2. PLAN: INITIAL IDEAS
Graphic Elements to include:
• Text (consider semantic and formal aspects of text such as
choice of font, size and colour).
• Images (consider denotations, connotations in
representation by depiction of main and secondary
images).
• Colour (consider denotation and connotations).
• Layout
• Generic conventions
• Intertextuality
Name of Magazine
(Masthead) ideas:
• The Source.
• Today’s View.
• The Informer.
• Current View.
• The Insight.
Main Feature (main cover
lines) in magazine:
• Magazine one – Relying on
students predicted grades
is a recipe for trouble.
• Magazine two – Doctors
and nurses deserve to
know if the NHS has
enough protective clothing.
What other features (cover lines) are you
including?:
• Magazine one:
- Boris Johnson: why you must stay home.
- The rise and rise of video games.
- The low price of oil will test the governments in the
Middle East and Africa.
• Magazine Two:
- We are about to find out how robust civilisation is.
- The Exploration of the Moon and Mars continues
apace.
- A hidden war threatens Ethiopia’s transition to
democracy.
Main Image? Other images?
• Include at least four original images in each of the two
magazine covers/contents pages.
• Main image on magazine one: over head shot or aerial
shot of a student surrounded with books on a desk.
• Main image on magazine two: Close up of a doctor’s
face with a mask on looking teary eyed with scars.
• Other image ideas:
- Gaming remotes?
- Someone playing on a console?
- World map?
- Someone at home in a bed?
- Someone looking through a telescope?
- Space (secondary image)?
- War? Weapons?
Codes and conventions of current affairs magazines:
• Masthead- A characteristic to the magazine that makes it
instantly recognizable and noticeable.
• Coverlines- Gives the reader an idea of what is inside the
magazine.
• Central Image- Attracts the reader before they have even
read any text.
• Date line- Informs reader of how relevant and up to date
the news is in the magazine.
• Barcode and Price.
How are you going to use those codes and
conventions to appeal to your target audience's
interests and fulfil their expectations?
• The images, text and colour used in the magazine will be
aesthetically pleasing to attract the audience.
• The layout will be clean and simple so it’s easily
understandable.
• The text will vary between serif and sans serif font so the
reader will know the importance of each topic/text.
What is your target
audience?
• 16 - 25
• Male and Female
• White collar
workers and fairly
paid pros.
• Succeeders and
reformers.
Composition of contents
page:
• Consider placement of
text, will it make sense
when reading?
• - Text will be in sections
with subheadings so that
the contents are clear to
the reader.
• Will it allow the audience
to see the image clearly?
• - Text will overlap the
image but the image will
still be visible as it will be
large.
Use of colours:
What are the main
two colours in the
image?
• Use these colours
for the text (title/
headlines)
Who is my magazine
inspired by?
• The Economist
• The Time Magazine
• Both have simple covers
3. FONT TYPES FOR MY MASTHEAD
Font types:
There are two main font types: Serif and Sans Serif.
• Serif is generally easy to read and looks traditional, it is widely used in long texts as books, articles in magazines, newspapers etc.
• Meanwhile Sans Serif is strong, bold and clear. It is also modern looking and often used for titles and headings; it’s widely used on web
designs.
Italics are used to highlight or emphasise a text, associated to quoted speeches and dialogues.
Bold is thick and is used to highlight a part of the text, often used in headings.
The conventions of a magazine front cover is that there is a masthead and cover lines. So what is
a masthead?
• A masthead is the title/logo of the magazine, it identifies the brand and is usually located in
the same place (at the top of the magazine).
So what is a coverline?
• On a magazine there are multiple cover lines, these flag up other issues/topics that the
magazine covers.
After doing research on several magazines such as The Spectator, Time etc I found that most magazines
use serif font for the masthead as it is traditional and bold therefore it stands out among the other text
making the logo memorable. However, I found that most coverlines used sans serif font type because
while it is bold and clear it does not stand out as much as serif font type as these cover lines are
important but not as important as the masthead. This research will allow me to come to a conclusion
on the font types used on my magazine covers.
4. The magazine I will produce will be a current affairs magazine, a magazine which discusses political and cultural topics from a progressive prospective. The
publishing company of my magazine ‘The Informer’ is Dennis; this company publishing many other magazines such as culture and lifestyle magazines, health
magazines and sports magazines to keep you posted on current events that are happening in everyday life.
In addition, the target audience of ‘The Informer’ will be males and females aged 16-25, the primary target audience will be in the C1 category of the socio-
economic model (white collar workers) as well as succeeders (people who feel secure and in control who are generally in positions of power) in the
psychographic profiling model. However, the secondary target audience of the magazine are workers in category B (fairly well-paid pros) and reformers
(idealists who actively consume eco-friendly products and buy brands which are environmentally supportive, caring and hold responsible ideologies). Due to
my target audience the price of my magazine will be fairly expensive yet affordable as many of the people that my magazine is aimed at are workers who are
on good wages and can afford to purchase magazines much like mine, therefore the price of my magazine will be £6.50.Also as many of these people will want
updates on the most present news my magazine will be published weekly and the date of the magazine that will be produced will be March 28th 2020.
