Michael created a magazine for the dubstep genre that challenged conventions by tailoring designs specifically for dubstep rather than copying other genres. The layout and color scheme of red and black were meant to represent the energetic nature of dubstep and its mainly Caucasian fan base. The magazine would be distributed by IPC Media since they distribute similar rock magazines. The target audience is middle class 16-25 year old Caucasians who could afford the £2.50 price and are most interested in dubstep music and culture.

1. EVALUATION
Michael Kiggundu

2. 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
During the construction process, I
decided to develop on some of the
codes and conventions that I came
across during the research and My Magazine
planning stages in order to make the Layout
magazine look as professional and
clean as possible. I've mainly done
this using the layout and the structure
of the 3 elements; they are common
layouts that are used in music
magazine but the actual design of the
front cover, contents page and double
page spread have been specifically
XXL Magazine
tailored to fit the Dubstep genre and
Layout
differ from the designs that I
researched.

3. 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
I also made sure that the colour scheme
used in my magazine would suit the
Dubstep genre and would represent it well,
meaning that it challenged the generic
forms of colour schemes used by other
magazines. Also, because there are barely
any (if any) Dubstep magazines being Colour scheme is mainly red and black which
published, there was hardly anything to represents the Rap genre well.
research that was specific to the Dubstep
genre so I had to take elements from
various magazines from different genres
and put it all together to form one specific
magazine. Therefore, someone may think
that it adheres to the generic codes and
conventions of other magazines, whereas
someone else may think otherwise.
Colour scheme is mainly yellow and dark
blue which I believe represents the Dubstep
genre.

4. 2. How does your media product represent
particular social groups?
My media product - being aimed at both
male and female teenagers and young
adults - represents my age group as
extremely active and outgoing; it shows
that young people are energetic and plays
on the stereotypical image of young
people going out, having fun and running
riot. This is mainly done through the use of
yellow in the colour scheme; yellow, being
a very bright colour, is very in-your-face
and noticeable colour against the dark
blues that are also used. This could
suggest that young people are not only
energetic and loud, but they also stand out
from the crowd and go against the grain in
whatever situation as the yellows do just
that.

5. 2. How does your media product represent
particular social groups?
It also represents Caucasian people as quite
wealthy and financially stable as it is mainly
aimed at Caucasian people but the price is
fairly higher than the average magazine
which suggest that the people that it is aimed
at must be able to spend money freely,
without any worries.
Although it does not mean that people from
other ethnic backgrounds cannot purchase
the magazine, many of the things in the Taken at a Dubstep rave – mainly Caucasian
magazine (such as possible fashion trends people
as well as the genre of music itself) are most
likely to appeal to people who are Caucasian
more than others; I also say this because
majority of the most well-known musicians
within the Dubstep genre are Caucasian
meaning there is most likely to be more
Caucasian listeners.
This may differ from a Hip-Hop magazine
where the musicians that partake in the
genre are predominantly Black so the
magazine will most likely appeal to people Taken at a Hip Hop concert – mainly Black
who are Black. people

6. 3. What kind of media institution might distribute
your media product and why?
My magazine will be distributed
by IPC Media. I say this because
the Dubstep genre is similar to the
Rock genre, and seeing as this
institution also distributes the
Rock magazine, NME, they would
probably know the best way to
distribute my magazine as these
two genres are similar so the
magazines are most likely to be
similar as well.

7. 4. Who would be the audience for your
media product?
My target audience will be mainly Caucasian 16-
25 year old as this is the social group that mainly
listens to Dubstep so they will benefit most from
the magazine, although many other social
groups do take an interest in the genre and are
also likely to be interested in the magazine. It will
also be mainly aimed at those in the middle class
sector society as the price that the magazine is
being sold at - £2.50 - will be most comfortable
for them financially and also because young
people from this sector are the people that
mainly invest money in the things that interest
them (for example, if they begin to take interest
in the Dubstep genre and like the music, they are
most likely to buy albums, tickets, clothing as
well as magazines amongst other things),
whereas people in the working class are more
financially restricted so they probably won't use
their money as freely as those more financially
stable.

8. 5. How did you attract/address your
audience?
I, then, attracted my audience
mainly through the text/words
used as well as the colour
scheme which connotes to the
Dubstep genre and peoples
thoughts on the genre. The words
used in this magazine are quite
informal but there isn't a wide
amount of slang used in the
magazine; I believe that this
represents the middle class well
as they are knowledgeable of
slang terms and use it many
times, but they have a clear
balance between proper English Typical type of language throughout the
and slang. double page spread

9. 5. How did you attract/address your
audience?
Also, the brightness of the Yellow against
the dark blues that are used in the design
makes the magazine stand out from other
magazines that might be on the same
shelf, and I believe that this colour scheme
will interest the reader and will make them
want to pick up the magazine - especially
if they listen to Dubstep.
To add to this, the use of media cross
promotion meant that the magazine has
the opportunity to have an interview with a
well-known Dubstep musician in exchange
for some form of promotion for their
artistry; this attracts audience members as
they have the ability to keep up-to-date on
what is happening within the genre and
they are providing with ways to enjoy more
of the genre via links to upcoming tours,
albums, merchandise etc.

10. 6. What have you learnt about technologies from
the process of constructing this product?
I have mainly improved in Adobe
InDesign and have learnt how to
handle all of the visual artwork in
Photoshop and handle all of the text
and shapes in InDesign (using both of
the programs mainly for what they
were created for). Learning this has
permitted me to create finished
products to a high industry standard
with a clean finish.
I have also learnt how to create and
use layers in Adobe InDesign and
how to use them to my advantage.

11. 7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel
you have learnt in the progression from it to the full
product?
I think I have learnt to do more research when it comes to create something
and have learnt how to use the codes and conventions of a specific media
product and adjust them to create something unique and something that I can
claim as my own. I have also learnt how to create intricate designs and
something that is aesthetically detailed whilst simultaneously restricting it from
being cluttered and confusing for the client/audience.
I have also come to understand that designs do not have to be complicated in
order for them to attract an audience but, at times, simplicity is more effective in
doing so. In my preliminary task, I thought that multiple layers had to be made
use of and that many images and colours had to be added for the design to
look good. My full product has taught me that keeping within restrictions can
allow you to use your creativity enough to make a design look good and
professional at the same time.