Editorial

Abstract

Welcome to the final issue (v. 22, no. 3–4) of Slavic & East European Information Resources(SEEIR) for 2021, a double issue featuring several unique collections, new digital resources, a captivating memoir, and one book review. I offer congratulations to all the authors for their excellent work, and gratitude for submitting revisions in a timely manner. Thanks also goes to my fellow editors for their efforts to meet an accelerated publication deadline – this issue would not have been possible without their work. The Research Articles section opens with an article by Erik Zitser and Bogdan Horbal describing their effort to “compile and publish an online guide to open access historical news sources from Slavic, East European and Eurasian [SEEE] countries.” The authors first explain how this new guide facilitates remote access to historical newspapers and fills a gap that has heretofore existed in the current bibliographic landscape; then briefly discuss ideological and practical questions that help readers to understand why the authors chose a particular platform for the guide. The bulk of the article details the guide’s layout, criteria for selecting resources for each country in the SEEE region, and preliminary usage statistics suggesting the guide’s utility in meeting researchers’ needs. Samples from the guide are accompanied by screen shots and data figures on usage. In their conclusion, the authors encourage users to submit corrections, suggest additions, or volunteer to co-curate one or more of the guide’s sections, making it clear that Zitser and Horbal envision the guide to be a cooperative affair that bridges gaps, crosses borders, and builds community within the field. The second research article, by Mark Yoffe, discusses the value of collecting non-traditional publications, such as the collection of rock music zines housed in the International Counterculture Archive at the George Washington University (GWU) Library’s Global Resources Center. Yoffe begins by describing the social milieu in which Russian and Soviet rock zines were created and subsequently contextualizes zine production within the broader tradition of samizdat. Noting how rock zines reflected the subculture/counterculture among certain currents of Russian and Soviet youth, the author outlines different types and forms of rock zines that emerged during the Soviet period. Images of several rock zines from GWU Library’s collection offer vibrant samples of the different forms. In contrast to the collective spirit of official Soviet society, the author points out the individualism and democratic culture that characterized rock zine production during the Soviet period. Yoffe’s SLAVIC & EAST EUROPEAN INFORMATION RESOURCES 2021, VOL. 22, NOS. 3–4, 259–262 https://doi.org/10.1080/15228886.2021.2031626