bristle magazine - statement from the collective

bristol | media and culture | press release Thursday December 13, 2007 21:58 by bristle - bristle collective bristle at riseup dot net

Whilst the comrades at Bath Bomb are jumping the gun a bit by declaring ‘Bristle R.I.P’ (see http://www.bristol.indymedia.org/newswire.php?story_id=27157), the bristle Collective, publishers of bristle magazine, would like to advise activists, readers and Indymedia users of the following:

A statement from the bristle Collective

Before the Bristolian news-sheet came and went, before Bristol Indymedia was conceived, before the internet was a daily (hourly) part of your lives, and before anybody & nobody had their personal blog, there was bristle magazine

Bristle no.1 - 1997

What started as a cut’n’paste A4 photocopied & folded freesheet (see image), in times of hope and high activity when the Tories were beaten and we were reclaiming those streets, developed into a 2 or more colour magazine of between 24 and 40 pages. From a copied run of 50 to a professional print-run and sales of 1200, although normally half that, bristle evolved through the years. But its aim always remained the same: to give a space and a voice in Bristol & the south west to those shut out from the corporate media-mainstream of ads and bullshit. To be a publication written by activists that would try to reach out beyond the activist scenes to combat the misinformation of governments and capital.

Some 10 years and 24 issues (plus a book, various free-sheets, t-shirts, stickers etc) later that task remains as valid and vital as ever, in fact more so! But for now bristle magazine is dormant. The continued departure over the last 2 years of long-term collective members, and contributors, has not been countered by sufficient new people. We have had some interested new people, but their involvement, and usually their stay in Bristol, has not been permanent.

Sadly therefore, the remaining few collective members, who are all deeply involved in other projects too, have decided to take a long term break and suspend publication of the magazine. We would like to thank all those who have contributed in any way to the magazine over the years, and send our love and solidarity to all those continuing to struggle for a free and better world. We look forwards to seeing you behind the barricade of your choosing, be it wielding a pen, a spray can, or something a little heavier.

For now we are looking into other possible initiatives involving print media and the machinery needed. We would be interested to hear from anybody considering publishing alternative print media. Indeed if you have the time, energy, skills (research, writing, dtp, distro, art & cartoons, editing etc) and longish-term commitment we could be persuaded to relaunch bristle! Whilst we have closed the old bristle website & email, we can still be contacted c/o 14 Robertson Rd, Bristol BS5 6JY, or email bristle@riseup.net

Salud!