This document discusses how the media product represents social groups through its design choices. The front cover uses a male model to challenge gender conventions and appeal to both male and female readers. Photographs of models wearing casual clothing help target young adult readers. Throughout the magazine, direct eye contact with the reader helps create a personal connection. Simplistic layouts and relatable styles of dress make the content easily accessible and engaging for its target teenage/young adult audience.

1. How does your media product
represent particular social
groups?

2. Front Cover
-I used a eye-line shot in this image to give a sense of personal relationships (uses and
grats) enabling my target audience of teens/young adults and the model to connect.
-Using a medium-close up of my model on my front cover also enabled me to show a
glimpse of the mise en scene, and using a clean white labelled (Raph Lauren) shirt enabled
me to target my audience by using clothes that they would regularly buy.
-By using a male model challenged the convention of other magazines, such as Q who more
often use a female model, and challenged Mulvey’s ‘Male gaze’ theory where women are
sexualised to the audience to entice them in. This effects my product as it allows a wider
range of males and females to be interested in my product for the content.
--By the model being the age of 17 also would make the audience more comfortable with
the cover, making it easily relatable.
-I chose to use no props which was based on vibes convention. I wanted my product to be
clean and simplistic like vibe but with an urban edge, and not busy so that the young
audience would be put off reading it.

3. Contents
-I used a long shot of my female model on the contents to show the mise en scene well. By
using a leather jacket and Timberlands permitted me to reach out to young adults who
stereotypcically would wear/like an outfit like this.
-Using a female on the contents also allowed me to contrast from the male models on the
cover and double page. This would help me target both genders well. The age of the models
also enables a creation of personal interactive.
-I kept the eye-line shot for direct mode of address (personal relationships / uses and
grats).
-The layout was very simplistic with numbered features running down the left hand side, a
regular convention of Vibe. This gave it a clean, tidy look which would be easy to navigate
through for young adults.
-This however complies with Killbournes theory that women are portrayed as mannequins
as she has no joyful or expression. But this was the intended shot. Due to the language being
informal and colloquial, I waned to keep a certain sense of seriousness like vibe do within
their front covers.

4. Double Page
- I maintained the direct mode of address from my image to create personal
relationships (uses and grats)
- By using mid-close up allowed me to let the readers see the mis en scene. I
used an ‘ellesse’ - contrast with the formal shirt on the front. ‘Ellesse’ are a
very urban brand. I contrasted the clothing as this is a regular convention
of vibe magazine. This allowed me to target the more upper class audience
with the white short, yet also the working class with the casual sweater.
The sweater is the usual stereotype of a teen yet the shirt is an aspiration.
- I challenged the convention of having the image on the left side of the double
page like Q do – I did this as I wanted the readers first glance to be on the
image.
- The use of initials as a masthead was taken from vibe – this would create
ambiguity – entice the reader to read on but also keeps it simple at the
same time for the teens/young adult audience.
- I didn’t use props simply to keep the simplistic theme – instead of promoting
negative stereotypes, smoking for example like vibe.
- I also promoted the cover story album – used social networking tabs – the
audience would be familiar with these – relatable to them – widens the
marketing.
-

5. Ideology
The prioritised reception theory was the ability to relate my
audience and my final product. By using things like direct mode of
address would create personal relationships so the readers would
feel comfortable and familiar reading it, therefore making it popular
and relatable to teens/young adults to build a reputable brand
name. The use of teen wear, such as leather jackets, sweaters and
timberlands for mis en scene allowed me to make my product
relatable, also informal and humorous language would enable me to
keep the attention of young adults – keeping an overload of text low
to stop the readers being put off. Vibe was my inspiration to create a
clear and simple, yet edgy product that would keep the attention of
my readers. By doing these things allowed me to make sure the
audience received the message I wanted them to, instead of an
oppositional reading.