings rates of alternative 
press titles in ARL libraries. 

Literature Review
IieaatforfSeleationfStrategiesfonfAlterna­
timefaressfSoleings 
Librarians work within limited budgets 
and must be selective in making periodi­
cal purchases. Selection implies some 
judgment of a periodical’s value. One 
common measure of periodical value is 
citation rates, which yield numerical mea­
sures that can be used to justify the ac­
quisition or cancellation of particular 
titles. According to Thomas E. Nisonger, 

Citation analysis is based on the as­
sumption that documents cited by 
a researcher have been used in the 
research process . . . . Major uses of 
citation analysis pertinent to collec­
tion evaluation include identifying 
the core collection, using citations 
as a checklist, ranking journals, and 
analyzing a discipline’s structure to 

Rita A. Marinko is a Reference Librarian/Assistant Professor in Parks Library at Iowa State University; 
e-mail: rmarinko@iastate.edu. Kristin H. Gerhard is a Catalog Librarian/Associate Professor in Parks 
Library at Iowa State University; e-mail: kgerhard@iastate.edu. 

362 

mailto:kgerhard@iastate.edu
mailto:rmarinko@iastate.edu


 

Representations of the Alternative Press 363 

assist collection management deci­
sion making.2 

It seems logical that citation analysis 
should allow identification of titles that 
are absolutely central to a discipline or 
topic. Thura Mack, for instance, found 
citation analysis useful in identifying a 
core of women’s studies periodicals, and 
a number of studies use citation analysis 
in this way.3 But reliance on usage of pe­
riodicals as demonstrated through their 
rate of citation can have a narrowing im­
pact on academic collections. 

A periodical that brings a specific 
viewpoint to a collection thus can 
have a value that cannot be mea­
sured by the frequency with which it 
is cited. 

Anna H. Perrault’s examination of 
changes in ARL library holdings from 
1985 to 1989 revealed a definite increase 
in homogeneity among these libraries.4 

Her findings included “a decrease in the 
percentage of unique titles in many sub­
ject areas, and an increased concentration 
on core materials.” 

Periodical citation measures are related 
to factors other than the value of periodi­
cal content. For a periodical to be cited, 
its contents must be made accessible 
through one or more indexes. That index 
must be available to researchers. The pe­
riodical itself then must be available ei­
ther locally or through interlibrary loan. 

This points up two potential weak 
links: A periodical may not be indexed or, 
if indexed, may not be held widely 
enough to be readily available. First, pe­
riodicals that are unindexed are less avail­
able to scholars for citation. Indexing in­
creases the likelihood that a periodical 
will be purchased by libraries because it 
brings titles to the attention of librarians. 
This creates a catch-22 situation: A peri­
odical that is unindexed, whether due to 
newness, content out of the mainstream, 

or lack of a significant content, is equally 
unlikely to register on selector librarians’ 
radar. These periodicals are then 
uncited—their ideas lost to scholars, no 
matter how relevant the ideas may be to 
the scholarly enterprise at hand or to so­
ciety at large. 

Second, periodicals that are difficult to 
obtain cannot be cited. Danny P. Wallace 
and Bert R. Boyce identified a significant 
relationship between holdings and some 
citation measures in some subject areas.5 

Although the relationship over all eight 
subjects they examined is variable and 
sometimes weak, the existence of any re­
lationship at all highlights the difficulties 
of relying too heavily on citation analy­
sis for broad selection. 

Studies of Bias in Library Collections 
A less measurable aspect of periodical 
value is contained in the ideas it presents. 
The role of libraries in promoting plural­
ism is cited often as central to the role of 
libraries in a democratic society. It is im­
possible to have a meaningful discussion 
on issues of the day without access to a 
broad representation of the viewpoints 
held in society at large. A periodical that 
brings a specific viewpoint to a collection 
thus can have a value that cannot be mea­
sured by the frequency with which it is 
cited. The question of bias in library col­
lections is therefore an important one for 
a democratic society. 

In a preliminary study of bias in col­
lection development, Stephen L. Hupp 
examined the holdings of liberal and con­
servative books in the academic, public, 
and special libraries of Ohio.6 Although 
the focus of this research was on identi­
fying political bias in library collections, 
Hupp conclude that “the state’s libraries 
have done a poor job in collecting con­
troversial political materials.” In his fol­
low-up study, he compared the holdings 
of five sets of periodical titles, including 
a set of periodicals representing an alter­
native perspective. Holdings of alterna­
tive periodicals lagged behind holdings 



 

364 College & Research Libraries July 1998 

of liberal or conservative titles. Hupp 
found that this alternative sample “is rep­
resented more fully in public libraries 
than in academic . . . [and] this indicates 
a greater willingness among such librar­
ies to include these periodical titles in 
their collections.”7 Yet one might expect 
academic library collections to provide 
the basis for scholarship and analysis of 
ideas in a society, and to bring a histori­
cal understanding of the development of 
those ideas. 

This research also was designed to 
determine the relative holdings of 
alternative press titles in particular 
subject areas. 

