After creating my magazine I decided to complete a textual analysis to show my reasons behind my ideas. My magazine is called Burst and is published fortnightly. We decided to create Burst as it is a similar magazine to Smash Hits which is no longer being published; therefore there is a gap in the market. After research into different institutions from our previous textual analyses we decided that EMAP would be the institution that would publish our magazine. This is because they published Smash Hits and our magazine is similar to Smash Hits.
The median of the magazine is print which is in a style of a magazine. The ideologies are to enjoy yourself, love music and be fashionable. This is conveyed by our use of bright colours and referring to music and fashion. The genre of our magazine is pop music which is shown through using pop artists and giving our magazine a bright and bubbly feel. The representation of the magazine is friendly and cheerful; we have represented our audience by the use of colour, language and photographs. The codes and conventions of our magazine also helps represent our target audience as it is obvious it is for a younger market. After research into audiences through a questionnaire we decided to create a magazine for 11-14 year old girls as there was a gap in the market for a music magazine relating to that particular target audience. We also analysed a magazine for different target audiences to discover what particular codes and conventions to use. The narrative of our magazine is informal and friendly language so our audience could understand and relate to our magazine. We looked into the language that our target market uses so we could adapt to it, such as shortening words.
The front cover of Burst is very noticeable as the colours are bright and bold. The masthead automatically catches the reader’s eye as it is large, bold and a bright coloured pink. The colour pink also helps to relate to our target audience as it is most 11-14 year old girls favourite colour. The tagline reads ‘keep in tune with burst!!!’ It is very bold so it stands out and is in the same colour as the masthead. The tagline also shows that it is a music magazine through the word ‘tune,’ therefore consumers will understand what sort if information they will receive from the magazine. On the left hand side is information regarding the issue number, date and price. The bar code has been placed in the bottom left hand corner so it is quick and easy to scan during purchase; it is also in the same area as the other Burst magazines. It is written in much smaller font than the rest because it isn’t used as a main hook to entice the public into buying the magazine as they would be more interested in the cover stories. The main image is what customers will view next as it is very large and bold on the page. It is a medium close up and the model is wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans as it creates a soft image for my target audience. He is older than my target audience as he would be a suitable role model for them. He is wearing glasses because it shows he has a high celebrity status and it looks cool. He has a guitar strapped on his back to show that he is a music artist which also helps convey that the magazine is a music magazine. The name of the artist Chad is written in a completely different font so that his name stands out and shows how important he is, the orange colour contrasts against the white t-shirt, therefore his name stands out even more. I decided to use a celebrity as a main cover story on the front because from my questionnaire people were more influenced by the celebrity. From my textual analysis of a real magazine I felt that by referring to my interviews as exclusive it will raise the magazines status and show that readers will receive a quality magazine. Therefore underneath his name I included in pink font ‘exclusive interview.’
I have placed another picture of my main artist playing the guitar to show that he is a music star and it shows he is concentrating on playing the instrument which shows his passion. The second image is in a different location and emphasizes how important he is in the issue by the use of two different photographs. I have also placed an iconic photograph which is of the NOW 49 album, this helps raise the status of my magazine as it shows it is professional and uses well known brands.
I have placed a second hook on the top of the magazine which reads ‘Free gift!! A CD mixed with fab songs!’ By using many exclamation marks it emphasizes the gift and the CD also influences the readers that it is a music magazine. Although not many people said in my questionnaire that a free gift would entice them to buy the magazine, I decided to use one because I felt it would help because people normally enjoy receiving free gifts.
The other cover stories are written in bright colours that are used through out the magazine to create a house style. They are written in bold font so they stand out. Some story lines are written smaller than others because the larger ones are more important. I emphasized some words such as ‘great NEW tunes’ and ‘real YOU!’ I did this because these words would influence the reader to buy the magazine and by underlining ‘you’ it is directly contacting the audience so they feel more involved in the magazine. Some cover stories are written in shapes so they stand out and present the magazine in an interesting, different and exciting way.
