For Junell, Webzine was a reaction to the “gold rush” of the dotcom era, which turned an “open, non-commercial medium of free expression” into “a huge, greedy strip mall.” Like zinesters, many in de pen dent web publishers saw themselves as taking a stand against homogenized corporate content, and as exercising their right to free speech as citizens of a democracy. E-zines were a way for dot-commers to express themselves creatively and celebrate the potential of the web, rather than working day jobs that were often boring and frustrating.

Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, loc. 92