Name of my Magazine

Originally I was going to call my magazine 'MOCK' which is a combination of the words music and rock. My magazine is a rock music magazine and I thought the name would work well.
I then decided that wasn't a very good idea because mock isn't a good name. So I have decided to call the magazine RFY which is the initials for 'Rock For You'.

Double Page Spread Analysis

There is a large headline which is sort of in the font of a newspaper which is a bit like what the double page spread looks like. It just states the name of the band in the image on the left side of the page.

The large main image not only covers the left page of the spread but also covers part of the right page; it shows the band members with the lead singer leading in the photo. This suggests he is the main member of the band and three men in the background are less important however all members of the band are important. The way they are arranged is similar to that of the band Queen in the image for the song ‘bohemian rhapsody’. However The Vaccines music is quite different to Queens.

The lead paragraph is what you would expect, with larger font than the article but smaller font than the large headline. The person responsible for writing the article (byline) is included in the lead.

There is photo credit in very small font on the bottom right corner of the photo.

There are to drop caps in this article and these draw readers in to reading the article.

The pull quote is there to make the reader want to read the article.

Analysis of Contents Pages

Instead of having several images there is one main image on this contents page, the writing doesn’t go over the image, it is down the side. This is the house style that Mojo has, they have the main image and the writing goes around it or down the side of the image in every issue.

The features section is the first section, it includes the name of the feature in bold so it is clear to the reader and then a bit of information, this is a good technique because people know who they are going to read about before they actually read the article.

The cover story section is the next section and that just features one artist but the description which is in smaller writing is a lot larger than the descriptions in the features section.

The number is in the bottom right corner of the page, this is the place were the page number is normally placed on the right pages of the magazine.

This contents page doesn't have a editor's note, this is because an editor's note is not essential on a contents page.

There are several images in this contents page and I think they all bring a different aspect to the contents page, as if to show the readers that there is a story in the magzine for lots of different types of people. They are all arranged very neatly and although there are eight imagaes they don't look like they have been crushed on to the page.
The way that the NME contents page is laid out there isn't a features section but I think you would class all the images and writing underneath the images to be the features section.
There is a plus section which just includes all the articles in the magazine that doesn't have a picture, the fact they are just a plus section gives off the impression that they are not as important or well known as the artists in the images.

The page number would be in the bottom left or right cornerof the page dependent on which side the page was on.
The editor's note is not included on this contents page, the reason again is it is not necessary to have one.

LIIAR Analysis

The magazine masthead (ident/logo which is included in every NME magazine) is in bold, bright red writing, so it immediately stands out to the audience. The colour red could connote rebellion in a way and the poses from the band backs up this idea. The masthead isn’t across the whole width of the magazine because it would look strange to have three letters stretched across the whole width of a magazine front cover.

The background of the image is checked black and white, this could possibly connote a racing flag and that flag signals the end of session. This could be connected to the band’s new album and the fact the recording sessions have ended.

Some of the masthead has been covered (the ‘E’ is covered up and could be mistaken for an ‘F’) by the band which shows the popularity of the magazine because people will still know what magazine it is and don’t need to see the whole title to know what it is called.

The banner headline is ‘Arctic Monkeys’ and it takes up two lines and this obviously connects to the image of the arctic monkeys. The main cover line/anchorage that links to the banner headline and image is the two lines of writing above, this summarises what the article is about.

There are five cover lines not including the main one and they are all inviting readers and fans of the magazine to buy the magazine. All the names mentioned in the cover lines would be included in one type of genre, even though they create different styles of music.

The average deck of this front cover is three-four.

The puff of this magazine is the internet website.

The image is of the four band members with the lead singer (Alex Turner) closest to the camera therefore making him look like one of the most important parts of the band and being the ‘lead’. All the band members other than Alex Turner are making clear eye contact and the reason Alex isn’t making eye contact is because we can’t see his eyes.          

The institution of NME magazine is IPC Media, it has ‘a large portfolio selling over 350 million copies each year’ quote from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPC_Media. This proves that the publication company is large and isn’t just a local publication.

This front cover promotes arctic monkeys and all the other artists mentioned on it. The time this magazine was published relates to the time the band on the front cover of the magazine brought out their new album which is connected to the promotion of the band.

Even though the band comes across quite rebellious, NME manage to show them in a positive way because it makes you want to buy/download or listen to the arctic monkeys’ CD.

The target audience for NME according to ‘Ignite Media Pack’ is ‘65% