3. Overview • My target audience are white, middle class, teens/young adults of both
genders- I chose to use middle class teens/young adults representations to fall
in line with my them- gives the audience relatable content so that they can
associate themselves to the featured artists- this will create a closer
relationship with reader and artist (uses and grats).
• Using these models also presents this middle class and young social group as
being powerful and dominant (desirable for my target audience as well as
relatable)- in later editions of the magazine I could include other social groups
(including different ethnicities as all except one model is white) to display more
diversity.
• Although my target audience is of both genders, the images I have taken are all
of females (see contents page)- this is to attempt to empower women in the
male-dominated music industry. This conforms to Gauntlett’s theory (2008)-
argues that magazines aimed at young women emphasise that women must be
independent and themselves- so will present women as strong individuals and
beyond sex-objects for men’s admiration.
• The front cover goes against this and sexualises the artist (red lips has sexual
connotations)- shows a woman’s right and freedom to be considered beautiful-
this will attract dominantly straight males so my media product is overall
accessible to both genders and conveys young, middle class females as
powerful.
4. Front Cover Analysis 1
• Female model as the dominant image of the magazine- I chose this to attempt
to engage the female audience by the use of this model in the main image.
This is because females can associate themselves with the artist as they are
relatable- creates a more personal relationship with the artist (uses and grats).
• My model’s facial expression is unclear- this is pluralistic as it provides a
positive role model for young females- is not inviting for male’s attention but
is not aggressive enough to challenge gender stereotypes. This unclear
expression also adds to mystery and unpredictability- this is a common look in
magazines similar to my product.
• The mise-en-scene is representative of my target audience. Having similar
clothing and make-up to what the females in my target audience would wear
makes the model an inspiration and someone to base themselves from (the
concept of trending is also presented by the word “rocks” to describe the
artist). The use of the plain top and leather jacket can also apply to men's
fashion so is relatable to both genders of my target audience- however, the
clothing (particularly the leather jacket) could be seen as hegemonic to the
characteristics of being the stereotypical, rebellious teenager.
5. Front Cover Analysis 2
• In my research, when women are presented on the front cover as
the dominant image they are typically sexualised (using Mulvey’s
theory of the male gaze) e.g. in Q, Rolling Stone and Blender
Magazine. I have conformed to this with the use of red lipstick (has
passionate connotations so is sexualises lips), but I also go against
this with the anchor text: “Mel Kar Rocks”. This represents the
young female as more than her looks- as a statement or role model
as opposed to an object- this will appeal to both genders of my
target audience as shows the young female in a dominant position.
6. Layout-Contents Page
• My contents page uses five images in order to react to the needs of my target
audience. These younger (teen and adult) readers would stereotypically have a
lower concentration span- meaning more images and minimal text is required.
• I used rows, columns and sub-headings in order to allow my audience to go directly
from the information to the article that they want (and therefore fulfil any needs
adequately- whether cognitive or integrative).
• If I had more columns of text and less images, my media product may appear more
professional to an older target audience- but this only further reinforces my target
audience as they would not mind a somewhat imperfect product and would
appeal/fulfil to their needs more successfully.
• The bright colour red supports this as it catches the eye of the reader in a visual
way (uses and grats).
• This represents the younger social groups as having a lower concentration span and
being more interested in the superficial image of the artist than the information
provided. This could be negative as it is portraying teenagers and young adults as
more interested in the surface than anything else. However, this could also be
positive as it would fulfil the needs of this young target audience more sufficiently
and capture more attention than if there were less images and more text.
7. Language & Content-Double Page Spread
• The young, white, middle-class female is presented here as being
highly interested in relationships and break-ups- the content that I
have included in this article covers this in order to appeal to the
stereotypical relationship-orientated teenage girl. This perhaps
presents young females negatively as people more interested in
romance than the actual music featured.
• “…the seventeen year old’s secrets to success”- mentions artists’ age
(relatable to the young target audience as within the age range of
16-25 years old and not specific to gender). “Success”- presents the
young as desiring intelligence and influence- this is a positive
representation as it encourages young people to work hard.
• Article uses some colloquial language, power words and short
sentences- makes the language relatable as it is stereotypically what
young people would use themselves (perhaps presents the younger
generation as less intelligent).
• Arrow on bottom right shows that there is more of the article- this is
done to break up the bulk of text with images- this appeals to the
lower attention span of a stereotypical teen/young adult- my target
audience is presented negatively as being less focused/interested in
information than the average person of an older age.
8. Shot Types 1
• In the majority of my images, I have used eye-line shots- this creates
direct mode of address which causes the reader to form a closer
relationship with the artists (uses and grats).
• Using direct mode of address makes the female models’ facial
expressions the dominant feature in each image (rather than the
models’ bodies). This portrays the young women as more than sexual
objects- goes against Mulvey’s theory of the male gaze.
• The concentration on the eyes (which is exaggerated by the shallow
depth of field used so the eyes are the main focus of the image)
conveys the humanity and emotion of the individual and gives the
impression of the artist directly looking at the reader.
• This presents young females as more than sexual objects and strong
individuals not subservient to male domination (due to the direct
mode of address used).
9. Shot Types 2
• I have used a low camera angle in only one of my images-
females are portrayed as being empowered, but not above men
in any way- this way social groups defined by gender are
presented as being equal (so the female artists are not looking
down on the male readers).
• This is important to my target audience of both genders as the
representation of empowered women would appeal to females,
as well as intriguing the male readers as to why the females were
portrayed in this way. This could make the magazine popular as it
is appealing to both genders (therefore a wider range of people),
and features feminist ideals- this is an extremely talked about
topic at the moment- the magazine could be read by more social
groups so it would be more successful.
10. Ideology 1
• Reception Theory- a version of reader response literary
theory that emphasises each particular reader’s reception
or interpretation in making meaning from the media
product- concentrates on the audiences responses.
• Understanding this theory and prioritising appealing to my
target audience allowed me to create relationships
between the artists and the readers through the use of
images (concentrating on the comparisons and similarities
of the people)- this would entice fans to read the magazine
because it would mean them reading about artists similar
or relatable to them.
• This could potentially lead to a loyal fan-base- if the artist’s
were relatable they could be role models for my target
audience, which would create inspiration and fandom.
11. Ideology 2
• The use of similar-aged models played a big role in my audience- this
is a key aspect in if they would perceive the magazine to be relatable
or not.
• Audience response- using mostly white, young, middle-class female
models, although limited, appeals to the majority of the population
(either relatable or sexualised) so the magazine could be considered
more successful.
• However, if I wanted to make the representation more diverse, I
would need to present different social groups in my media product.
• Representing ethnicity- all models are white except from one- white
models appeal to my target audience (relatable, easier to connect to
and create a relationship with artist)- but I have used a black model
in Indian wear to display diversity and empowerment of different
ethnicities in my media product (this would appeal to a wider range
of people). The Indian wear (mise-en-scene) is used to accentuate
this ethnic difference- this is meant to represent the culture of the
individual-but this could be seen as hegemonic as she is being
presented as purely someone of her ethnicity rather than as an
individual.
