Assorted Industry Plaudits
PC Magazine named Flak as one of its Top 100 Undiscovered Sites in Feb. 2003.
"Independently-minded commentary on arts and the media..."
– Entertainment Weekly, naming Flak one of its favorite indie sites
"Congratulations! Flak has been nominated for a 2002 Utne Independent Press Award in the Online Cultural Coverage category! ... We're proud to honor you as one of 'the best of the independent press.'"
– Utne Reader
– Kevin Guilfoile, author of "My First Presidentiary"
"Lamenting the demise of Feed and Suck? Check out Flak for sharp writing and cultural commentary. Its staff works for free, so no one's getting laid off any time soon. Probably."
– shift magazine, the shiftlist
"There's nothing better than sitting in your computer chair on a cool night, with a roaring fire going somewhere in the house, and reading a good e-zine. Calling itself a "noncomprehensive guide to everything," Flak Magazine lives up to the billing."
– The Houston Chronicle
"A great place to check for reviews of music, movies, books, websites and anything else. They've got reviews of the best stuff."
– Chad Kempfert, About.com (Alternative Music)
Hear Sean Weitner and Andy Ross interviewed by Wisconsin Public Radio about their audio commentary for Mulholland Drive.
"...Flak Magazine [is] a highly regarded Web site devoted to cultural criticism."
– Detroit Free Press
"There seems to be no end to the amusement upon first discovering Flak Magazine."
– Stumpshaker.com
"Jacqueline Reeves (2003) believes that all of the national and international attention to weblogs and online magazines leads back to the search for a personal voice in a public arena. Online magazines such as the Morning News and Flak Magazine get 162,500 and 100,000 unique individual visitors per month respectively (ibid.). Those personal voices are not, however, simply the external manifestations of interiorized existence; they are, as Walter Ong argues, the beginning of civilization. In his words (1981: 199), "When in the series of anthropoids and prehominids, some beings appeared who were capable of the reflective self possession expressed in the saying of 'I,' at whatever point they did so, the leap into human existence had clearly taken place." Voice, yes, flows from self, from the expressive "I," but, if understood and taken into account by others, it flows into a symbolically constituted "we." At that point, the "I" becomes an auctor. In this understanding of self-society relationships, no one can assume the "I" of another."
– Paper by Professor Bruce E. Gronbeck, Director of the University of Iowa Center for Media Studies and Political Culture
"My latest hobby: scanning Flak magazine's 'Misc' section for teeny,
thoughtful essays on things like pineapple on hamburgers, see-saws, nougat,
and Thomas Kinkade, Painter of Light. The rest of Flak is just as good. I
may have to spend a lot more time there, now that Salon kind of sucks."
– Scrubbles.net
"In keeping with the theme of yesterday's Glamorous Life entry, we visited Flak Magazine because Flak reviewed our Ad Graveyard. We stayed because Flak turns out to be a well-written, non-profit indie zine. (Plus, let's face it, those menu bar effects are sweet.) Flak even managed to score a John Waters interview. We like."
– Jeffrey Zeldman, Zeldman.com
"Independent publishing remains pure only when money has been taken out of the equation. Flak has succeeded masterfully under these confines. Why? It's for the love of criticism, camaraderie and most importantly, writing."
– Matt Rodbard, The Badger Herald
"Flak bills itself as the noncomprehensive guide to everything, and its review section is eclectic enough to keep the world film fan interested."
– Jurgen Fauth, About.com (World Film)
"... Outro dia vi uma revista bacana, a Flak."
– Penelópe Cotrim Nova, MTV Brasil
"... that bastion of hard-rockin' rockingness, Flak Magazine..."
– The Just So Review
"What holds [the Best-Of lists] together is Flak's journalistic professionalism — they are sagely constructed and well thought out, the sort of thing that is uncommon in DIY publications and largely forgotten in major publications."
— Erick Bieritz, interstate zine.com
"Popularidad creciente para un buen número de revistas online, de las que The Morning News, Flak Magazine y Opium Magazine son brillantes exponentes. Se piensa que los usuarios de este tipo de medios buscan, sobre todo, una voz personal."
— El Confidencial Digital
"Flak Magazine is the Internet's HOTTEST NEW SITE!"
— David Manning, The Ridgefield Press
"I acknowledge here that I am 1) the last to get hip to the greatness of Flak Magazine; and 2) one of those girls who think more than they ought to about the names of their future child(ren)."
— kerplink, kerplank, kerplunk
"If you want an example of what we're shooting for, visit The Onion or Flak Magazine. The people behind these sites know how to have a good time but they also know how to produce top-notch content."
— Submission guidelines, filmfodder.com
And the kids at the University of Florida love it!
"Everyone realizes that this website is not boring or hard to understand because of the tone."
– A student
"The way in which the magazine says things, for instance 'Read it and weep, suckas,' it is obvious its aim is to attract a younger audience."
– Another student
"It seems like gender doesn't really matter to the writers. All they want to do is make people laugh."
– Another student
"College students also make the site. These students are mainly focused on humor content instead of 'dull.'"
– Another student
"The music reviews are objective, and seem adequate."
– Another student
"The [hockey-fight video review] used concrete language to get across its points. Concrete terms describe objects or actions that can be accessible to
the senses. Words, such as pen, red, and walking are just a few examples of concrete terms."
– Another student
"Considering the fact that there was a mention of the Green Party, it is safe to assume that this magazine is pretty liberal."
– Yet another student
