The student learned important research skills and magazine conventions in progressing from their preliminary magazine task to the full music magazine task. Their preliminary magazine lacked professional conventions in layout and design that their music magazine incorporated, such as reduced white space and adherence to rules of thirds. Their questioning style remained quantitative, but they placed more emphasis on their own design choices rather than questionnaire results alone.

1. by Amy Sheldon

2. 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
1. Does it follow the codes and conventions of magazine layout?
My media product conforms the rule of thirds and challenges the Gutenburg Diagram. I have only used a
couple of rules from the Gutenburg diagram, such as placing the logo/title in the top left corner of each page.
On the front cover there is also an instance where I used a Gutenburg Diagram rule which was not adding
information into one of the ‘dead corners’ of the page layout, (bottom left & top right corner). I have used the
rule of thirds to layout my cover lines in the outer-two columns of the page to further conform to the rule of
thirds. This makes it look professional because most magazines that you’d pick up use this layout.
2. In terms of layout, how have you used conventions?
In terms of layout I have placed the barcode on my front cover in the right bottom corner which is
conventional for most magazines and the Gutenburg Diagram. I have laid out my cover lines in the outer-two
columns of the page. I laid the cover lines over the main front cover image because that’s what I found to be
conventional for most magazine covers. I have laid out all my pages into columns to be conventional with
most other types of magazine layouts. This layout technique makes the pages look professional and makes
them easy/familiar to navigate around. The masthead/dateline are at the top of the page, I felt it was a must
if I wanted the front cover to look as conventional as it could. I have used the byline in my feature article at
the end of the introductory paragraph to make the article more informal/chatty. I used the sub-heading for
my feature article in the mast head at the top of the page. I wanted to make it look like the “meet & greet”
feature was a monthly feature in the magazine therefore the only title I needed was of the artist’s name of
whom I was interviewing, which I think subverts conventions.
I have over laid the copy on the front cover over the main image which is generally a massive magazine
convention. I haven’t used that many images in/on my magazine because I wanted the big main images to
have a dramatic impact on the reader, I thought about the shots/angles I used so I didn’t want the drama
of the image content to have it’s thunder stolen; so to speak.
Of the products I have researched the main similar magazine to my product is ‘Vibe’ magazine. It has a
similar genre to my magazine so that’s why I centred my research around a lot of the page designs because
it is a successful American magazine for the mutual genres.

3. 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
I have only used a couple of
rules from the Gutenberg
diagram, such as placing the
logo/title in the top left corner
of each page. On the front
cover there is also an instance
where I used a Gutenberg
Diagram rule which was not
adding information into one of
the ‘dead corners’ of the page
layout, (bottom left & top right
corner). I have used the rule of
thirds to layout my cover lines
in the outer-two columns of
the page to further conform to
the rule of thirds.

4. 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Mise-en-Scene
Masthead
The image has been taken as a medium camera shot and has been
Title/Logo manipulated to add drama to the image in terms of colouration and
contrast. I took this image on a white background so the tone of a
Dateline slight grey shadow is incorporated in the background, but adds
definition to the image even in greyscale. The dramatic expression of
Cover lines the girl grabs the audiences’ attention. It also addresses, stereotypically
younger audiences because the image connotes that the girl as being
rebellious, loud, dominant and almost aggressive; like she’s trying to
break through a mould of what young females used to be expected to
be like. I went for a gold/white/black colour scheme/house style
because I wanted the magazine to sell the idea of success and money
which is what young up-and-coming artists are mostly aiming for these
Main days, and I think it does this successfully.
Image Mode of Address
The front cover addresses the audience/is appealing because, like I
Headline/
wrote before, it breaks the stereotypes of how young women are
Caption
meant to be seen in today’s society, the ‘girly’ stereotype you could say.
Barcode The negative connotations of this image are probably addressed by
people who still believe in a patriarchal society and don’t want to see
women as powerful or successful, which is what this main image
connotes.