The main cover line on my first magazine will be ‘Relying on students predicted grades is a recipe for disaster’ and the strapline will be ‘Boris Johnson: Why
you must stay home’ as it relates to the main topic of the magazine. I have chosen this as my main cover line as the coronavirus is the most current event that
has struck Britain and affected people who live there massively, and the cover line is one that covers this issue. Additional cover lines on my magazine will be
‘the rise and rise of video games’ and ‘the low price of oil will test the governments in the Middle East and Africa’ as these are also topics which are currently
being discussed worldwide.
Furthermore, for my second magazine issue the main cover line will be ‘Doctors and nurses deserve to know if the NHS has enough protective clothing’ and
the strapline will be ‘We are about to find out how robust civilization is’ as again it relates to the main topic of the magazine and is current. The additional
cover lines will be ‘The exploration of the Moon and Mars continues apace’ and ‘A hidden war threats Ethiopia’s transition to democracy.’ I will also have some
additional elements in my magazine as I would like ‘The Informer’ to stand out against others, my front cover will include a quote from someone so that when
people get a first look at it they feel a connection as having a direct quote evokes some feeling within a person.
Lastly, in each issue of ‘The Informer’ there will be nine sections in each magazine which cover topics in: Britain, United States, Europe, Asia, China, finance
and economics, science and technology, books and arts.
PROPOSAL
5. STATEMENT OF INTENT
My current affairs magazine ‘The Informer’ published by the company Dennis will represent key issues currently occurring around the world; these issues will be displayed on the
contents page where various topics and subjects of which the magazine will cover. As the magazine will cover global issues as well as issues presently happening in the UK it will be a
realistic representation of crisis’ happening around the world and it will represent different social groups and how they have been affected by current event.
The target audience of the product will be people aged between 16-25 years old, the primary target audience are c1 workers (white collar) and succeeders. The secondary target
audience are workers in category B (fairly paid pros) and reformers. The target audience will be represented through semiotics (images) and semantics so that they are able to easily
associate and relate to the magazine, ultimately becoming a pull factor for people to purchase the product. For example, as one of my magazines are about the recent COVID19
pandemic one cover will be of a doctor wearing a mask with teary eyes. The denotation of this would simply be a key worker suffering however a doctor has connotations of wealth
as it is a well payed job; therefore, stereotypically my target audience would be able to identify with the image hopefully convincing them to purchase the product.
The two main forms of mod of address will be indirect and direct address. One magazine cover will have a model facing away from the camera while the writing refers to ‘people’ or
the ‘public’. Meanwhile the other will have the model facing face on with the camera looking directly at the audience.
The, media language further allows me to communicate meanings across to my audience for example, one way is through the font types varying from serif to sans serif in order to
demonstrate which parts of my magazine are more important than others. The masthead will be serif as it’s bold and stands out, yet the cover lines will be sans serif as they’re not as
important because the contents page will reiterate these topics. There will also be various camera shots and angles used. One cover will have an overhead or aerial shot of the
model, using a high angle shot to allow the audience to see what the model is doing from a wider perspective; the other cover will use a close up shot and a close up camera angle of
the model’s face allowing the image to stand out and take over becoming a bold statement. Mise en scene will also allow me to communicate with the audience. Both main images
will have low key lighting in the background as it is dramatic and will draw the attention of the audience; one cover will be in uniform and the other in casual clothes in order to
represent the different environments both models are in and the locations will be in a hospital and bedroom. The cover with the close-up shot will break the fourth wall as the image
will be face on, therefore it will be of direct address making it more intimate. The main colours used will be dull and gloomy to create the illusion of a dangerous and cloudy
atmosphere- as it has connotations of things going wrong, representing the current crisis’ going on today.
Lastly, research has impacted my design ideas and ideas about my magazine overall, after researching other magazines I noticed how many of their content’s pages had similar topics
therefore my magazine will also incorporate these subjects. The publishing company mostly produce computer magazines, however they also publish a magazine called ‘The Week’
aimed at a young audience, by publishing my magazine as well the audience will grow and will educate a lot more of the younger generation about what is happening around the
world today.
6. How do you intend to link your media products to demonstrate
your knowledge and understanding of the digitally convergent
nature of your media production? (approx. 100 words)
The magazine I produce will have its own website entirely dedicated to the subjects and
topics of the magazine, this enables companies to merge and produce much more
efficient services for the target audience. By having a website, it allows a wider
audience to view the product from all different places around the globe as it is on the
internet and can be accessed through any electronic device. This will also help the
brand as it will be globally accessible making a large number of people aware of the
product ultimately pulling more customers in.