In another examination of the question 
of bias, this time in the college collection, 
Robert L. Houbeck Jr. discussed the 
place of periodicals of opinion in aca­
demic libraries. 8 He found that aca­
d e m i c  l i b r a r i e s  h a v e  b e en “even­
handed” in their selection of periodicals 
representing conservative and liberal 
views. He notes: 

Those of us in higher education talk 
frequently about the importance of 
teaching our students how to think. 
We also need occasionally to give 
them something to think about. 
Journals of opinion fill precisely that 
role, and in a lively and concise for­
mat. We need to provide our stu­
dents with opportunities to encoun­
ter ideas. That means first buying a 
range of titles such as these.9 

In a discussion of the Alternative Press 
Collection at the University of Connecti­
cut, Embardo buttressed this point in her 
observation that “despite occasional uses 
of the [Alternative Press Collection] for 
extensive research, most patrons are stu­
dents consulting specific titles in prepa­
ration for term papers or, more often, are 
fulfilling a widespread English 109 as­

signment requiring the use of ‘alternative’ 
viewpoints on contemporary issues.“10 

Embardo also points out the time sen­
sitivity of these materials: “once acquired, 
the material must be swiftly organized 
and made accessible. The alternative 
press must be timely to serve those con­
stituencies needing today’s questions to 
provide tomorrow’s answers.”11 Libraries 
that lack alternative press titles force 
scholars to choose between working with 
a time lag—the time it takes for a pub­
lished article to be indexed by an index­
ing service, plus the time to get the ar­
ticle through interlibrary loan—and pur­
chasing personal subscriptions to their 
research materials. 

Research Questions 
This study, rather than comparing con­
servative and liberal titles in order to 
identify potential collection bias, looks di­
rectly at the alternative press. It asks, How 
widely are nonmainstream (alternative) 
periodicals held in academic libraries? 
That is, to what extent do academic librar­
ies bring nonmainstream ideas to the edu­
cational or scholarly table? On the face of 
it, it seems that periodicals identified as 
core academic titles were more likely to 
be in the mainstream, representing 
widely held social and political views 
(whether conservative or liberal) than 
they were to present alternative ap­
proaches. If conservative and liberal pe­
riodicals of opinion are not widely held 
by academic libraries, what is the status 
of alternative periodicals? 

This research also was designed to de­
termine the relative holdings of alterna­
tive press titles in particular subject ar­
eas. It is possible that some topics are bet­
ter represented than others, and it would 
be useful for librarians evaluating their 
collections in terms of bias to be aware of 
areas of systemic weakness. 

Methodology 
The first task was to identify a standard 
list of alternative press titles whose hold­



 

Representations of the Alternative Press 365 

ings could be searched. Alternative Press 
Index (API) is described by one reviewer 
as a title that “should be part of any col­
lection seeking to offer access to varied 
points of view.”12 At the time of this re­
search, API indexed 220 periodicals. The 
index itself was held by eighty-eight ARL 
libraries, or 88 percent, and seemed to be 
a reasonable source for the identification 
of periodical titles for this study. 

A list of the titles indexed in API was 
taken from volume 27, no. 1 (1996) of the 
index. A list of the ARL member libraries 
as of January 1995 was obtained and 
OCLC holdings for those libraries identi­
fied. Holdings were examined by insti­
tution rather than by libraries, so the 
OCLC holdings symbols for associated 
law libraries and satellite campuses were 
added accordingly. All OCLC symbols 
were acquired from the List of OCLC Par­
ticipating Institutions. 

The symbols were put in order, first by 
state and then alphabetically by symbol. 
This arrangement greatly facilitated read­
ing the OCLC holdings printouts because 
it was only necessary to search through 
each state’s holdings once for the repre­
sented libraries. 

The researchers searched OCLC by 
ISSN and by title to gather holdings data. 
For the purposes of this study, the hold­
ings of a given institution were identified 
based on the holdings of all its constitu­
ent libraries. For example, if a university’s 
law library held a title but its main library 
did not, the title was counted as held by 
that institution nonetheless. Because the 
authors were tallying titles held, and not 
number of copies held, institutions hold­
ing more than one copy of a title were 
only counted as holding the title once. 
After compiling holdings information 
from OCLC printouts, the data were en­
tered into an Excel spreadsheet and the 
results collated by several variables. 

First, the titles were arranged in alpha­
betical order, and their respective hold­
ings were entered. This allowed the au­
thors to take raw counts of the number of 

libraries holding any given title and the 
total API titles held by each library. If this 
percentage was ten percent or lower, the 
library was called to ascertain whether 
serial holdings were placed in OCLC or 
whether another reason existed for the low 
percentage. In the case of a few specialized 
libraries, the area of specialization was such 
as to logically preclude holding titles from 
API. For instance, Linda Hall Library col­
lects exclusively in the area of science and 
technology and, with few exceptions, 
would not be expected to own the titles 
covered by this index. In the case of some 
other libraries, holdings no longer are be­
ing added to OCLC, but to RLIN instead. 
Because the extremely low holdings rates 
indicated for Canadian ARL libraries 
would skew the data, they were dropped 
from the sample, leaving data for the 104 
U.S. ARL libraries. 

