Creating Media: Who reads magazines?

Creating Media: Who reads magazines?

Task:The X-Box magazine is a specialist computer games magazine aimed at 16-35 year old males. Look at the conventions on the front cover and how they might appeal to the target audience. Can you explain how the cover has been designed to appeal to its target audience, using media terminology?

• Aimed at 16-35 year old males (target audience)
• The use of the colour yellow fading out into a brown at the top is eye catching for the reader and makes them want to pick up the magazine. The colour yellow reflects energy, danger and mystery which intrigues the reader as the magazine looks as if it is inviting them into a different world of action and adventure. It should also be noted that this is the magazine's aim in order to get the reader to buy the video games and take them away from their lives and into the game they are playing. 
• The masthead, reading "X-BOX", is bold, clearly displayed and stands out because of the colour contrast of brown, yellow and white. Directly underneath the masthead is the strapline "The Official Magazine" which suggests to the reader that the magazine is widely-known and is the only one of its kind, making the readers want to have the magazine even more.
• The main cover line ("Far cry 5")is advertising a new game which is the focal point of the magazine's front cover because it is its selling point. This is because the target audience would be more interested in buying new games instead of old ones and the magazine is trying to simply get the reader to buy the game by advertising it in a fun, interesting way. 
• The magazine also makes references to other games through its cover lines, making you want to buy these as well by making them stand out in different fonts, colours and sizes. Clips from other video games are present at the bottom of the page in order to engage the target audience as they may recognise the graphics from the games they already own.
• The man's hand position suggests the phrase "What are you waiting for?" since his arms are open and ready for something to happen. He also has his head down looking upwards towards the reader which indicates a masculine dominating and a direct mode of address. This makes the reader think that they are already in the game by just looking at the front cover of the magazine since the man is looking at them. Certain objects are placed on the table that he is standing over such as a book which represents knowledge. 

Task: Look at the two front covers of these magazines and consider the following:

• Typograhpy (choice of font style, colour, placement)
• Use of images
• How the page is laid out to attract the eye
• The use of language- look out for special words that the reader will understand, use of informal address 'you'
• Promises connected to ideology, values and/or pleasure

Make notes and use each bullet point as a sub-heading. 

Typography 

Elle has chosen to use their signature font of Didot (Serif in nature) which compliments the polish of the front cover and stands out because of it being white in colour which contrasts against the background. The colour white suggests purity and truth. The masthead is in a different colour to everything else meaning that it is eye-catching to the reader. The colours pink and purple suggest femininity and romance which refers back to Elle's target audience of females since the French word for she is 'elle'. The placement of the masthead is behind the model meaning which indicates that the magazine's name is so iconic that it's readers know what the name of it is without seeing all the letters clearly. The cover lines are scattered across the page in different sized fonts depending on the importance of it. This makes the front cover eye-catching and different from other magazines since for example, the word "Refresh!" goes up in sized font as if it is being shouted making the front cover almost jump out at the reader. 

Use of images

Elle has used only one main image in its front cover of a female model wearing a short sleeved jumper over a stripy navy and pink top. She is also resting her arms on a basketball which appears quite quirky and different since the bright orange of the basketball jumps out because it is vibrant and contrasts all of the colours used in the front cover. The model also obscures the masthead which further emphasizes her as an image and how important she is compared to the convention of the masthead since she is in front of it. Since the model is also female this suggests once again the femininity of the magazine and the fact that she is looking at the reader implies a sense of  a direct mode of address which makes the reader feel more included and involved with the magazine. 

How the page is laid out to attract the eye

The front cover is laid out in order to attract the eye by firstly having one image meaning that there is only one main focus. Elle has kept its front cover simple and easy to look at because the whole background is just the one single image. Moreover, all of the cover lines are in the same type of font called Serif, which Elle uses consistently in each issue, and are all in the colour white scattered around the edges of the image. The barcode has been placed at the bottom left hand corner because it isn't important to making the magazine look attractive and different since every magazine has a barcode which doesn't show any individuality. Finally the word "Refresh!" goes from end to end and goes up in font size which attracts the reader's eye because it looks interesting and different as if it is being shouted. 

The use of language

The front cover has used examples of informal address such as the cover line "Wake up your lazy skin" which makes the reader feel more involved as they think that if they read the magazine they will learn more about looking after their skin. This relates to the idea of looking better if you read the magazine which is what Elle is trying to sell (beauty). The cover lines also feature different styles of clothing which would be inside the issue. This would interest the reader into buying the magazine as they want to see the images of the styles the cover lines suggest. Thus all relates back the target audience of young females as they stereotypically are interested in beauty and fashion. 

Promises connected to ideology, values and/or pleasure 

Since Elle describes its target audience as "spirited, stylish and intelligent; she expects to be successful at everything she does. She takes the lead and breaks the rules" shows that they want their readers to be confident role models. Elle tries to sell this idea by giving fashion advice and trends and beauty tips in order to interest its readers into become their 'improved' selves. For example, by trying to get it's readers to take on tips such as how to look after your skin in the morning makes them believe that they will look 'better' if they read and try the advice for themselves. This gives the readers pleasure as they think that they are getting something out of reading the magazine for themselves personally through their looks and knowledge on beauty. 

