E-Zine for GenXers
Weekly subscription-based email newsletter is geared toward ‘forgotten generation,’ including younger Boomers and older Millennials.
A Smyrna Jewish couple recently helped launch a weekly GenX e-zine for members of their peer group. The Fast Times, thefasttimes.net, is a subscription-based email newsletter series targeting GenX and its periphery: younger Boomers and older Millennials, “or as we like to say: GenXers and wannabes,” according to Karen (Barnett) Denker. The third-generation Atlantan co-founded the publication with her husband Steve, and another Atlanta couple.
“At its core, the e-zine explores GenX culture and interests through a modern lens, offering a GenX take on topics, trends and issues that impact our peer group, but with a nostalgic twist and often a bit of smart snark,” Karen Denker said.
“The catalyst for the newsletter was to create something fun and informative for the often ‘forgotten generation. As many GenXers near (or sail past) the big 5-0, we thought, there has to be something that is more exciting than getting an AARP card in the mail, especially when we are literally decades from retirement.”
The e-zine comes out every Friday with a few core sections within each issue. Among those: topics in the “We Got the Beat” section include the #CancelCulture, ’80s tech bouncing back and Twitch gamers “as the new arcade heroes,” she said.
The “Parents Just Don’t Understand” section is “devoted to explaining and breaking down terms and topics popularized by today’s youth … so we know that Gucci is not only a brand, but also an adjective that means cool or awesome.”
“Video Killed the Radio Star” highlights a different iconic music video each week, “especially the ones that were truly groundbreaking, like ‘Kids in America,’ … Each video is paired with facts and a link to relive the experience, just like in the old MTV days,” Denker said.
“Every Monday we drop bonus content via a second e-blast entitled ‘The Mixtape,’” she added. “Each issue has a curated grab-bag of links to everything ranging from film and TV to podcasts and books we think are great. This is a play on the actual mixed tapes we used to make ourselves as teenagers, waiting for a particular song to come on the radio, recording it on our own ‘boom boxes,’ and hoping that the DJ didn’t talk over our favorite song.”
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