OCR MEDIA STUDIESMAGAZINE RESEARCH

Stephanie Stafford

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS

For my textual analysis I am going to analyze two front covers, two contents pages and two double page spreads. I am going to describe the different techniques they have used and get ideas for my own magazine.

Extreme heading catches the audience’s attention.

On both pages the background is a picture of Katy Perry. The First picture is a medium close up and has been photo shopped so that she is pink. The second page is a close up of Katy Perry and has also been photo shopped so that she is blue. These colours also match some of the font in the article.

The question as a subheading catches the audience’s attention and will make them want to find out.

Colours are really bright and stand out which also catches the audience’s attention.

Both pages have got borders around them that are diagonal dashed lines. The colours of the borders also match the colours of some of the font.

The main audience for this article is for females aged 16 – 20.

The magazine cover I am going to analyse is a pop magazine called Top of the pops. The target audience for this magazine is for girls aged 10-16.

The magazine cover is cluttered and there is not much space left. There is a medium close up image of Justin Bieber in the middle with a lot of cover lines all around the picture giving the audience and idea of what is inside the magazine. The title is along the top of the magazine behind the image of Justin Bieber. All together on this magazine there are 7 images and all are of celebrities except for one which is an image of make-up, top and jewellery, this image shows that the target audience is females. The other six images are of celebrities and are medium close ups. The main image is of Justin Bieber and is set in the middle of the magazine. It is an image of him getting pulled by girls and relates to a cover line saying ‘Bieber mania’.

The main colours that are used in this magazine cover are pink and purple, which again emphasise that this magazine is targeted for girls. The background colour is white which makes the text stand out more.

There is a variety of different cover lines used on the magazine which will grab the reader’s attention and emphasises the target audience. The cover lines are spread out all over the magazine and are all in different fonts, sizes and colour which make the magazine look more fun and quirky. One cover line which is really grabbing is ‘JLS: “our fans deserve the truth”’ this makes the reader think that there is something they don’t know and will make them want to read to find out what the article is about.

  

In this magazine a medium long shot of Ciara lying on her back with her legs up in the air is used on the contents page. The picture of Ciara is very revealing and will grab the audience’s attention and will make them want to read more. The image is in the centre of the page but her legs go up along the left side of the page.

The background of the contents page is black but becomes brighter towards the middle of the page to make the image stand out.

The headings and numbers in the contents page are bold whilst the caption story is in normal font but names of certain people in the story are in bold to grab the audience’s attention. This is consistent throughout the magazine

The masthead is ‘contents’ and is split up into three and is located in the top right corner. This is unusual and will grab the audience’s attention. The font of the heading is bold and is white on a black background which makes it stand out. Also the name of the magazine is ‘Vibe’ and a big V is behind the heading contents is outlined white and the inside color blends in with the background.

The main audience of this magazine would be for females ages 16 – 25 because the pages are about fashion and boys turning into men which would more likely interest a woman more.

The contents page I am going to analyze is from a magazine called ‘Top of the pops’.

The page is split up into five contents boxes which break up the different articles in it. Each box has a heading at the top such as we heart shopping; we heart boys, Celebs & gossip etc. This makes it much easier for the target audience to be able to find the exact article they are looking for. All these subheadings emphasize the fact that the target audience for this magazine is for girls aged 10-16 because it contains things that girls this age are interested in. Also in the top left corner there’s a picture of the magazines front cover showing what pages the articles are on to make it easier for readers to find what they want to read. The title of the contents page is at the top of the page and is called ‘inside the mag...’ this title makes it more fun and quirky instead of just having contents. The abbreviation of "magazine" to "mag" is what most teenagers use and the magazine is trying to fit in with the colloquial language which most teens use.

On the contents page there is a picture of a red handbag in the bottom left corner and is part of the content box ‘we heart shopping’ this picture emphasises again that the magazine is for girls. There is also a close up image of Aston Merrygold which shows the top of his chest, this will grab the audience’s attention because he is from a famous boy band and most teenage girls listen to them. This picture is part of the ‘Celebs & gossip’ contents box which will draw the audience to read it because they have a idea of what’s going to be in the article.

The main colours used throughout the contents page are pink and white. The use of the colour pink makes the magazine look more girlie and catches the target audience’s eye. The background of the page is white which makes the black text stand out and easier for the reader to see.

The magazine has a number of catchy cover lines used throughout the contents page which will draw in the audience such as ‘Who’s your Mr right’ this will make the audience want to find out therefore they will read on. Throughout the contents a number of cover lines have been highlighted in yellow to make them stand out from the rest and has been done to show the readers which are the most exciting articles.

Main image is a medium close up of Katy Perry and is a very revealing image which will catch the audience’s eye.

The text used in the magazine is the same style except certain phrases and names are in bold.

The front cove I am going to analyse is from a music magazine called Rolling Stones.

The colour of the title matches the colour of Katy Perry’s lipstick in the main image.

The main colours in this magazine are pink and black which makes it stand out because the pink is so bright compared to the black.