Analysis of excisting media texts: We love pop Front cover

We love pop is a music magazine featuring artists from the genre of pop it is aimed at a female teenage readership between the ages of 13-15.

As shown in the masthead we love pop features, gossip, fashion and boys, this attracts the target audience as it reflects aspects of their life styles that they seek more information on. The we love pop masthead is slanted given it an edgy unconventional look, reflecting it’s a new magazine and is aimed at a younger audience. However it maintains conventions by staying on the left-hand side using the same font style each issue however changing colour accordingly to the colour scheme. The slogan of ‘Don’t bore us. Get to the chorus’ reflects the magazine’s and target audience’s fun and youthful attitude. The puff above the masthead of ‘Brand new magazine’ is placed there to draw attention to the fact that this is the first issue of we love pop.

A second puff of ‘World exclusive’ is used to make the target audience feel they are especially receiving gossip from Tulisa. “Tulisa” is in capitals in an uppercase font to draw attention to the fact she is the main sell line, ‘Tears, Strepsils and Tesco! The X factor star keeps it real’ the down to earth attitude of Tulisa attracts the T.A as they are able to relate to her. In the main Image of Tulisa she is posing with a small pug dog and wearing a sequined embellished playsuit she is looking straight into the camera lens and laughing, although she appears glamorous she still looks approachable and friendly and is smiling at the camera, the T.A will admire her for not only her sense of style but for her attitude and outlook on life.

Furthermore smaller related images of Pixie Lott, Fearne Cotton and Selena Gomez relating to the sell line “Star style at purse friendly prices” will attract the T.A as they are the T.A’s style icons. Because of the age group the T.A fall into they are likely to have a budget on the clothes they can buy, the sell-line will attract them as it fulfils their need to keep up to date with celebrity fashion culture whilst sticking to their set budget.

The banner featured at the bottom of the page “Essential Wall Candy” uses language the T.A will relate to and features a sneak preview of the posters inside of the pop icons the T.A admire and aspire to be like.

The sell line of “Glee: we’ll throw rocks at the new cast members” will attract the target audience as its controversial that the cast would act in this way, this entices the reader to find out more about the gossip feature one of the target audience interests.

The sell line of “Breakfast with Biber (in his boxers) nom nom plus a ton of reem boys JLS, The wanted, One direction, Olly murs, Joey Essex” will attract the reader as it fulfils their interest in boys, also the way in which the magazine addresses them is informal using language such as ‘Reem’ which the target audience will relate to. The magazine communicates with them as they would communicate with a friend. The handwritten text of ‘nice!’ adds in a extra personal touch as if though the editor has written it.

Analysis of excisting media texts: Front cover analysis of NME

NME (The new musical express) it features Britpop and British indie bands, the readership is mainly made up of male’s however there is a section of female’s part of the readership. They release issues weekly and describe themselves as “the ultimate source for discovering the best new music first”.

In this issue of NME which was released on the 28^th November 2011,

NME uses the same masthead font it is always placed on the left side of the front cover this establishes it’s brand identity. This issue features Amy Winehouse as the main image, the image is a close-up shot she is looking intensely into the camera lens reflecting the serious tone of the interview, her hair and make-up is styled in her classic trademark style of a messy beehive and thick black eyeliner making her instantly recognisable her tattoo of ‘Blake’ placed on the left side of her chest is visible reflecting her rebellious side and her marriage with Blake Fielder, and the open nature of the interview where all is stripped back and revealed to the reader. This issue is following her death and leading up to the release of her album NME give an exclusive interview with the producers Mark Ronson and Saalam Remi as well as collaborator Nas on the controversy over the releasing of her album. The sell-line uses the title of ‘World-Exclusive: New album story” to lure the target audience in, by describing the story as a world exclusive it makes the target audience, feel as if they are getting a piece of sacred information only available from NME.  “AMY” is the largest piece of text on the cover, it is bold and in a scarlet red font they haven’t used Amy Winehouse’s full name as by using only her first name it creates an informal tone making it more personal to her fans. Furthermore “Inside her secret studio sessions” lets the reader of NME feel like they’re in on the real story about her the making of her new album, it makes them feel like they are being let in on the “secret”, implying that information about Amy Winehouse has been concealed making the reader eager to read on and find out what the “secret” is. The sell-line of “+Free classic Amy Posters” relates to the main sell-line it attracts the reader as following her death the ‘classic’ poster’s are seen as a piece of collectible fan memorabilia.  The strap line featured “ Kasabian Vs Bombay Hotel Vs Noel Vs Monkeys Vs Vaccines! NME awards voting is go! Have your say” this attracts the T.A as it allows them to voice their opinion on which bands have their support. Other sell line’s that may draw in the T.A are “Vampire Weekend New Album Revealed” this will entice the T.A in as they have been anticipating the release of this album and by using the word ‘Revealed’ it implies information about the album has been hidden until now. The sell line of “David Cameron is sinister Example mouths off” this reflects the T.A’s rebellious but honest attitude, this will attract the T.A as they can relate to the feature as they share the same political outlook.