To allow examination of holdings by 
subject area, titles next were arranged by 
the subject headings used in API. Because 
the subject terms used by the index were 
quite specific, sometimes with only one 
title for a given heading, headings were 
clustered into broader groups. These sub­
ject clusters are given in table 1 (see pp. 
372–374). Because many titles were in­
dexed under multiple subject terms, a 
sizeable number of the titles ended up in 
more than one of the broad groupings. 
Then these clusters were analyzed using 
an analysis of variance test and grouped 
into ranges using Duncan’s Multiple 
Range Test (in SAS) to determine if spe­
cific subject areas were differentially rep­
resented in U.S. ARL libraries’ holdings. 

Finally, titles were separated into two 
groups based on their designation in API 
as journals or newsletters/magazines. 
Holdings by type of title then were com­
pared to determine if a title’s holdings 
could be related to its format. 

Results and Discussion
Reerull resnlts 
The overall results were discouraging. 
The percentage of API periodicals held 



366 College & Research Libraries July 1998 

TABLE 2
 
Holdings of Alternative Press Titles in U.S. ARL Libraries, by Institution

Institution Number of Percent Institution Number of Percent
(OCLC symbol) Titles Held Held (OCLC symbol) Titles Held Held 
IWA 59 27% MUB, UMC, LUM 112 51
NUI, LUI 115 52 EEM 140 64
AAA 40 18 EYM, MI 143 65
ABC, ALM, AUL 61 28 EYW 73 33
AZS, AZC 87 40 MNU, MLL 103 47
AZU, AZL 76 35 LHL 0 0
CLU 146 66 MUU, LMU 67 30
CRU 51 23 WTU, WUL 69 31
CSL, ZZX 80 36 NDD, NDL 103 47
CUI 61 28 NOC, NDO 102 46
CUS 105 48 NRC 49 22
CUT 85 39 LDL, LLL 55 25
CUV 17 8 DRB 64 29
CUY, BOL 84 38 NJR 46 21
STF 101 46 PUL 94 43
COD, UCX 114 52 IQU, NML 68 31
COF 72 33 BUF, SBL 93 42
UCW, UCL 156 71 COO 63 29
YUS, CXR 47 21 NAM 69 31
DGU, GUL 53 24 NYG 38 17
DHU, HLL 83 38 NYP 159 72
DLC 148 67 RRR 66 30
SMI 17 8 SYB, SYL 90 41
DLM 89 40 YSM 69 31
FDA, FSL 86 39 ZCU, ZCL 93 42
FQG, FML 62 28 ZYU, YLS 11 5
FUG, FUB 87 40 CIN, DML 67 30
EMU, EMK 64 29 CWR, CWL 34 15
GAT 18 8 KSU 48 22
GUA,GUB 82 37 OSU, OHL 98 45
HUH, HLR 73 33 OKS 52 24
CGU, KEN 68 31 OKU, OKL 54 25
CRL 13 6 ORU, UOL 93 42
IAY 25 11 PAU, PLL 55 25
INU, INL 98 45 PIT, PLA 105 48
SOI, SOL 86 39 TEU 113 51
UIU 95 43 UPM 103 47
IND,XND 72 33 RBN 63 29
IPL 71 32 SUC, SLW 63 29
IUP, IUL, IUB 118 54 TJC, TJL 63 29
KKU, KFL 92 42 TKN, TLK 67 30
KUK 78 35 IXA 101 46
LRU,LRL 71 32 RCE 21 10
LUU, LUL 37 17 TXA 52 24
AUM 82 37 TXH, THL 49 22
BOS, BOP 63 29 UBY, UTY 44 20
BRL 28 13 UUM 78 35
HUL, HVL 133 60 VAM, VAL 70 32
MYG 59 27 VPI 73 33
AGL 11 5 NTE 95 43
JHE 57 26 WAU 80 36
NLM 3 1 GZM, GZL 128 58 



Representations of the Alternative Press 367 

TABLE 4 
Holdings by Subject Clusters (Raw Data) 

No. of Total Aver No. of Holding 
Subject Area Titles Holdings Libraries per Title 
Activism 11 175 1.6
Animal Rights 1 53 0.5
Arts 12 512 4.7
Ecology 20 456 4.2
Economics 9 323 3.0
Education 9 224 2.1
Food 3 19 0.2
Gay!Lesbian 5 144 1.3
Geography!Area Studies 45 1631 15.1
Health 9 323 3.0
Human Rights 16 606 5.6
Intelligence Agencies 1 4 0.0
Labor 8 219 2.0
Leftist Politics 38 1115 10.3
Media 19 773 7.2
Military!Peace! 8 152 1.4

International Relations
People 51 2235 20.7
People of Color! 11 482 4.5

Native Peoples
Social Sciences and 15 710 6.6

Humanities
Sociology 8 538 5.0
Sports 1 57 0.5
Technology 3 46 0.4
Women 31 1522 14.1 

are presented, by library, in table 2. The 
percentage held in a given library varied 
from zero percent (Linda Hall Library) to 
71 percent (University of Connecticut Li­
brary) and 72 percent (New York Public 
Library), with sixty-nine of the libraries’ 
holdings rates below 40 percent. Only 
twelve libraries had holdings rates above 
50 percent. 