Following my analysis of my front cover I will now look at the contents page. At the top of the page is a huge arrow pointing to the next page in the magazine, this influences the customer to carry on reading the magazine. We have also used eyes which has replaced the letters ‘o’ in look. We did this because we felt it would create a quirky and fun style and it emphasizes that the magazine is written for a younger audience. The masthead our front page is in the top left hand corner to create a code and convention as it is used on everyone’s magazine pages. It also reminds the consumer that they are reading Burst. We have included an editor’s letter as most magazines use this, especially ones for our target audience. The heart and title ‘Hey sweetie’ provides a personal and friendly feel. In all the Burst magazines, the editor’s letter is written in a handwriting font as it gives a personal impression on the magazine. We have also signed it with our names and included an ‘X,’ this also adds to the personal touch. We each included a photograph of ourselves which was taken by another member of the group, the photograph is in an office setting and shows the editor writing the magazine, the editor is smiling so she looks friendly. Next to the editors letter is the cover stories section which shows where you will find the cover stories in the magazine. A print preview of the magazine has been used instead of text because it looks interesting and is clear to see. This idea was used because it is similar to other magazines that are for the same target audience.
The other stories in the magazine can be found under the title ‘plus tons more.’ The stories are placed into four different sections which are ‘celeb central, music meltdown, style secrets and the regulars.’ The titles are in a different and large font so they stand out well on the page. We have also added a section called ‘the pop factor’ which is refers to music pages and has a brief explanation about what you will find on that page. We decided that our magazine will have 80 pages as it is a national magazine and national magazines normally have a large amount of pages.
At the bottom of the magazine is a subscription note to Burst. We have used this as a hook because it will influence the readers to buy the magazine as by joining up they will save money. I have written my subscription note in a green background so it stands out against the white background. We have added in pictures of the other pages front pages to show readers the other issues.
We have used a plain white background as the rest is in bright colour and we did not want to draw attention away from the text. Also from our research we noticed that normally the contents page in the magazines also have white backgrounds. We didn’t include many photos because we did not want to draw attention away from the text which is the most important as the contents page is where readers will find the other pages.
Lastly I will analyse my double page spread which is an interview that regards the music artist on the front of the magazine. The first thing the reader will notice is the large photograph of my model. It is a close up photograph and the model is eye level with the reader so they can relate to him. He is also looking straight at the reader so they feel more involved in the photograph and it is a very intimate photo. He is wearing a light grey jumper which contrasts against the brown background so he stands out. In the top left corner is the masthead of the front cover which is used as a code and convention throughout the magazine. At the bottom of the large photograph is information about the interview so the readers know what will be included. It is written in purple font which is the same purple as the front cover to create a house style. Some text in the box is larger than the rest as it emphasises the words and stands out for those that skim read. In the left hand corner is the page number and the website address of burst. I have included a photograph of the model posing with his guitar next to the text, this is an intimate photo as it shows him doing what he loves, and he is smiling to create a friendly atmosphere.
There are other photos which show the star playing football in a different location to the other photographs. The photographs are medium long shot to show the scene he is in. As the celebrity is a role model to the young views it emphasises the ideology that you should be fit and active by playing sports, he is smiling which shows he is enjoying himself; this will help encourage readers to do the same.
From my research I found that most double page spreads include a quote from the interview in large font to influence customers to read the text. Therefore at the top I included the quote ‘Big Ben is awesome,’ the text is in large bright coloured font so it stands out. Throughout the interview I have placed the questions in a purple font and the answers in an orange font; this shows the reader who is talking. I also placed stars next to each question to create an interesting, exciting and young feel to the interview. At the end of the interview I wrote the name of the album and when it will be released as most magazines that I analysed also do this.
As it is a music magazine I included reviews of a band and a different solo artist. The language is very chatty and informal which is understandable for my target audience. This would influence readers to buy their music as I gave them a high rating. The page is very colourful as I used a turquoise faded background and bright coloured font to relate to my young audience.
In conclusion from analysing my own music magazine I have understood the codes and conventions used and the house style that we have created to make our magazine look professional like other magazines. We used the same layout in our magazine as we felt a house style is very important in making our magazine look recognisable. We used ideas from other magazines and developed them in our magazine. I feel that our magazine is very professional and we have effectively achieved our aim for our magazine and it relates well to our target audience.
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