This document analyzes and summarizes key aspects of two music magazine covers - Q Magazine and NME. For Q Magazine, the summary discusses the magazine's circulation numbers, mission statement focusing on bringing music alive, and typical reader profile of 29-year old Chris who is passionate about music. For NME, the summary briefly outlines the magazine's circulation, mission of providing new music news/reviews, and typical reader profile. It then analyzes design elements like colors, images, and language used on the magazine covers based on communication theories.

1. Textual Analysis
Jaime-Leigh Harper

2. ‘Q’ Magazine
• Circulation - 64,596 (Jan-Jun '12)
• Readership - 371,000 (April–Sept '12)
Mission Statement: Q is the magazine that brings music alive. It draws together
the biggest stars, the most exciting phenomena, the new artists that matter and
a healthy dose of irreverence to create an unmissable widescreen picture of
what’s really happening in rock and roll right now. Every issue features
agenda-setting star interviews, the month’s biggest moments in music, and
fascinating investigations into the wider world of rock and roll. Each month Q’s
comprehensive reviews section gives the last word on all the most important
new releases and reissues – and feeds Q’s readers’ hunger for new music to
enjoy. Q’s reviews section is the ultimate critical overview of music. And
magazine’s unrivalled access brings its readers up close and personal with the
stars who set the agenda. Q is the ultimate rock and roll read.

3. ‘Q’ Magazine Reader Profile
Chris is 29 years old and lives in Leeds. Music is more important to him than anything
else. It’s at the centre of his social life. It soundtracks all the best moments in his life. It’s
his identity, his social currency and his world.
Chris lives for gigs, festivals, and those electrifying moments of togetherness that only
music can provide. He is the one who sorts out gig tickets for his friends, turns them on
to new bands and sets up the big festival weekend. His tastes are “mainstream eclectic”
– the big stadium acts like Muse or Noel Gallagher mixed with the best of genres
spanning rock and electronica, plus the finest discoveries from music’s past.
Chris works in a professional job and finally has the money and time to indulge his
music habit to the full. He lives with a partner (no kids yet) who is similarly music- mad.
He is “discovering quality” in all areas, from sound systems to deluxe reissues to
cars, travel and clothes.
Chris loves technology – he was first with the iPod, iPhone, iPad and now streaming
music services. He downloads music but still prefers to own CDs. And he spends more
on music than anything else: a big-ticket gig every week or so, six albums a month plus a
Spotify subscription and countless on-the-go downloads.

4. ‘Q’ Publishers
Bauer Media Advertising
Other Music magazines they have:
BAUER MEDIA REACHES OVER NINETEEN MILLION UK ADULTS EVERY WEEK.
They have more than eighty influential media brands, spanning a wide range of

5. Front page
Contents page
Double page spread

6. Colour
Red is the background to the main logo and name of the magazine as it brings text
and images to the foreground.
Red is used as an accent color to stimulate people to make quick decisions; it is a
perfect color for 'Buy Now' or 'Click Here' buttons on Internet banners and
websites. Therefore it is good to attract people to buy the magazine.
The orange hair on the model is a large part of the colour on the front
cover, Orange has very high visibility, so you can use it to catch attention and
highlight the most important elements of your design. Orange creates a good
mood for the magazine as it is associated with joy, sunshine, and the tropics.
Orange represents
enthusiasm, fascination, happiness, creativity, determination, attraction, succe
ss, encouragement, and stimulation.
A lot of white is used on the front cover for the text and throughout the
contents and double page spread for backgrounds, White gives the
connotation of perfection and cleanliness which is good as it
contributes to the magazine looking professional. I don’t think black is
used for the font on the cover as opposed to black, white usually has a
positive connotation and can represent a successful beginning which is
appropriate for the front cover and throughout.

7. Layout and design
In tests carried out by Karl Borgrgrafe (cited in Favre and November
1979) to see which colours worked best together and black on white
came up very highly on the list, Q magazine uses this colour scheme
for there main feature

8. Images
The photo on the contents page uses the rule of thirds, as the mans eyes
are on the top horizontal line which helps frame the picture better. The mans
eyesight is also looking in the direction in the way you read. The picture also has
no negative space but does have white space around it to avoid it looking busy
or cluttered.