Individual periodicals’ holding rates 
are given in table 3 (see pp. 375–377). 
These percentages also varied widely, 
from zero percent (e.g., Challenge, Jour­
nal of Prisoners on Prisons) to 88 percent 
(The Nation). The spread of holdings 
rates by title also was clustered toward 
the lower end. Only thirty-seven titles 
(17% of the total 220) were held by 70 

percent or more of the libraries studied, 
whereas 139 of the 220 titles (63%) were 
held by less than 40 percent of U.S. ARL 
libraries. 

Some library collections have a very 
specific focus (e.g., Linda Hall Library, as 
mentioned above; the National Library of 
Medicine, etc.). These libraries logically 
enough do not hold high numbers of al­
ternative press titles. In addition, some of 
these titles (e.g., Critique: Journal for Criti­
cal Studies of the Middle East; Genewatch) 
are very narrow, and their low rates of 
holding among ARL libraries as a whole 
are not that surprising. Nonetheless, the 
level of access provided to the alternative 
press in ARL libraries is demonstrably 
quite low. 



368 College & Research Libraries July 1998 

TABLE 5 
Analysis of Holdings by Subject Cluster 

Subject Category
Duncan Grouping

 Mean A B C D E F G H I J K 
Sociology
Sports
Animal Rights
Women 
Arts
People of Color!

Native Peoples
Social Sciences

and Humanities
People
Media
Human Rights
Economics
Geography!Area

Studies
Leftist!Marxist

Politics
Gay!Lesbian
Labor
Education
Ecology
Military!Peace

Studies!
International
Relations

Health
Activism
Technology 
Food
Intelligence 

0.64663 X
0.54808 X
0.50962 X X
0.47208 X X
0.41026 X X
0.40734 X X X 
0.39744 X X 
0.39461 X X
0.39119 X X
0.36418 X X
0.34509 X X X
0.33269 X X 
0.28214 X 
0.27692 X
0.26322
0.26068
0.21923
0.17188 

0.16827
0.15297
0.14742
0.06090
0.03846 

X 
X 
X
X
X 

X 
X
X
X
X X

X 

X
X
X 

X
X 

Results by Subject 
The authors’ questions about holdings by 
subject proved to be well founded. They 
discovered a fairly wide variance in hold­
ings among the subject clusters. The raw 
data are given in table 4, and the results 
of the Duncan’s Multiple Range Test are 
given in table 5. 

Table 5 presents the subject categories 
in order, from those most likely to be held 
to those least likely to be held. There were 
significant differences in holdings rates 
for the different subject categories. Cat­
egories sharing one or more Duncan 

Grouping, indicated by X in the right-
hand columns, were not significantly dif­
ferent from one another. For example, the 
titles in the category of Women had a 
holdings rate that was not significantly 
different from the holdings rate for titles 
in the category of Arts, as both are in the 
D group. But there are significant differ­
ences between the holdings rate for the 
titles in the Women category (C,D) and 
the holdings rate for titles in Sociology 
(A only). 

Some of the categories near the bottom 
contained so few titles that it is difficult 



Representations of the Alternative Press 369 

hardly an astonishing discov-TABLE 6
ery but at the very least raises Difference between Journal and Newsletter/ 
concern about archiving for 

Magazine Holdings Rates future research uses. 
Analysis of Variance 

ConclusionVariable Mean Std Error T 
Periodicals that are indexed, Journal holdings 0.383 0.016 24.18* but not held, require that li-Newsletter/magazine 0.211 0.013 15.11* brary users be willing to re­holdings quest desired articles through Difference 0.172 0.008 20.64* some form of document de­

_Si_ni_icance at t_e 0.000_ le_el 
to come to meaningful conclusions about 
their holdings rates. But it also is clear from 
these data that periodicals in certain cat­
egories consistently are underrepresented 
in U.S. ARL library collections, even 
within the ranks of alternative periodi­
cals. Titles in the areas of leftist/Marx­
ist politics, gay and lesbian titles, and 
alternative titles in labor, education, 
and ecology are all underrepresented. 
This reinforces the findings of Hupp and 
undermines somewhat the political claim 
that American universities are hotbeds of 
radical leftist thought. 

Results by Type of Publication 
A comparison of the holdings rates for 
journals and newsletters/magazines in 
the sample revealed that libraries were 
significantly more likely to collect jour­
nals than newsletters (see table 6). This is 

livery and then to wait for 
them to arrive. Holding API 

is one step toward providing access, but 
holding the periodical locally is another. 
In addition, when a periodical is held 
rarely, from where will we get that docu­
ment delivered? 

