Analysis of magazine front coversCover 1.NME Sept 2009

Dizzee Rascal Edition

FRONT COVER ANALYSISTHE MASTHEAD

THE HEADER…

THE SELL LINES/COVER LINES

THE MAIN IMAGE ….

THE MAIN COVER LINE

Barcode-date/issue/price

THE FOOTER

USE OF A PULL QUOTE

BACKGROUND

USE OF A FLASHER-

RULE OF THIRDS/THE LEFT THIRD

It is large and takes up a lot of room in the top left corner of the page so that it stands out and can be easily recognised by potential readers. Also being in red on a white background it stands out even more . Furthermore having a black border going around the masthead gives it a cleaner look on the page.

“AUTUMN TOUR SPECIAL” is put in bold to show its importance and how it is “special” tries to make the reader think that the information is interesting. The “16 PAGE” is not in bold as it isn't as important and by putting it next to text that is in bold makes the bold text stand out more. Also the text is in capitals to emphasize the importance and excitement of the text and seem more appealing to the reader.

They are in contrasting colours (red and black) as this makes them stand out more which can catch the readers eye and make them want to read on. It is also in capitals to emphasize the importance of the bands and to show the reader that the magazine covers a lot of different bands.

Is used to be eye catching and draw the readers attention and the info makes you want to read on. It also shows how the magazine has even more information than first anticipated and is trying to fit it all on the front page which tells the reader that the magazine is full of information on their favourite artists/bands.

The main image in a magazine is usually a Medium shot but this image is of the full body of Dizzee Rascal but he is bent over looking at the camera. Which represents the pop stars wild and mischievous character.

The main cover line is but in bold to show the importance of “DIZZEE RASCAL” and also it is on a slant to show the rebellious side of pop music and to also reflect Dizzee’s personality.

The footer is there to show the reader that the magazine also features various other artists such as Jay-Z etc and so the reader thinks they are getting more information on bands and artists that they like.

The barcode , date, issue and price are put into the corner of the magazine as it is of less importance than the information being described on the front cover. It means that the reader is looking more at the sell lines and image than the price.

A pull quote is used here as it gives an insight of what the artist will be talking about and also “I’m spreading joy around the world man!” leaves the reader wanting to read on about why and how. Also it is in capital letters and uses an exclamation point at the end to portray the image of excitement to the readers.

The page is split up into thirds. Each third is filled with some sort of imagery or text as this makes the magazine seem more appealing to the audience when more space is full as they know it contains a lot of information of different artists.

The background is a graffiti style which represents Dizzee’s rebellious character and personality and also it shows how , like the background, his lifestyle is busy and hectic as he is a successful pop star who is always on the move.

NME: Target audience

This is a screenshot from the NME website that gives information on the magazine. From the image above taken from the website you can see how the target market for NME is men aged between 17 and 30 who have a social class of ABC1 and are willing to spend £2.20 on a weekly magazine. To get their target market to buy their magazine

http://www.nme.com/magazine

MANY SALES DOES IT MAKE

WHAT GENRE/TYPE OF MAGAZINE IS IT? DETAILS OF ITS TYPICAL CONTENT AND THE ARTISTS/BANDS IT CURRENTLY FEATURES

The genre of the magazine is rock, indie, rap and hip-hop. The contents of the magazine would typically give info on festivals, tours, clubs and concerts.

NME.COM has 5 million users per month. And sales vary from around 200000 issues per week.

http://www.nme.com/magazine

VIBE: Front cover analysisThe Masthead

The masthead is all in capitals to stand out to the reader and also to portray the excitement of the magazine to the reader.

Background

The background is plain as it allows for the text and image to stand out further to the reader and it makes the magazine seems more appealing.

Header

In the header the magazine has more information about the contents of the magazine. “10 B.I.G. SECRETS” makes the reader want to find out more and read the magazine. Also it shows how the magazine isn't just about music but also about movies which implies to the reader that they get more to read about for their money.

Main image

The main image is of rapper Kanye West and it is a close up to give the effect that he is looking straight at the audience which is reflective of his rebellious rapper personality and sets the genre for the magazine.

THE FOOTERTHE SELL LINES/COVER LINES

RULE OF THIRDS/THE LEFT THIRD

The footer for VIBE has the magazine website so the reader can go online and find out more).

One of the main sell lines “Kanye West” Instantly attracts attention from the reader as they know what artists/artists the magazine writes about and can judge the contents of

the magazine because of this.

The left third contains the main sell line of the magazine and it is in capitals and larger than the other text as it is trying to portray excitement and is also the second thing the reader will look at after the image as it is eye catching.

Use of a pull quote

A pull quote is used to give the reader some idea of what it is the artist will be talking about to try and interest the reader. “I AM RAP” would suggest to the reader that the artist is cocky and confident and this reflects the side of rap that his personality is trying to portray to the reader.

VIBE: Target audience

The target audience for VIBE would be would be to listeners of R&B, Hip-Hop and Rap. And more likely to be between the ages of 18 and 35 years old. This is because this age group is more likely to have disposable income and still be interested in this particular genre of music.

VIBE

Kerrang:Front cover AnalysisThe Masthead Background

THE SELL LINES/COVER LINESRULE OF THIRDS/THE LEFT THIRD

HeaderMain image

THE FOOTER

The masthead is , like all the other magazines, in capitals to suggest the importance and portray the excitement of the magazine.

The main image is of a band and immediately because it is over the magazine title , the audience knows that the band is important and well known.

The footer is used to give a list of different bands that the magazine includes to show the reader what genre of music the magazine covers.

The header is used to mention other bands that the magazine covers and also offers free stickers for those bands to show the reader that the magazine gives more than first thought.

The background behind the band is plain and red to make the band members stand out to make them seem more important.

“IS IT ALL OVER?” is a cliff-hanger that makes the reader want to read on. It is all in capitals to show it is important and this again makes the reader want to read on. There is also many uses of the word “FREE” that could’ve been used to make it seem like the magazine gives the reader more for their money.

The rule of thirds is used well in this magazine as no section of the magazine is left blank. There is something of interest in all of the squares and this makes the reader seem more appealing to the reader as it seems full of information about their favourite bands.

Kerrang: Target audience

Cover price is £2.20, which is cheap for the target audience of students, young people with low incomes etc. Weekly music magazine of the rock genre.

Kerrang