2. Uses and Gratifications Theory
Blumler & Katz (1974)
Blumler and Katz came up with the Uses and Gratifications Theory.
It is a popular approach to looking at communication within media and says
that the audience decide and decode what the messages are and mean. Katz
(1959) said “it’s what people do with media” rather than “what media does to
people”. It assumes that the audience interpret the media in their own way
and people use the media to fulfil their own personal specific gratifications.
It has been suggested that the theory has to fulfil one of;
Identification, Education, Entertainment & Social Interaction when we choose a
form of media.
3. Large, bold masthead to
attract attention. This
would be easily visible on
a shelf in a shop which
would be eye-catching
and make people more
likely to pick it up.
Web address – this would
attract a younger audience
because lots of young
people use the internet so
having this on the front
cover would make them
more likely to pick it up and
read it.
Consistent colour scheme
to maintain a house style
making the magazine look
more neat and
professional. The colour
pink ensures that the
magazine appeals to both
genders.
Use of jewellery shows the Hip-
Hop genre so the audience
immediately know what genre
the magazine is. This ensures
that the right target audience
can easily identify which type
of magazine to pick up.
The main cover line is very big
and obstructs the image. Not
many main cover lines do this but
I did it to grab the readers’
attention straight away as this is
the most important part of the
magazine and will make people
want to buy it.
The main image uses a direct gaze. This
engages the audience as they feel the
magazine is directed towards them.
People also read emotion through facial
expression and the serious look on his
face suggests that he is serious about his
career and what has been happening,
enticing the audience to read on and find
out more.
Front Cover My focus group commented on the use
of slang words and said that this would
attract them to the magazine as it is
common language used amongst young
people so they can therefore relate to
it.
4. Contents Page I separated the contents in
‘features’ and ‘regulars’ so
that it would be easy for
people to read and know
which page to go to for the
desired article. I think this
helps to attract my particular
target audience because
young people prefer simple
and easy to read layouts that
aren’t too fussy.
I have included social media logos
and a web address in my contents
to appeal to a younger audience. I
only used logos for the social media
as young people are accustomed to
using these and therefore will not
need the names of them to identify
them. This means I have made the
page look neater without having to
include names of all the social
media.
I have included pictures of a record
and a live show. I did this because
even though record players are
relatively old, they are coming back
into fashion. More and more young
people are using them so I felt
having this related to today’s youth.
Also, my target audience said they
enjoyed going to gigs, so having a
photo of a live show entices them to
read on more.
I feel that this image I’ve
chosen will attract my target
audience because he has a
casual stance and is wearing
casual clothing which is
similar to the type of people
my audience are. Also, using
an attractive young male will
attract both genders.
I have included an article on
fashion, which is what the majority
of my target audience said they
would like to see other than music
so I feel this would engage the
audience and make them want to
buy the magazine.
My focus group pointed out that the use of
sans serif fonts would appeal to a younger
target audience such as them because it is
more modern and up to date so they would
therefore be more inclined to buy it.
5. Double Page Spread For my article, I conducted an
interview. This attracts the
audience because it digs into the
lives of one of their favourite
artists and younger people tend to
like gossip and want to know all of
the details. As my target audience
is young people, I decided to do a
question and answer style
interview so it wasn’t just one
block of text making it easier to
read. This breaks down the text
into smaller parts which I think
appeals to younger people more.
For the title of my DPS, I used
the initials of the musicians
name. This keeps it short and
snappy and doesn’t give away
too much which entices the
audience to keep on reading.
I added folios to my DPS to
ensure the reader could easily
find the page from the contents
page, making the magazine easy
for them to read and navigate
through.
I have kept the use of the
bright colour pink as this
maintains consistency and
professionalism of the
magazine. The bright colour
makes the page eye-catching
and therefore draws in
attention from the reader.
The image that I’ve used attracts a
younger, care free audience such
as teenagers. This is because of his
casual clothes and the fact he is
looking away from the camera
with his hands in his pockets. The
long shot includes the background
of the image which is against a
graffiti wall giving the photo an
urban feel. This will address the
type of people who will read the
magazine and make them want to
read the article because it relates
directly to them.
The use of pull quotes on
this page will instantly draw
the reader in as they have
something to read and get
from the page without
having to actually start
reading the article. This will
attract the audience
because they don’t have to
read the whole thing to
know what it’s about.
My focus group commented on the
slang language used throughout the
interview, making the artist seem
like ‘one of us’ which would appeal
to a younger target audience.