Harmony magazine: Target audience profile

My Target audience are female’s between the ages of 16-18 they are students currently studying subjects in a creative field which would enable them to pursue a career in the creative field. She is single as she enjoys her freedom and does not like to be tied down. She has a fun daring personality she is never afraid to try things in life. She is down-to-earth the girl who all her friends go to for advice. She is very ambitious with big aspirations for success in the future. She is positive and has tons of energy and ideas that she puts into her work. She is extremely passionate about music and lives and breathes pop culture. Her philosophy on life is you only get what you give, so she always give her best.

In her spare time she enjoys listening to music and visiting gigs. She is a party animal and has many nights out socialising with her friends. She also has a love for style and fashion and is conscious of what she wear’s, she loves to be creative with clothes and tries to keep up with trends; whilst adding her own edgy personal twist. She enjoys taking inspiration from the catwalk and look books. She enjoys and gets a real buzz out of retail therapy. She keeps fit and healthy by visiting her local gym at least once a week, and enjoys taking part in dance classes.

One of their favourite artists is Jessie J as she is one of the rising female British artists. She is role model to the target audience as she is confident and self-assured she knows who she is and what she wants. She has come a long way from her days at Brit school and has accomplished so much and she is only in the early stages of her career. Her lyrics are inspiring and deliver a message to her fans, her sense of style is original and she has her own signature look which she is happy in. She likes a range of music, mainly pop, but she also likes other genres, mainly current music.

She also enjoys watching films her favourite genres are comedies, chick flicks and action films. She is a avid technology user she uses the internet daily she enjoys watching music clips on you tube, she also has her own blog sharing her views on the current music industry, she uses social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date with her friends and family.   

.

Harmony would also act as a place to communicate with music fans alike, gain inspiration for their own creative work, receive the latest information on what is happening in the music industry, and much more.

 

Harmony Magazine: Mission Statement

The name of my Music magazine is Harmony, the name is inspired by the literal meaning of Harmony ‘the way a piece of music is constructed’. Harmony is a Pop magazine aimed at females between the ages of 15-18 the magazine will be distributed monthly, and will be available from all major newsagents and supermarkets. The magazine will also have online content and will be available in a downloadable format to the I-pad as the T.A are part of the technology generation. The magazine will cost approximately £2:50 an affordable price for the T.A who mainly consists of students, It is within the same price range as similar magazines existing on the market.

The magazine features will be divided into 8 main sections, each reflecting the interests of the T.A these will feature as follows: My Harmony (This section showcases the readers own talents and gives them the opportunity to promote themselves through the magazine), Artist exclusive (Harmony takes the T.A’s current idol and gives an exclusive interview giving a insight into their life and career in the industry), Gig and Album review(Harmony will review and rate the months latest music releases and events), The chart (This section will feature the bestselling singles of the month), Gossip(This is a general gossip section about music artists and their plans), Fashion(Harmony will advise the T.A in the months top trends), Career(This section gives tips about the music industry and will feature a person who works within the industry whether behind the scenes or upfront for example music video producer) Fan Mail(This allows the readers to submit e-mails about their thoughts on Harmony and any of the artists or articles it has featured allowing the readers to discuss and connect with each other).

Harmony promises to deliver each issue packed with inspiration and help for new artists, it acts as a new place to showcase their music, as well as being inspired by others. Harmony gives their readers the latest gossip and music entertainment news for music fans, with the latest gigs and album reviews of all their favourite artists. As the magazine is aimed at a female audience It will also focus on fashion, and the latest trends featured by their favourite music idols, reflecting the pop culture. It gives their readers a place to share their views on what is currently happening in the music industry and interact with others.

Harmony believes everybody should have the right to music, and women of all backgrounds, should be able to express their passion and love for music, The magazine values new talent and new music and works at giving young people an opportunity to share their talent, as well as giving a realistic insight into what it is like to work in the music industry. Moreover through Harmony readers can discuss what they think of the current music industry helping to shape and mould the next generation of stars. The magazine’s style is original, inspirational, quirky, youthful and modern.

The typical reader of Harmony is a teenage girl, who has a passion for music she is ambitious and aspires to be like her idols. As well as performing her own music, she loves listening to others music and being inspired. She has her own unique style and although she follows fashions, she dresses with her own quirky edge. She lives and breathes pop culture.