9. Pose, style, hair, makeup
In this picture the singer is shown with a serious expression and
made to look like she has no flaws (most likely due to editing)

10. Composition and framing
The image used for the cover an the double page
spread is the same close up shot of ‘Florence and the
Machine’ it has been cropped so her face with her
hands raised to them in the main part and is centered
with her brightly coloured hair working as a border.
There is no background. It is done like this to make it
clear that the main feature is on her and this issue is
almost dedicated to her as she is on the front.
The cover stories start on the left hand side then on
the right as we start reading from the right so therefore
our eye move from left to right across the page as this is
the most comfortable easy way.

11. Written codes- How words are used
The main part of the title cover line is bolder and bigger than the
information underneath it. This makes it be abled to be read from a distance
and to stand out on the shelf in a shop.
The ‘16-page gig blow out’ suggests that they are interested in gigs. This is
backed up by the reader profile which says ‘Chris lives for gigs, festivals’

12. Language

13. Overall Impression

14. NME magazine
Circulation: 23,924
Readership: 289,000
Mission statement: To Provide up to date and
new information, reviews and listings of the
best new music
Their slogan is "first for music news”

15. NME Reader profile

16. NME Publishers
IPC Media
Has more than 60 iconic media brands, IPC creates content for multiple platforms, across
print, online, mobile, tablets and events. It is the UK's leading consumer magazine publisher
they engage with 26m UK adults - almost two thirds of UK women and 42% of UK men. Their
award winning portfolio of websites reaches over 25 million users globally every month.
Other Magazines:
• Country Life, Horse & Hound, Rugby World and Decanter,
• lifestyle brands: including Nuts, Mousebreaker, NME and Woman and home
• IPC Southbank is their upmarket women's division and comprises luxury fashion brands:
Marie Claire and InStyle
• home interest brands: Ideal Home, Livingetc and housetohome.

17. Front cover
Contents Page
Double page spread

18. Colour
The colour used on the front cover of the magazine
and the double page spread are vibrant and clash. This
makes the magazine stand out and make a bold statement.
The main feature of this magazine is a interview with Noel
Fielding so the clashing bright colours reflect Noels crazy
eccentric personality.

19. Layout and design

20. Images

21. Pose,style,hair,makeup
The photo on the cover gives an immediate
impression to a potential buyer of the magazine as it’s the
first thing they see. This photo could actually exclude some
readers as if people can’t relate to the unique dress sense
of Noel fielding or his ‘crazy’ care free personality they
would not buy this magazine. However this is
okay, because the people it excludes are not the target
audience they are reaching out to. This is a staged pose
but it still reflects the character.

22. Composition and framing

23. Written codes- How words are used

24. Language

25. Overall impression

26. Theories
Maslow (1954) states that human behavior reflects a range of needs, ranked in order from basic
needs to higher aspirations. One of these needs are Esteem needs (recognition, feeling
worthwhile, respected) NME does this by on the front cover by asking a rhetorical question – ‘Who will
you vote for?’ this makes it seem like the magazine value there audiences opinion and therefore leave
them feeling worthwhile and respected.
Branston and stafford (2010) states stereotypes have the following characteristics:
• That they involve both a categorization and an evaluation of the group being stereotyped
• They usually emphasize some easily grasped or perceived features of the group in question and then
suggest that these are the cause of the groups position
• The evaluation of the group is often a negative one
• Stereotypes often try to insist on absolute differences and boundaries
(‘us’ and ‘them’) whereas the idea of a spectrum of differences is more appropriate.
-This is linked in with NME magazine as image on the front cover and double page
spread uses the stereotype of a ‘gothic’ rocker to create a boundary of who
would buy this magazine and who wouldn’t- for example people who do not
appreciate his clothing sense or ‘gothic’ looks.