2. I think males around the age 25-35 would be the
target audience for this magazine due to the straight
forward mode of address and font used. The typical
rock fans would be males with long hair who have a
less groomed appearance, similar to the idols on the
front cover. The colours are dark; black and gold that
resemble sophistication as well as masculinity. The
layout is to the point and organised to reinforce the
idea that males like things simple with no detailed
information to draw their attention. Reinforcing this
idea, there are no other images that anchor the text of
the puffs except the main image.

3. The typical target audience for this magazine would be into the good old
fashioned rock that was on in the older generation when these rock
bands were at their best; not the latest more stylised rock. They like
going to Rock festivals with a small group of friends to enjoy the 60-70’s
jams. They manage a small business company but enjoy Classic Rock
in their spare time to escape and fantasize about the life of the rock star
they always wanted to be when they were younger and played an
instrument. They spend time going to music stores to buy the CD’s and
even DVD’s of the concerts to add to their collections, spending money
on the real music and not downloading it on the computer. They drive a
motorcycle and own a leather jacket inspired by their favourite rock artist
to make them have that ‘tough’ appearance that is reinforced with the
simple tattoos up their arm.

4. Many conventions of Rock are being conveyed such as the
stereotypical image of a care-free idol with long scruffy hair that
hasn’t been stylised or groomed to ‘perfection’. The colours are
dark with a heavy font to resemble the strong base/beats of
music. The font of ‘Aerosmith’ is gothic and similar to those of
tattoo fonts that are another convention of rock stars. On the
cover and possibly featuring inside the magazine is language that
isn’t necessarily censored, this is a connotation of Rock music as
the artists stereotypically do drugs, crash hotels and are
‘breaking the rules’. For this reason the magazine is for an older
target audience and would not be suitable or safe for families
with younger children.

5. The house style of this magazine is continued
throughout the magazine as well as each issue.
The red, black and soft beige are repeated so
create a house style of darker colours which is
stereotypical for the male gender. The masthead
‘Classic Rock’ font is also a house font as it is
used various amount of times so the magazine is
a well known brand as it is easily recognisable by
the audience in each issue.

6. These two magazines have many differences such as the
stylised outfits that feature on the front cover. On TOTP Britney
Spears has been stylised in purple with a floral necklace to show
off her femininity that reinforces her as a young, white and
beautiful star that is classed as ‘perfect’. The small smile on her
face is strengthened with her pose to convey confidence that the
asymmetrical dress reinforces. The girly outfit appeals completely
to the younger female generation. Juxtaposed to this, the Classic
Rock idol has been stylised but in a more relaxed and scruffy
way to convey a care-free appearance that is a convention of the
rock genre. Being topless along with his arm-wide pose
reinforces this idea of being care-free and also shows that he is
just embracing the music.
The similarities between the mise-en-scene in these two
magazines would be the plain and simple background that is a
soft neutral tone, therefore drawing your attention to focus on the
main image only with no distracting pattern or images behind.

7. The layout of TOTP is similar against the Classic Rock magazine as they are both quite simple.
As the audience for TOTP magazine is for younger females, the cover consists more of images
as the brighter colours and graphics make the appearance more exciting and appealing for the
audience. The Classic Rock cover is more sophisticated as the target audience is for older males
who are interested in short and to the point text. The layout itself is quite similar as the main story
headline is large and placed with the main graphic to draw attention to it easily.
The style of language contrasts strongly with these two magazine covers as the TOTP magazine
constantly uses explanation points and buzz words such as ‘FREE!’ and ‘PLUS!’ whereas the
language on the Classic Rock cover is simple in short sentences that don’t contain buzz words.
The buzz words for the younger generation make it more exciting, that is emphasised with the
bright colours to fit the mood and draw attention. The language on TOTP is friendly and informal
to make it come across comforting and not intimidating to the younger readers. Due to the
institution of the magazine being the BBC, it is immediately known to the audience that it is safe
with no explicit language, this is a plus for parents to know that their children are reading suitable
language and could lead to more buys of the magazine. This is actually shown on the cover with
a puff that reads ‘Another [BLEEP]-ing Eminem interview’. The language of the Classic Rock
cover however doesn’t contain explicit language but could inside or throughout the magazine as
one of the main headlines reads ‘death, drugs and dinner with Jimmy Page’. This is an insight to
the articles inside that may not include explicit language, but the articles themselves could be
about negative things such as drugs. It reinforces that the audience is for the older generation
who are rock fans as drugs is a well known connotation of the rock music genre.