Further research needs to be conducted 
on the feasibility of expanding our na­
tional holdings of these titles, perhaps 
through a cooperative regional approach 
to collection development. The least-rep­
resented topical areas in particular need 
to be examined if we are to work toward 
representing all viewpoints in libraries. 
For alternative views to contribute to the 
democratic discussion in our society, 
these ideas at least must be available to 
those wrestling with the problems and 
issues of that society. The periodicals rep­
resenting these ideas must not only be 
indexed, but also must be held in research 
library collections. 

Notes 

1. Ellen E. Embardo, “The Alternative Press Collection, University of Connecticut,” Library 
Quarterly 59, no. 1 (1989): 55–63. 

2. Thomas E. Nisonger, Collection Evaluation in Academic Libraries: A Literature Guide and An­
notated Bibliography (Englewood, Colo.: Libraries Unlimited, 1992), 98. 

3. Thura Mack, “A Model Methodology for Selecting Women”s Studies Core Journals,” Li­
brary and Information Science Research 13, no. 2 (1991): 131–45. 

4. Anna H. Perrault, The Changing Print Resource Base of Academic Libraries in the United States: 
A Comparison of Collection Patterns in Seventy-Two ARL Academic Libraries of Non-Serial Imprints for 
the Years 1985 and 1989 (Ph.D. diss., Florida State University, 1994), xi. 

5. Danny P. Wallace and Bert R. Boyce, “Holdings As a Measure of Journal Value,” Library 
and Information Science Research 11, no. 1 (1989): 59–71. 

6. Stephen L. Hupp, “The Left and the Right: A Preliminary Study of Bias in Collection 
Development in Ohio Libraries,” Collection Management 14, no. 2 (1991): 139–54. 

7. ———, “The Left and the Right: A Follow-Up Survey of the Collection of Journals of 
Political Opinion in Ohio Libraries,” Collection Management 18, no. 2 (1993): 135–52. 



370 College & Research Libraries July 1998 

8. Robert L. Houbeck Jr., “Locked in Conversation: The College Library Collection and the 
Pluralist Society,” Journal of Library Administration 17, no. 2 (1992): 99–131. 

9. Ibid., 127. 
10. Embardo, “The Alternative Press Collection, University of Connecticut,” 62. 
11. Ibid., 61. 
12. Marie F. Jones. Review of Alternative Press Index. Library Journal 117, no. 14 (Sept. 1, 1992): 

p. 166. 



Representations of the Alternative Press 371 

TABLE 1
 
Alternative Press Periodical Titles by Subject Cluster


Activism (11 titles)
Subject headings: organizing,

housing, citizen activism, political
activism, boycotts, economic
alternatives

Boycott Quarterly
Breakthrough
City Limits
Common Cause
Co-Op America Quarterly
Grassroots Fundraising Journal
Neighborhood Works 
Organizing
Public Citizen
Shelterforce
Third Force 

Animal Rights (1 title) 
Subject heading: animal rights
Animals' Agenda 

The Arts (12 titles)
Subject headings: literature, art,

film, culture & politics
Borderlines
Camera Obscura
Cineaste
Critical Arts
Fuse
Heresies
Independent
Jump Cut
Lambda Book Report
Left Curve
Red Bass
Women's Review of Books 

Ecology (20 titles)
Subject headings: energy, environ­

ment, left ecology, social ecology,
environmental justice

Alternatives (Ontario, Canada)
Amicus Journal
Bogong (no OCLC record)
Capitalism, Nature, Socialism
Chain Reaction
E: The Environmental Magazine
Earth First!
Earth Island Journal
Ecologist
Environmental Action
Friends of the Earth
New Catalyst
No Sweat News (no OCLC record) 

(ecology cont.)
Permaculture Activist (no OCLC
record)
Powerline
Raise the Stakes
Raw Materials Report
Society and Nature
Women and Environments
The Workbook (no OCLC record) 

Economics (9 titles)
Subject headings: economics,

business, World Bank, political
economy

Bankcheck
Business Ethics
Capital and Class
Dollars and Sense
Economic Notes
Left Business Observer
Review of African Political
Economy
Review of Radical Political
Economics
Studies in Political Economy 

Education (9 titles)
Subject headings: education, library
studies
Critical Arts
Feminist Teacher
Holistic Education Review
Our Schools/Ourselves
Progressive Librarian
Radical Teacher
Rethinking Schools
Women's Education/Education des
Femmes
Women's Studies Quarterly 

Food (3 titles)
Subject headings: agriculture,

vegetarianism, food
Permaculture Activist (no OCLC
record)
Vegetarian Voice
World Hunger Year 

Gay/Lesbian (5 titles)
Subject headings: gay/lesbian
Advocate
BLK
Lambda Book Report
Lesbian Contradiction
RFD 

Geography/Area Studies (45
titles)

Subject headings: regional,
Africa, Canada, Australia,
Cuba, Asia/South Asia,
England, Middle East, Iran,
South Africa, Latin America,
third world, Eastern Europe,
geography