Typography
Sight and Sound has chosen to use the colours yellow and red for the masthead because they are eye-catching and stand out from the dark background. The colour red symbolises strength, power and danger and the colour yellow symbolises success and confidence which are all traits that are associated with films which is what the magazine is about. The main cover line and strapline are both white which contrasts with the dark background, makes it easy to read and catches the reader's eye. The font is thick for the main cover line because of its importance since the magazine is trying to sell the film to the target audience.The colour white depicts purity and perfection which refers back to the strapline reading "The International Film Magazine" as it suggests that this film magazine is the best in the world. The rest of the cover lines are placed at the bottom of the page in a smaller sized font. This is because they are still important to be featured on the front page as they tell you what is inside the magazine however the main feature of this magazine issue is publicising and advertising the new film "Isle of Dogs".

Use of Images
Similar to Elle's front cover, Sight and Sound have used only one main image in its front cover of Wes Anderson (who created Isle of Dogs) and all the figured he used in order to make the animation. This engages the reader because usually when watching animations, they never see the maker/s of the film so the fact that they can see them on the front cover may intrigue them to read on about the making of the film and what its about. Once again, this image would fit the target audience of 'film geeks' because not only by reading the magazine will they know about the film but also how it was made. The image also stands out because it has been put in front of a dark background which makes the image almost jump out at the reader as the colour black is so dull whereas some of the characters are wearing quite vibrant colours. This could also suggest the mood of the film as being depressing and dismal and then for example, something happens to create happiness.

How the page is laid out to attract the eye
The front cover is laid out in order to attract the eye by firstly, like Elle, having one image meaning that there is only one main focus. Sight and Sound has also kept its front cover simple and easy to look at because the whole front cover is made up of just the one single image with a dark background. Also, the front cover features multiple different colours such as red, yellow, white, pink and blue which all contrast with the dark background. This makes the masthead, cover lines and image jump out at the reader as they are all so colourful and vibrant. The masthead is placed at the top of the page in a big sized font because it is the name of the magazine. The cover lines are all placed under the image in order to separate the masthead from it and put more emphasis into the image. The barcode is placed at far left hand side of the page because, once again, its unimportant to the front cover and doesn't make it stand out from other magazines,

The use of language
The Sight and Sound doesn't use much language in its front cover because it focuses mainly on the image, There aren't any references that make the audience feel more improved (like Elle does) because it isn't that kind of magazine. The Sight and Sound only focuses on films and TV shows whereas Elle focuses on a range of different topics such as beauty and fashion. This means that The Sight and Sound magazine's main job is to advertise new releases and sell them to its audience. This issue shows the new release of this film by first introducing the maker and then the film its self using different font colours.

Promises connected to ideology, values and/or pleasure
The Sight and Sound describes its target audience as "a film buff who expects to be given intelligent information on all film releases, not just Hollywood mainstream movies". This means that by reading the magazine the target audience's knowledge would increase on film releases and the making of films in order to try and sell each film to them. The reader can also identify with the magazine because it reflects the values and their ideology through films and TV shows. Also, The Sight and Sound magazine also offers material that the reader would enjoy if they love films making the magazine relatable to its target audience as they know that they will get something out of reading the magazine whether that's just enjoyment or actually watching the film that it advertises afterwards.

Task: Copy the table below for each of the posters and begin to analyse the covers.

Elle Magazine	What is the producer communicating?	How is the producer using Media Language to communicate this?	Why might the producer have communicated this?
Text	Elle magazine is a stylish, feminine and bold magazine.	The use of the pink, elegant lettering that is tall in sans serif font.	This suggests that the consumers of Elle consider themselves, stylish, strong and independent women.
Image	The image used reflects beauty and confidence.	The front cover talks about beauty and fashion which the image shows.	This indicates that the target audience would aspire to look/be like the model and become their ‘better’ selves.
Coverlines	How to look after your skin and the latest trends.	The word “your” is an example of informal address.	This is because the reader engaged as the tips seem as if they are personal to help them.
Layout	The layout is simple but effective.	The cover lines don’t contain that much information and are straight to the point.	This implies that the readers are able to focus mainly on the image, masthead and cover lines which are the simple features of a magazine.

Sight and Sound Magazine	What is the producer communicating?	How is the producer using media language to communicate this?	Why might the producer have communicated this?
Text	Sight and Sound Magazine is an informative, bold and colourful magazine.	The use of the red and yellow and red lettering that is in a think and bold font.	This suggests that the consumers of Sight and Sound consider themselves as ‘film geeks’ who love exploring danger and mystery through films.
Image	The image used reflects mystery and knowledge.	The front cover advertises the film through its main cover line which the image shows.	This indicates that target audience would want to read about and watch the film because of the image used which creates a sense of mystery into how it was actually made.
Coverlines	What films and TV shows are going to be released soon.	By introducing the person who made the film first then the actual film afterwards.	So that the readers would know more about the films before they watched them.
Layout	The layout is simple but effective.	The front cover doesn’t contain a lot of information about the films but instead uses the image to show the audience what the film looks like.	In order to create a sense of mystery and make the reader want to pick up the magazine and buy it so they can read about the films and the making of them inside the issue.