5. 2. How does your Media Product represent particular Social
Groups?
My media product subverts stereotypes of young people. The
general stereotype of the 16-24’s or below age group is that
they’re miserable, maybe involved in gang culture, ASBO’s, and
lazy etc. This social group is represented totally different in my
magazine images and language from other media products, like
tabloid newspapers for example. I have tried to break these
stereotypes. Starting with the images, I have made sure that the
girl I have used is suitably fully-clothed which breaks the mould of
girls in magazines having to wear little or no clothing to sell a
magazine.
This tells girls out there that you don’t have to wear little
clothing to get into a magazine, so this is a positive message.
I have used a soft colour scheme which again softens people’s
expectations of the image of this girl who is making a name
for herself, sending a positive message. The medium shot of
Melody on the front cover suggests that she is strong and is
making a stand on the page because the mise-en-scene is so
dramatic because of her facial expression and the props used
in the image to make her look like she’s escaping a stereotype
of being changed and made to look like everyone else wants
her to: to break the mould, which is a very positive message
to young girls out there who shouldn’t have to change
themselves.

6. 2. How does your Media Product represent particular Social
Groups?
The language I used in my music magazine also has a massive effect on the way the social group of
young people is viewed. I have represented her as a successful young girl who is really motivated
for such a young age which I think will shed light on people’s views about teenagers being lazy and
lacking in ambition. The fact that this 18 year old is establishing herself in an industry filled with
mostly men breaks another stereotype of women not being able to work and should stay at home
cooking etc. I have represented Melody as unstoppable in the music industry, but not an extreme
feminist. The language and images I have used represent her as a normal 18 year old, wearing
normal clothes and just being a good person. This I hope, would inspire lots of young people who
don’t think they can make a life for themselves because they aren’t ‘special’ or whatever. But
Melody is just a normal teenager with a talent and is making a name for herself, which young
people and artists should aspire to, to not have to change yourself.

7. 3. What kind of media institution might distribute
your media product and why?
According to paidContent:UK :
“the UK’s top-selling 100 magazines lost 17 percent of their active sales between 2000 and 2009. That’s
10 million fewer copies being sold in ‘09 than at the start of the decade.”
This and the descending graph, show that the print media industry is under threat presumably because
of the growth of internet use and the recession. People can get the same information in the
magazines, cheaper on the internet at their fingertips, without having to go out and buy a copy. This is a
real shame and poses a massive threat to the industry.

8. 3. What kind of media institution might distribute
your media product and why?
Promotion
My music magazine could be promoted on the television, on the radio, on the
internet in promotional advertisement banners, on a specific website that
would be created for the magazine because I researched and a lot of
magazines like Vibe (which was one of my main inspirations) have a website.
I could perhaps create a viral video that would be sent out via email or on
YouTube. The social networking boom of the last 10 years has made websites
like Facebook a main advertising target because over 500 million people use
it worldwide. Therefore, with this useful knowledge at hand I could create a
Facebook page for my magazine and pay for it to be featured on people’s
advertising banners on their profiles, which in time would create a massive
buzz and the magazine would make more money in sales. Also, I have recently
been using the music player application Spotify, and unless people pay for the
premium and use it for the free 20 hours of music for a month, they have to
listen to the advertisements. This could be a very useful tool in getting my
new music magazine promoted, especially to those who listen to music and
have a keen interest in the genre.

9. 3. What kind of media institution might distribute
your media product and why?
Publishing
This is the company overview of the publishing company that publishes Vibe Magazine which was my main
inspiration in my research:
“Intermedia Vibe Holdings, LLC publishes magazines and digital content related to hip-hop generation. The
company offers news, music, movies/TV shows, photos, videos, and blogs related to hip-hop. Its publications
provide urban music, entertainment, culture, and lifestyle content for aspirational ageing from 18 to 34. The
company was founded in 1993 and is based in New York, New York. Intermedia Vibe Holdings, LLC is a prior
subsidiary of uVuMobile, Inc.”
I think this publishing company would be ideal for my music magazine. The company only publishes Vibe
Magazine and because my magazine is similar in genre and style to Vibe magazine I think it would be good for
the connections. The publishers at LLC would make SUB another competitor to compete amongst the other big
magazines like XXL and The Source who are the other main competitors in this genre.
Selling
I think the best time for the magazine to be released would be around March/April time, because people will
have made their money and rekindled their bank accounts from Christmas. Spring time will be the time where
the target demographic will be getting excited about Music Festivals to-come in the Summer and will be
excited about the live acts that will be playing. So that should attract some interest to SUB magazine because
of the specialist content that tell the readers about festivals to do with the genre and the big artists that will be
at Glastonbury etc.