Africa News
Alternatives (Ontario, Canada)
Antipode
Atlantis
Australian Feminist Studies
Bogong (no OCLC record)
Borderlines
Briarpatch
Bulletin of Concerned Asian
Scholars
Canadian Dimension
Capital and Class
Chain Reaction
Challenge (no OCLC record)
Chartist
Critical Arts
Critique: Journal of Critical
Studies of the Middle East
Cuba Update
Feminist Review
Free Associations
Hecate
History Workshop
Journal of Palestine Studies
Kick It Over
Kinesis
Labor, Capital and Society
Labor/Le Travail
Latin American Perspectives
Middle East Report
NACLA: A Report on the
Americas
New Catalyst
New Left Review
New Maritimes
Our Schools/Ourselves
Our Times
Peace & Democracy
Race and Class
Review of African Political
Economy
Science as Culture
South Asia Bulletin
Southern Exposure 



372 College & Research Libraries July 1998 

TABLE 1 (cont.)
 
Alternative Press Periodical Titles by Subject Cluster


Studies in Political Economy
Theory, Culture & Society
This Magazine
Women and Environments
Women's EducationlEducation Des
Femmes 

Health (2 titles)
Subject headings: health, alternative
culture
Mothering
Nutrition Action Healthletter 

Human Rights (16 titles)
Subject headings: law, civil rights,

human rights, disability rights,
prisoners

Berkeley Women's Law Journal
California Prisoner
Covert Action Quarterly
Disability Rag
Guild Notes
Harvard Women's Law Journal
Human Rights Internet Reporter
Index on Censorship
Journal of Prisoners on Prisons
Mouth
Our Right to Know
Prison News
RightslBill of Rights Journal
Social Justice
Women and Criminal Justice
Women's Rights Law Reporter 

Intelligence Agencies (1 title)
Subject heading: intelligence
agencies
Unclassified 

Labor (8 titles)
Subject headings: labor, interna­
tional labor, IWW, and OHS
Beyond Borders
Industrial Worker
Labor History
Labor Notes
Labor Research Review
LaborlLe Travail
New Solutions
Our Times 

LeftistlMarxist Politics (38 titles)
Subject headings: Worker's World

Party, CPUSA, DSA, Second
International, Political Theory, 

Political Analysis, SWP-England,
Fourth International, Marxist
Theory/Marxism, Solidarity,
Anarchy/Anarchism, Anarchism
&Libertarian Socialism, World
Poverty, Socialist Analysis, Socio­
Political Analysis, Socialism

Against the Current
Anarchy (no OCLC record)
Antipode
Briarpatch
Bulletin in Defense of Marxism
Chartist
Constellations
Critique (Glasgow, Scotland)
Crossroads
Democratic Left
Dissent
Fifth Estate
Forward Motion
International Socialism
International Viewpoint
Kick It Over
Left Curve
Liberation and Marxism
Monthly Review
Nature, Society, and Thought
New Internationalist
New Left Review
New Political Science
New Politics
Our Generation
Political Affairs

Leftist/Marxist Politics cont.
Radical America
Red Pepper
Rethinking Marxism
Science and Society
Social Alternatives
Social Anarchism
Social Text
Socialism and Democracy
Socialist Affairs
Socialist Review
Toward Freedom
Z Magazine 

Media (19 titles)
Subject headings: alternative press,

alternative media, media, news,
international news and analysis

Alternative Press Review
Community Media Review
Extra
In These Times 

International Viewpoint
Lies of Our Times
Media & Values
Mother Jones
Multinational Monitor
Nation
On the Issues
Progressive
Propaganda Review
Sipapu
St. Louis Journalism Review
This Magazine
Toward Freedom
Utne Reader
Z Magazine 

Military/Peace/International

Relations (8 titles)


Subject headings: active duty GI,
veterans, antidraft, peace,
international relations

Nonviolent Activist
On Guard
Peace & Democracy
Peace & Freedom
Peace Magazine
Peace News
Reconciliation International
World Policy Journal 

People (51 titles)
Subject headings: native peoples,

Native American, alternative
culture, multiculturalism, gay/
lesbian, people of color, Black,
Jewish culture, seniors, working
women, women, women's
history

Abya Yala News
Advocate
Akwe:Kon Journal
Akwesasne Notes
Atlantis
Australian Feminist Studies
Berkeley Women's Law Journal
Black Scholar
BLK
Camera Obscura
Changing Men
Colors
Connexions
Cultural Survival Quarterly
Daybreak
Feminist Issues
Feminist Studies 



Representations of the Alternative Press 373 

TABLE 1 (cont.)
 
