What type of magazine is it?
This magazine mainly focuses on music, politics and popular culture.
From the front cover what kinds of issues/articles are going to be inside?
From the front cover, you can tell that there the main feature is going to be an interview with Zac Efron. This is clear because the main cover line reads “THE NEW AMERICAN HEART THROB ZAC EFRON”. He is also featured on the main image of the front cover. There are also going to be articles about “Clapton’s guitar goes festival” and “Punk rock fight club”.
Who is the target audience for the magazine? What particular age group? What are their interests? How do you know all of this?
The target audience for this magazine is probably younger people, between 16-27 years of age. They enjoy reading about the latest music gossip, yet they are still interested in what is happening in the world. The target audience for this magazine in particular is female and probably between 16-20 years. This is due to the person that is on the front.
What mode of address is the magazine using? What does this tell you about the type of relationship it wants with its reader?
The mode of address used for this magazine is quite informal and very direct. It is also quite ‘slang’, which tells you that they want quite a friendly relationship with their audience. It also shows that they want to maybe be more personal with them, as you normally speak in slang to your friends.
Who is on the front cover and why?
Zac Efron is a mature teenager, known for being an actor, dancer and singer. Although he is well known to younger children for being in films such as High School Musical, it is clear that this interview is aimed more at older teenagers, due to the photograph where he is standing in quite a suggestive pose. As this magazine appeals to these older people, it is appropriate to have him on the front, as long as he was being presented in this way. Zac Efron is extremely famous at the moment, and a lot of people want to know about him. By having him on the front, it will attract attention from people and make the want to buy the magazine.
What does the main cover line say? What does this imply about the artist/band?? What overall message is the artist/band giving?
The main cover line reads “THE NEW AMERICAN HEART THROB ZAC EFRON”. This implies that this artist is new to the music scene. It also implies that he is going to be liked by a lot of people, probably due to his good looks.
Are any (social/ethnic/political) groups being represented? How does the magazine represent them?
There are not any groups in particular being represented on this front cover.
Are there any ‘buzz’ words? What effect does it have on the reader?
The words ‘HEART THROB’ stand out extremely well on the page, probably due to the large font and bright red font colour. This draws the user’s attention to them, causing them to want to make their own opinion as to whether they believe he is the latest ‘heart throb’, as this magazine makes out.
What does the design of the mast head tell you about the magazine? What does the title of the magazine tell you about: 1. the readership 2. its image 3. its style
The masthead for this magazine is normally always covered slightly by the main image. This is because their masthead is an extremely well known design, they do not need to make it stand out. However, the masthead can still be seen slightly. It is in quite a professional looking font, especially because of the 3-dimensional effects that have been added to it.
What do the ‘kickers’ in the coverlines suggest will be inside the magazine? What does this tell you about the type of audience the magazine expects to get?
The kickers in the coverlines are highlighted in a different font colour, which is grey. The rest of the text is written in yellow, for example “Clapton’s” and “M.I.A”. Clapton is an artist aimed at older people, yet MIA is an artist at people who are younger. This shows that this magazine is extremely diverse, and can appeal to people of most ages.
Is there a strapline/selling line/slogan? What does it tell you about the magazine? How does it help to attract readers?
There is not a strapline on this magazine. This is probably due to the fact that this magazine is extremely well-known and popular already, that it does not need to stand out and try to sell itself, as those who want the magazine will go specifically to buy it on their on accord.
What colours are used? Do you find them attractive?
The colours used on this front cover are quite simple. The masthead is written in grey, the background for the image is plain white and the coverlines and kickers are written in grey and yellow. These colours do not stand out very well, yet the Rolling Stone probably feel like they don’t need to make the colours stand out, due to the reasons I explained in the question above.
What fonts are used and why?
The font remains the same on the front cover, making it extremely consistent. It is a sans serif font, to appeal to the younger members of the target audience. The font is also extremely plain and basic, meaning that the user is forced to focus directly one what they are actually reading, and not the distracted by different font styles.
What strategies does the magazine use to attract the audience?
This magazine does not need to attract attention from the audience that much, as it is an extremely well known magazine that has been successful for many years. However, the close-up image and bright red colours of the text accompanying the main image makes the front cover stand out slightly.
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