Evaluation: Preliminary task

Evaluation: Preliminary Task

In my Pre-liminary task I had to create 2 pieces of media text for a student magazine, I firstly had to create a target audience profile to determine the type of student my magazine would be aimed at, I then created a mission statement outlining what my magazines, values and aims are and what each issue promises to deliver. Following this I took some shots of my model and selected my favourite image, I made a mock up of what I wanted my front cover to look like, I then created my actual front cover and contents page using Adobe Photoshop cs5.

My magazine’s front cover follows the basic conventions of magazines, such as the masthead “Educating” at the top of the cover and the placement of the sell-lines, the dateline and puff follow the basic layout conventions. However although my image follows the convention of being a medium close up, I have used the props of earphones and a book, to indicate that the magazine is educational, but also takes the students lifestyle into account.

I have tried to give “Educating” a symbiotic link between the front cover and the contents page by using a similar theme. I created a theme by the use of fonts I have used the same font of ‘beer’ for the title of ‘October’ and the sell-lines on the front cover of my magazine as well as the banner of the main sell line ‘Business studies special advice from Alan Sugar’ I have also stuck to a colour theme of a burnt red which reflects the month. Furthermore the main image has background scenery of nature and leaves, I have continued this into the contents page by using an image of leaves along the side of the page, linking back to cover.

I have tried to reflect my target audience through my image and sell lines; they set the tone of the magazine and show it is not completely formal. The magazine aims to not only inform the reader it is also there to entertain the target audience. The cover of “Educating” sell lines reflect the target audience interests such as “Fall fashion style tips and tricks” it also covers social aspects of students lives such as “Beat the bullies”. This refers to Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs the theory that we as humans to be happy need to fulfil these needs. The sell line of “Beat the bullies” can help improve the readers feelings of safety, furthermore it may help their need for belonging as if they are confident and not intimidated by bullies they can live their life freely, moreover it will help raise their overall self-esteem helping improve their self-concept.

I have tried to keep my front cover balanced so it is equally aimed at women and men. I have tried to keep the colour scheme of burnt red and black unisex. Although my cover-model is male, I have also tried to include sell-lines particularly aimed at women such as “Prom planning for your dress”.

One of the strengths of my two pieces is the image used, as it reflects the overall tone of the magazine informative and entertaining. Furthermore the imagery reflects the time period and is relevant to sell lines such as “fall fashion tips and tricks”.  Strength is the sell-line used they are relevant to the target audience and will help fulfil their social needs.

However some areas which I would improve/change are the font used for the sell-lines as some of the sell-lines are difficult to read as they seem to blend into the background. Moreover I would also change the font used on my contents page which is used to head and list the sections of the magazine as it breaks the continuity between the front cover and contents page slightly, Instead I would use the same font for the sell-line’s and contents page list, and the same font for the masthead and the issue month. In addition to this I would edit the spelling error made on my banner of “Business studies special...” to “Business studies special...” .

To conclude, the pre-liminary task has taught me that I need to work harder on creating a symbiotic link between my front cover and contents page as this has a influence on my magazine’s brand identity and how recognisable it is to the reader. I also need to be careful of careless spelling errors, I must proof-read all my work.

Pre-liminary Task: Contents Page

Pre-liminary task: Front Cover

Pre-liminary Task: Mission Statement

My magazine is called Educating, it is a student magazine aimed at sixth-formers. The style is informal as it is acting as a form of friendly advice. The magazine values education as “Knowledge is power and opportunity”, they believe that every young person has the right to an education. They aim to help their readers balance their social lives with their academic lives letting them live life to the full whilst reaching their full potential. It will be distributed monthly for free, and can be found located in the school common room. Educating promises to deliver the guidance needed for all sixth-form students. Educating will help year 12’s understand how to cope with their first year of sixth-form and how to adjust to the new work load. It will help year 13 students to plan where they will be heading next and will provide careers and university advice. Educating will also discuss social issues outside of school, on how students can improve their social lives, this links into Maslow’s Hireachy of Need’s, it will meet the readers needs of social needs and esteem needs. To conclude Educating will have a positive effect on its readers leaving them feeling confident and able to achieve their goals and aspire to work to their best and achieve their best.

Pre-liminary Task: Target Audience Profile

    Target Audience Profile

Age: 16-18

Gender: Male & Female

Professional Status: Student

Hobbies & Interests: Sports, Fashion, Music, Socialising.

Values & Attitudes: They enjoy school they are hard working and aim to achieve the best they can in order to achieve their future dreams and aspirations.

Needs: They need advice and guidance on how to balance their social life with their school life, on how to get to the next step of university or a career.

They will use Educating as a guide to surviving sixth-form and fulfilling their talents to reach their goals.