Tuesday 23 October 2012

Task 3: Essay

To what extent should magazines be held responsible for the social ramifications of the representations they offer?

I’ve looked on the Internet and have managed to find five magazine covers that are clearly aimed at females, specifically teenage girls. There are many conventions that show they are directed at teenage girls.

The five examples I have chosen are:

                   1. Cosmo Girl featuring Amanda Bynes
             2. Teen Vogue featuring Victoria Justice
             3. Seventeen featuring Demi Lovato
             4. Shout featuring Jessie J
             5. Bliss featuring Taylor Swift

After analysing the magazine covers I have realised there are several conventions shown in all of them, that suggests they are aimed at teenage girls. For example the models that they have used, the colour schemes they have used and the types of stories in which they have included in the magazine.

Several conventions have been used such as puffs and plugs, the colour scheme used, the masthead and tag lines each of these things are used in every front cover of a magazine.

The colour schemes used in each of these magazines are very similar. Pink is one of the main colours used in each of these magazines. Stereotypically pink is generally applied to the female population. Four out of five of the magazines i have chosen have all used pink somewhere on the magazines front cover. This suggests that it is aimed at females and they have used pink to catch the eyes of their target audience. Seventeen magazine hasn’t used pink however they have still used a soften colour, orange is still often associated with females. in contrast to the type of colour scheme that is usually associated with men which is often red, black and blue.


A main component of a magazine would be the celebrities used. All the models/celebrities are well known so they are often recognised by the teenage girls. All the celebrities used are often young females between the ages of 19-27, which makes the magazine more appealing to the younger generation of girls. Victoria Justice is the youngest out of the five celebrities featured in the magazines I have chosen. She stars in a children/teenage show called Victorious which means she would be well recognised by teenage girls. The magazines have carefully selected the celebrities that they are featuring to appeal to teenagers. They will use celebrities that have little or no bad publicity, for example Victoria Justice starts in teen shows and films, and she’s never seen doing bad things that would be a bad influence on teens because they need to select stars that are seen as role models for young girls.

The types of stories in which they are using in the magazines also show that they are directed at young teenage girls. Most teenage girls are interested in the hottest gossip, the newest fashion trends, how to get perfect hair, how to apply make-up perfectly and how to have the perfect body. Each of these magazines demonstrates stories about each of these topics. For example the stories on the front cover of Seventeen magazines are, "Hair that makes you happy" "Look pretty now! Real-girl tricks for easy makeup..." "100+ Amazing new outfits" "Your 2012 hot-body plan" All these stories are associated with the same type of things that teenage girls worry about and are constantly talking about.

 

In conclusion after analysing the magazine covers it shows that the magazines could be responsible for a lot when it comes to the representations that are presented to teenage girls and the way in which teenager girls think they should look and how they feel about themselves. The stories that are used and the models/celebrities that are used could be affecting the way in which teenage girls view themselves and how they think others view them.

 


 





 



Sunday 14 October 2012

Task 2: Magazines & Audiences - Magazine Terminology


Masthead - This is the title of the magazine, its purpose is to catch the attention of the audience making them want to buy the magazine.
Colour Scheme - The colour scheme can be used to determine whether the magazine is focused on a male or female audience. The colour scheme helps to improve the features of the magazine. The colour changes may depend on the season in which it’s released.
Numbers - Numbers are often put on the front cover of the magazine to make it seem more interesting and catch the attention of the readers. Numbers catch the attention of the audience because it could be an offer or an amount of tips the magazine could have for you.
Pull Quote - This is a quote that the magazine has taken from the main story in the magazine, giving the audience a preview.
Main Cover Line - This is ordinarily the story that has at least a two page spread; it’s usually based around the centre of the cover and could also have a different font style and size.
Main Image - The main image is usually the main celebrity featured in the magazine. Their image covers a lot of the front cover which also catches the attention of the audience.
Puff - This could be anything that’s on the magazine front cover, that isn’t text. For example some sort of pattern, maybe flowers or butterflies. They are used to enhance the look of the magazine.
Plug - This is something that is used to give a quick glance at what the magazine has to offer the audience.
Date Line - This informs the audience about which edition they are buying, telling them whether it’s an up to date issue of the magazine or not.
Bar-code - The bar-code is usually on the front cover, it is used when the magazine is being purchased in the shops.
Price - The price of the magazine is normally found near the bar-code. However in some cases it could be found in the left third especially if the price has been reduced, this is because the left third is the first thing seen when the magazines are on the shelves.
Tag Line - This is the magazines main selling point, which is used to draw attention to the magazine.
Left Third - This is the main area of the magazine, as it is the part that is seen most by the audience when in shops. You will often find that the more interesting parts of the magazine will be placed in the left third. It will also have more information placed on this part than any other.
Serif Font - This is the main text that the magazine uses to increase their chances of having a bigger audience.
Sans Serif Font – This type of front is usually used for captions on the magazine.