10. 4. Who would be the audience for your media
product?
My Target Audience
My audience is mostly young people aged 16-24 who like reading music magazines, are
interested in R&B/Hip-pop/Grime music and like going to festivals/gigs. I think my
audience is working to middle class because most people I asked said they would pay £0-
£4 for a music magazine. I think the magazine targets the socio-economic groups of
C1, C2, D and E because I think the wealthier people in groups such as group A or B maybe
in a higher social class and weren’t brought up around hip-pop music, which I know is a
stereotype of the higher classes, but originally, the grime scene was big amongst the
working classes and street scenes which doesn’t really make the magazine appealing to the
higher classes I don’t think. I would say that my audience is a niche one because people
who aren’t that interested in the genre would get information off the internet instead of
buying a magazine.
My Secondary Audience
I think my secondary audience are a older than my initial student-based audience. I would
say my secondary audience are young professionals, maybe starting their careers and
starting a family, aged 25-35 who still like this music genre from their youth/childhood. I
think the social economic groups go higher up the scales this time, definitely the B group
and maybe edging into the A bracket as well. These male or female people with probably
be interested in more mainstream music genre’s too like Rock and chart music.

11. 5. How did you attract/address your audience?
I have used language in my music magazine feature article that will hopefully appeal
to my target audience. I have used phrases that my audience will find easy to relate
to, like “converse and back-pack wearing teenager”. I used this to represent my made
up artist “Melody”, as a normal everyday teenager living her dream. I think that this is
appealing to my target audience because hopefully, they’ll be inspired to persevere
because she’s seems as normal as they are. I have used another quote that I think will
keep spirits high despite high youth unemployment figures. I used “Never give up. I
believe we all make our own luck”, because of the troubled times we live in, I think it’s
appropriate.

12. 6. What have you learnt about technologies from
the process of constructing this product?
Original
Finished Edit

13. 6. What have you learnt about technologies from
the process of constructing this product?
Using Layers Using Levels
I used layers on Adobe Photoshop so I
could see the difference between the
effects I was using, so I could decide if
anything was too over-the-top or
didn’t add to the image.

14. 7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel
you have learned in the progression from it to the full
task?
Research skills and Codes & Conventions
I think my research skills have improved massively since the preliminary task. I now have more knowledge
about magazine conventions and when those conventions have been subverted or conformed. I have used
this new knowledge of magazine layout conventions to construct my music magazine ‘SUB’. As you can
see, the difference between the magazine layout’s is great. My preliminary task of the College magazine
looks much more amateur than the than the music magazine on the right. There is much less white space
in/on the music magazine which makes the music magazine look much more professional, sophisticated and
appealing to my audience. The more there looks on/in a magazine, the more likely, I have found, that it will
sell more copies. I can think of exceptions for this point, but in this case I find it to be true.

15. 7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel
you have learned in the progression from it to the full
task?
Preliminary Task Questionnaire Music Magazine Questionnaire
Questioning style
My questioning style has been consistently quantative throughout the process of the two projects because
I have mainly used multiple-choice questions. I then used the data to make statistics and went with
either, the most popular option and/or the one I wanted to use. So my question style hasn’t really
developed that much in terms of questioning style, but I would say that my questioning style has changed
in terms of what statistics I chose to take from the questionnaire results. I wouldn’t say that I completely
disregarded my peers’ choices, but I definitely kept them as a high priority when I decided what I chose to
do. In the long run, I went with what I thought was best in terms of suiting the genre, if the questionnaire
results weren’t decisive.