Analysis of magazine front cover 1.NME Sept 2009

Dizzee Rascal Edition

FRONT COVER ANALYSISTHE MASTHEAD

Large, bright, eye-catching and bold. It sounds like ‘enemy’ which gives it attitude.

THE HEADER

Shows what the magazine includes. The reader can straight away see what kind of things they are buying.

THE SELL LINES/COVER LINES

Shows what the magazine includes other than the main cover line. They work the same as the main cover line but aren't shown as so important.

THE MAIN IMAGE

Relates to the main cover line. The eye is attracted straight to the main image, so it is important for it to relate to what the magazine is about. In this case it shows that the magazine is about music, includes Dizzee Rascal.

THE MAIN COVER LINE

Shows what the main article in the magazine is. It is large and bright to attract the buyer. It is usually something important or interesting as the reader wants something interesting.

Barcode-date/issue/price

Tells the reader what issue the magazine is. The bar code is used for keeping track of sales. This is very important to the magazine company.

THE FOOTER

Like the header, includes a summary of what the magazine is going to include. It includes the main things, in this case bands.

USE OF A PULL QUOTE

Tells the reader a bit about what the magazine is about. In this case what the part about Dizzee is about.

BACKGROUND

Bright, colourful. Random choice of background (kitchen flooring with graffiti) adds a sense of hip-hop.

USE OF A FLASHER-(offering something extra to T.A)

Makes the magazine appear to have more in it and better value.

RULE OF THIRDS/THE LEFT THIRD

The left third includes the pull quote and the masthead. It also includes Dizzee’s head which is the main part of the main image.

TARGET AUDIENCE OF THIS MAGAZINE

USE THE HYPERLINK FOR DIRECT ACCESS TO NME

http://www.nme.com/magazine

NME is published by IPC Media. Its editor is Krissi Murison.

The paper's first issue was published on 7 March 1952 after the Musical Express and Accordion Weekly was bought by London music promoter Maurice Kinn, and re-launched as the New Musical Express. It was initially published in a non-glossy tabloid format on standard newsprint.

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http://www.nme.com/magazine

Analysis of magazine cover 2.

Front cover analysis

THE MASTHEAD

Black and white, matches the colours of the main image. Smashed effect shows attitude, reflects a sense of aggressiveness and violence. Its written in capitals and has an exclamation mark to show that it is loud and powerful.

THE HEADER

Shows what kind of things are going to be in the magazine. What the magazine is going to be about, in this case it shows which bands are included in the magazine. It does the same as the footer but it is larger implying that these bands are more important.

MAIN IMAGE

Shows what kind of thing the magazine is going to be about so the reader can decide whether it is their kind of magazine. In this case it shows a band, which will most likely be written about within the magazine.

PULL QUOTE

Interests the reader. It adds a nit of info on what the main sell line is about.

FOOTER

Usually a summary of what is in the magazine. In this case it is showing what bands are included in the magazine, like the header. The ‘Plus’ makes it seem like we are getting extras.

BAR CODE/PRICE/ISSUE

Shows what issue the magazine is. The bar code tells the magazine company about sales numbers which is very important.

MAIN COVER LINE

Tells the reader what the main story in the magazine is. It gets the readers attention and can help the reader decide if they want to buy the magazine or not so it is important that it is interesting for the target audience.

SELL LINES/COVER LINES

Show what else is included in the magazine. They are usually the most important or interesting stories.

IMAGES

Like the cover lines, they show what the magazine is about and what kinds of things are included in the magazine. They also relate to the sell lines to give the reader a better idea of what the sell lines are about.

FREEBIES

Freebies are used to help sell the magazine. The reader is getting extras for free so they think they are getting better value for money. RULE OF THIRDS

The right side includes the sell lines and images. The bottom has the rest of the main information. The main sell line is in the middle row and the mast head is in the top row. The main image takes up the space of al l the remaining space.

Target audience of this magazineThis devoted audience of rock fans is made up of 60% males and 40% females with Kerrang!’s demographic fall into social class D-C. The predominate ethnicity of the readership is white British with a target population of 16-24 year olds, for example, all the band members on the cover are white and are around their mid twenties and all appear to have a sense of attitude. The magazine’s psychographic is defined as ‘people who aspire to be respected among other people and people who wish to have a high paid job.’

It is evident that the magazine is aimed at a young audience, through the use of graphics, fonts, layouts and presentation. Kerrang! is aimed at the youth and their lifestyles. It has a contemporary and up-to-date look, making use of modern typefaces and a down-to-earth feel. The magazine even accommodates the young readership by using advertisements that relate to their interests.

The magazine appeals to a specific niche audience because it concerns topics and themes that are relevant to people who listen to and are interested by rock music and its background. Kerrang! identifies its audience as ‘individually minded, independent of thought and musically experienced, an audience defined by attitude, passion and loyalty’. Kerrang distinguish their identity as a world ‘where Jackass meets Playstation and Skate culture meets ipod’ In the period 01-Jul-2008 to 31-Dec-2008 Kerrang!‘s circulation sales in the UK and the Republic of Ireland were at a high of 50,128 insuring it remained the market-leading music weekly. These figures display that Kerrang! is a successful magazine despite its audience being one demographic entity

USE THE HYPERLINK FOR DIRECT ACCESS TO KERRANG!

http://www.kerrang.com/ Kerrang! Magazine is published by Bauer Consumer Media.

Kerrang! commenced publication on 6 June 1981 and was edited by Geoff Barton, initially as a one-time supplement in the Sounds newspaper, which focused on the New Wave of British Heavy Metal phenomenon and on the rise of other hard rock acts. Angus Young of AC/DC appeared on Kerrang!’s first cover.The original owner was United Newspapers who then sold it to EMAP in 1991. In 2008 EMAP sold its consumer magazine to current owner Bauer Media Group.