Saturday 13 October 2012

Task 2: Magazines & Audiences - Magazine Analysis







I've decided to analyze the February 2012 Cosmopolitan magazine. This specific edition features Kim Kardashian, the story they are covering about her is "I wont be spending Valentines alone" Cosmopolitan releases a magazine every month.

Every magazine has a specific audience in mind this is known as a niche, they are easily differentiated. Cosmopolitans main target audience ranges from young too middle-agged women. There are multiple ways in which the magazine is directed specifically at female audiences.


The masthead in this edition is purple which is usually associated with women. This implies the magazine is targeted at women. The font used is big and bold which will stand out more when set alongside other magazines on shelves in shops. The font is also all in capitals meaning it's going to catch the attention of their audience a lot easier.

 

In this edition the celebrity that have chosen to feature is Kim Kardashion which is why she is the main image on the front cover, her head also covers over the masthead. This suggests that the magazine is confident enough to know that their audience can still recognise their magazine and not decide to buy another magazine that's in competition with them. By putting her head over the masthead it will catch the attention of more people especially those who are interested in the Celebrity being shown.

Cosmopolitan seem to have done this many times with their magazine.

 

Cosmopolitan is clearly aimed at women, this is shown through many features on the front cover. For example one of the highlighted stories are ‘The 90 minute rule – Make him hot for you’. This implies that the magazine has advice for women when it comes to men, therefor it is aimed at women.

         

                                               
In addition to this there are even more tips to help women when it comes to impressing men. There is another highlighted story but this time its tips to help women look good for a date night, guaranteeing that there will be results. This again shows that it’s aimed at women because it’s giving more tips to help them with relationships and dating.

 

When reading a magazine we trust that the information given is true and if it’s tips we believe that they will work. Whereas if we were to read something on the internet we are less likely to believe what is written, this is why so many women buy these types of magazines because they believe the tips they are given will work and it’s worth trying them. When offers are given on magazines that can help women save money with beauty treatments ect they are also more likely to buy the magazine which is why a lot of magazines aimed at women will often have some sort of offer.

In conclusion it is very clear that Cosmopolitan is aimed at women as being the main target audience for the magazine. Magazines all have a specific purpose and this magazine in particular is created for help and advice for women with many different aspects of the female life and beauty racemes.

                                             

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Friday 5 October 2012

Task 1: Getting to know blogger


Now that I’ve set up my blog, my first task was to get to know how to use my blogger. After completing some research I’ve managed to gather knowledge which will enable me to use my blogger to the best of my ability. Here is a video clip showing how to start up your blogger http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryb4VPSmKuo


Things you can do with a blogger-
There are many possibilities when creating your own blogger, whether it’s for fun or for promoting a business. It allows you to post comments, videos, images and voice notes allowing you to share any information you like. There are many tools that can help you make your blogger your own by changing the designs, colours and fonts when posting on your blog. Anyone can view your blog and this allows you to receive feedback from anyone that wants to make comments.


How i think Blogger will be useful for my coursework-
By presenting my work on a blogger it allows me to have easy access to it whether I’m at home or at college. I’m also able to edit it at any time I need to during the process of completing my projects. It also gives my lecturers easy access as well, so that they can keep track of my progress and make sure I’m keeping up to date with all my work. It’s also a more creative way to present work making it more interesting.