Alternative Press Periodical Titles by Subject Cluster
 

Feminist Teacher
Gray Panther Network
Harvard Women's Law Journal
Hecate
Heresies
Hypatia
In Context
Journal of Women=s History
Kick It Over
Kinesis
Lambda Book Report
Lesbian Contradiction
Mothering
Off Our Backs
On the Issues
Peace & Freedom
Race and Class
RFD
Sage: A Scholarly Journal on Black
Women
Third Force
Tikkun
Tradeswomen
Trivia
Whole Earth Review
Women and Criminal Justice
Women and Environments
Women and Therapy
Women in Action
Women's EducationlEducation Des
Femmes
Women's Review of Books
Women's Rights Law Reporter
Women's Studies International
Forum
Women's Studies Quarterly
Women's World 

People of ColorlNative Peoples
(11 titles)

Subject headings: people of color,
native peoples

Abya Yala News
Akwe:Kon Journal
Akwesasne Notes
Black Scholar 

BLK
Colors
Cultural Survival Quarterly
Daybreak
Race and Class
Sage: A Scholarly Journal on Black
Women
Third Force 

Social Sciences and Humanities
(15 titles)

Subject headings: anthropology,
cultural studies, history, psychol­
ogy, philosophy, urbanism, religion

American Atheist
Critique of Anthropology
Cultural Survival Quarterly
Free Associations
History Workshop
Hypatia
Journal of Urban and Cultural
Studies
Labor History
LaborlLe Travail
Practice
Radical History Review
Radical Philosophy Review of
Books
Sojourners
Thesis Eleven
Women and Therapy 

Sociology (8 titles)
Subject headings: social policy,

social theory, sociology, sociology
and social work

Alternatives (Boulder, Colo.)
Berkeley Journal of Sociology
Critical Sociology
Journal of Progressive Human
Services
Social Justice
Social Policy
Theory, Culture & Society
Thesis Eleven 

Sports (1 title) 

Subject heading: sports
Journal of Sport and Social Issues 

Technology (3 titles)
Subject headings: technology and

society, biotechnology
Genewatch
Processed World
Science as Culture 

Women (31 titles)
Subject heading: women
Atlantis
Australian Feminist Studies
Berkeley Women's Law Journal
Camera Obscura
Connexions
Feminist Issues
Feminist Review
Feminist Studies
Feminist Teacher
Harvard Women's Law Journal
Hecate
Heresies
Hypatia
Kick It Over
Kinesis
Mothering
Off Our Backs
On The Issues
Peace & Freedom
Sage: A Scholarly Journal on
Black Women
Trivia
Women and Criminal Justice
Women and Environments
Women and Therapy
Women in Action
Women's EducationlEducation des
Femmes
Women's Review of Books
Women's Rights Law Reporter
Women's Studies International
Forum
Women's Studies Quarterly
Women's World 



374 College & Research Libraries July 1998 

TABLE 3
 
Holdings in U.S. ARL Libraries, by Periodical Title

Periodical Holdings Periodical Holdings
Title Total Percentage Title Total Percentage
Abya Yala News 19 18% City Limits 15 14
Advocate 70 67 Co-Op America Quarterly 6 6
Africa News 55 53 Colors 4 4
Against the Current 25 24 Common Cause 68 65
Akwe:Kon Journal 27 26 Community Media Review 3 3
Akwesasne Notes 67 64 Connexions 52 50
Alternative Press Review 6 6 Constellations 59 57
Alternatives (Boulder, Col.) 79 76 Covert Action Quarterly 34 33
Alternatives (Ontario, 34 33 Critical Arts 23 22

Canada) Critical Sociology 78 75
American Atheist 29 28 Critique (Glasgow, 45 43
Amicus Journal 74 71 Scotland)
Anarchy (no OCLC record) 0 0 Critique of Anthropology 66 63
Animals' Agenda 53 51 Critique: Journal for 14 13
Antipode 66 63 Critical Studies of the
Atlantis 37 36 Middle East
Australian Feminist Studies 30 29 Crossroads 14 13
Bankcheck 4 4 Cuba Update 32 31
Berkeley Journal of 81 78 Cultural Survival Quarterly 65 63

Sociology Daybreak 9 9
Berkeley Women's Law 58 56 Democratic Left 25 24

Journal Disability Rag 9 9
Beyond Borders 3 3 Dissent 89 86
Black Scholar 88 85 Dollars and Sense 46 44
BLK 17 16 E: The Environmental 26 25
Bogong (no OCLC record) 0 0 Magazine
Borderlines 11 11 Earth First! 14 13
Boycott Quarterly 4 4 Earth Island Journal 18 17
Breakthrough 15 14 Ecologist 80 77
Briarpatch 5 5 Economic Notes 29 28
Bulletin in Defense 1 1 Environmental Action 66 63

of Marxism Extra 29 28
Bulletin of Concerned 71 68 Feminist Issues 75 72

Asian Scholars Feminist Review 71 68
Business Ethics 17 16 Feminist Studies 90 87
California Prisoner 10 10 Feminist Teacher 48 46
Camera Obscura 71 68 Fifth Estate 18 17
Canadian Dimension 38 37 Forward Motion 2 2
Capital and Class 50 48 Free Associations 17 16
Capitalism, Nature 30 29 Friends of the Earth 21 20