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Typical Kerrang! Magazine covers, contents pages and articles.

Analysis of magazine cover 3.

Front cover analysis

Masthead is large and clear. It is very bright and is shown as their signature style with the ‘METAL’ written going up the ‘H’. It is dripping so it looks like it has been written in paint or blood because it is red. The font style is quite messy showing that this magazine is messy and out of control. It is also put behind the main image showing that it is recognisable without having to be clearly shown at the front.The border of the page is brown with patterned corners. This gives it an old effect. The edge of the border is also faded and grey making it look tattered. The border and corner pieces make the cover look like the front of a guitar amp with the white area where the speaker would be.

The header is quite small because there is so much to fit o the page. It is written in red and white, which seem to be the main colours on this page. The text is written in capitals and is in an informal font, like the masthead.

The magazine comes with a free ‘Dimmu Borgir’ beanie hat and official badge. This is used to make people buy the magazine because Dimmu Borgir fans will really want these items. The magazine tells us about these freebies at the top of the page. There is an image of the free hat shown in-between the two freebie sell lines. It is put right next to where the sell line is so that we know that it is the hat that the sell line is talking about.

The main image is a picture of Dimmu Borgir’s singer holding the skull of a dead animal. The singer is wearing the kind of clothes that Dimmu Borgir usually where, so he can be easily recognised as their singer. Immediately, he appears to be very different to what people are used to. His clothes are ‘weird’ and his make-up makes him look like a ghost. Some people are into this kind of thing and it would appear that this magazine is aimed towards those people so the use of this image is quite good.the image is behind the main sell line, but the horns of the skull are going over the sell line making the skull stand out more.

The main sell line is ‘DIMMU BORGIR’. This shows the reader that this magazine issue is focusing mainly around this band. The main image also helps make this more obvious. The sell line is written in the same font as the Masthead and is the same colour. It makes it stand out just as much as the masthead so it is clearly a very important part of the cover.

The background of the cover is plain white. This makes almost everything on the cover stand out much more. It also fades into the main image because the singer is wearing white, so he appears to blend in.

The sell lines on the page are across the sides on the lower half of the page. They are all written in the same style, but some are larger than others. This shows which ones are more important and which ones are less. It also gives the magazine the messy look with no order to it. The font looks like is has been scribbled onto the page quickly, which matches the main sell line and masthead which look like they have been painted on. The sell lines are in black which give the page a sense of evil. The sell lines are actually all names of bands which are included in the magazine. Each sell line has a short sentence underneath it about the sell line written in red which matches the colour scheme.

Front cover analysis

There are lots of flashers spread about the page, all about different things. They all look like stickers on the page and stand out against the rest of the page. They are yellow, purple and red. They make the magazine seem like it is giving extra things and is therefore seen as better value to the reader.

There is a large flasher in purple next to the head of the singer. On the other side of his head is a picture of the free badge. They are both level with the head to show that they are important, because you look at the singers head and then at them. They are also quite large which shows that they are important. The colours used also show that they are important because they stand out from the rest of the page. The badge is shown inside a large whole in the cover. From the whole, the inside of the magazine looks like it is mage of metal and it looks like the magazine has been shot from the other side and the metal is sticking out.

The bar code is in the bottom left corner of the page. Here it is tucked out of the way because there is so much on the front cover.

Above the main sell line there is some writing about the sell line, which gives the reader more information about the sell line. The writing is above a black background that, like the masthead and sell line, looks like is has been painted on.

The rule of thirds is used fairly clearly. The left column and right column have both got the sell lines listed down them. The middle colun has the main image in it, which goes into the other two columns too. The top row has the masthead and header. The middle row has the main sell line and the top of the skull, whilst the bottom row just has the main image and the sell lines in it.

Target audience of this magazine

Metal Hammer is the UK's market-leading monthly hardcore rock magazine. It is also the only music magazine that covers traditional and nu-metal bands, punk, hardcore and gothic rock.It reports on the burgeoning British scene as well as all that's happening Stateside and around the world.Metal Hammer's aim is to satisfy fans of established, traditional metal bands as well as to break new artists and to keep readers informed of everything happening in the world of metal.There are 13 issues per year with a circulation over 50,000.Audience Profile:85% maleAverage Age 22Average Income £30,722The vanguard of the rock and metal movementFirst to know about new music, and advise their friends on what to buySpend at least three hours reading each issueSpend on average £112 each per month on music, tickets and merchandise - equating to £138m per year

Metal Hammer’s choice of colour, font, imagery and freebies all suggest that it is aimed towards a mostly male target audience. The imagery suggests violence and death, along with the red font and colour.

It is quite clear that this magazine is not aimed at children or elderly people. The font and imagery suggest that it is aimed at young adults and some older teenagers.

USE THE HYPERLINK FOR DIRECT ACCESS TO METAL HAMMERwww.metalhammer.co.uk/

Metal Hammer UK changed hands several times, being bought first by Dennis Publishing and is now with Future Publishing. The German Metal Hammer is now owned by Springer publishing. There remain Greek and Italian Metal Hammer

publications, both published independently.

London-based Wilfried F. Rimensberger instigated the concept of MetalHammer magazine in 1983. At the time, he suggested to the infant Kerrang! magazine in London to publish a German version, but the editors of the time were not interested. Rimensberger took the idea to Jürgen Wigginghaus, publisher of German MusikSzene magazine where Rimensberger was Chief-Editor, and proposed the idea of a multi-lingual rock music publication. He also approached some of Europe's largest publishers such as Springer, Ringier and Bauer, but none were interested.Eventually, Wigginghaus used the Dortmunder Rocknacht as a test ground for the publication in Germany and Rimensberger started the international English version Metalhammer UK from London.