8. There are many pop music genre conventions on the TOTP front cover. One of these is the colour
scheme, the purples and pinks with a touch of striking yellow is all very bold and bright to resemble the
‘happy’ and ‘cheerful’ pop genre. The idol of Britney Spears is chosen as she fits the young, beautiful
and white theory that is used on pop and mainstream magazines to show ‘perfection’. She has been
stylised so her appearance is well groomed and neat, also most likely to be wearing the latest clothing
and accessories to appeal to the female readers. At the time, she would have been one of the favourite
female pop stars so is used on the front cover so appeal to the younger female audience who are
inspired and want to be like her. Having a female on the cover also shows girl power which is reinforced
with her pose and fashion to show confidence, what every girl wants to have. Lots of images and other
graphics are used to anchor the puffs that are made exciting with buzz words. Another convention would
be the features about other pop artists, such as Eminem, promoting their brands and music with
interviews.
Classic Rock shows many signs of music genre conventions such as the main image being of a well
known famous rock singer from ‘Aerosmith’. He is shown as he is part of one of the longest and best
rock bands from their generation, inspiring many rock fans. He is styled so he is topless with baggy
jeans and rough boots, along with his untidy long hair and male jewellery so he isn’t seen as perfectly
groomed like the pop magazine. This is because rock is more carefree with head banging and the crazy
rock life of ‘sex, drugs and rock and roll’. The colours are strong and dark to appeal to the male
audience with a hint of red that could be a connotation of danger that fits in with the rock life.
However, because it is classic rock the colours are also quite bleak with the soft beige to almost calm it
down a bit and bring it back to when rock was simply rock without the exaggerated stylised bands; this
could also be resembled with having his top off. The front cover also shows features of other rock
artists such as Jimmy Page and Ronnie Wood, to tie in with the rock theme. The ‘high voltage rock ‘n’
roll’ is in black to show bold power and to relate to the loud music.

9. The music artist on the TOTP front cover is Britney Spears.
This is because she was one of the most famous and well
known female artists of her time so is shown as the audience
of younger females idolise her and aspire to have the life she
does. They would be interested in reading about her to find
out the latest gossip and also to see what she is wearing. She
is also classed as young, beautiful and white to show
‘perfection’ and her confidence appeals to the younger female
generation as that is what they want to be like.
The Classic Rock magazine shows the singer from Aerosmith.
This is the perfect artist for classic rock as they are still playing
and have been around for a long time. This therefore appeals
to the target audience of older males as they want the same
wealth and fame as they have.

10. The special features on the TOTP magazine would include the
free pop badges to persuade you to buy the magazine, as well as
the ‘Plus! Look whose being interrogated’ article to make it feel
exclusive and that you are the only one who will know this piece
of gossip.
The special features of Classic Rock would be the free CD that is
shown brightly in yellow to draw attention from the audience,
persuading them to buy the magazine. A special and very
different article on this magazine would be the main headline of
‘our weekend with Aerosmith’, showing that it isn’t just a regular
interview that many competitor magazines contain, but a whole
weekend with the band. This means it is more likely to contain a
lot more interesting content and would create a better
relationship with the readers as they almost feel as if they have
been on this weekend with the band too.

11. The house style is conveyed continuously throughout
the magazine so nothing is unexpected and clashing.
It makes it feel more comfortable and also
recognisable for each issue so the reader knows what
to look for. Another technique would be showing the
best articles on the front cover in puffs so the
audience want to look through the magazine to read
and find them.

12. On the TOTP magazine, one of the puffs reads ‘win a
call from your favourite pop star!’, this is creating a
direct mode of address to the young audience of the
magazine. There is an exaggeration on the ‘your’ to
make it more personal to each reader as if they are
speaking directly to you.