Socialism Fuse 10 10
Chain Reaction 2 2 Genewatch 8 8
Challenge (no OCLC record) 0 0 Grassroots Fundraising 8 8
Changing Men 31 30 Journal
Chartist 5 5 Gray Panther Network 13 13
Cineaste 77 74 Guild Notes 29 28 



Representations of the Alternative Press 375 

TABLE 3
 
Holdings in U.S. ARL Libraries, by Periodical Title 

Periodical Holdings Periodical Holdings
Title Total Percentage Title Total Percentage
Harvard Women's 68 65 Mother Jones 91 88

Law Journal Mothering 7 7
Hecate 33 32 Mouth 4 4
Heresies 73 70 Multinational Monitor 59 57
History Workshop 82 79 NACLA: Report on the 42 40
Holistic Education Review 14 13 Americas
Human Rights Internet 52 50 Nation 92 88

Reporter Nature,Society, and 17 16
Hypatia 81 78 Thought
In Context 11 11 Neighborhood Works 13 13
In These Times 70 67 New Catalyst 1 1
Independent 27 26 New Internationalist 37 36
Index on Censorship 76 73 New Left Review 89 86
Industrial Worker 22 21 New Maritimes 2 2
International Socialism 9 9 New Political Science 50 48
International Viewpoint 6 6 New Politics 70 67
Journal of Palestinian 82 79 New Solutions 6 6

Studies No Sweat News 0 0
Journal of Prisoners on 0 0 Nonviolent Activist 15 14

Prisons Nutrition Action 28 27
Journal of Progressive 34 33 Healthletter

Human Services Off Our Backs 60 58

Journal of Sport and 57 55 On Guard 3 3


Social Issues On the Issues 23 22

Journal of Urban and 4 4 Organizing (OCLC record, 0 0


Cultural Studies no holdings)
Journal of Women's 80 77 Our Generation 8 8

History Our Right to Know 4 4
Jump Cut 70 67 Our SchoolslOurselves 2 2
Kick It Over 6 6 Our Times 2 2
Kinesis 6 6 Peace & Democracy 8 8
Labor History 90 87 Peace & Freedom 10 10
Labor Notes 20 19 Peace Magazine 5 5
Labor Research Review 33 32 Peace News 18 17
Labour, Capital and Society 32 31 Permaculture Activist 0 0
LabourlLe Travail 43 41 Political Affairs 7 7
Lambda Book Report 37 36 Powerline 10 10
Latin American Perspectives 81 78 Practice 8 8
Left Business Observer 9 9 Prison News 3 3
Left Curve 17 16 Processed World 7 7
Lesbian Contradiction 6 6 Progressive 86 83
Liberation and Marxism 5 5 Progressive Librarian 20 19
Lies of Our Times 33 32 Propaganda Review 17 16
Media & Values 20 19 Public Citizen 15 14
Middle East Report 63 61 Race and Class 85 82
Monthly Review 84 81 Radical America 68 65 



376 College & Research Libraries July 1998 

TABLE 3
 
Holdings in U.S. ARL Libraries, by Periodical Title 

Periodical Holdings Periodical Holdings
Title Total Percentage Title Total Percentage
Radical History Review 88 85 Southern Exposure 74 71
Radical Philosophy 3 3 St. Louis Journalism 25 24

Review of Books Review
Radical Teacher 44 42 Studies in Political 24 23
Raise the Stakes 8 8 Economy
Raw Materials Report 12 12 Theory, Culture & Society 72 69
Reconciliation International 1 1 Thesis Eleven 34 33
Red Bass 18 17 Third Force 11 11 
Red Pepper 2 2 This Magazine 48 46
Rethinking Marxism 58 56 Tikkun 62 60
Rethinking Schools 10 10 Toward Freedom 10 10
Review of African 64 62 Tradeswomen 9 9

Political Economy Trivia 39 38

Review of Radical 80 77 Unclassified 4 4


Political Economics Utne Reader 77 74

RFD 14 13 Vegetarian Voice 7 7

RightslBill of Rights 73 70 Whole Earth Review 59 57


Journal Women and Criminal Justice38 37

Sage: A Scholarly Journal 74 71 Women and Environments 51 49


on Black Women Women and Therapy 64 62
Science and Society 19 18 Women in Action 25 24
Science as Culture 31 30 Women's Educationl 2 2
Shelterforce 20 19 Education des Femmes
Sipapu 43 41 Women's Review of Books 78 75
Social Alternatives 10 10 Women's Rights Law 71 68
Social Anarchism 15 14 Reporter
Social Justice 77 74 Women's Studies 83 80
Social Policy 83 80 International Forum
Social Text 78 75 Women's Studies Quarterly 81 78
Socialism and Democracy 37 36 Women's World 17 16
Socialist Affairs 19 18 Workbook 0 0
Socialist Review 5 5 World Hunger Year 12 12
Society and Nature 9 9 World Policy Journal 83 80
Sojourners 36 35 Z Magazine 35 34
South Asia Bulletin 45 43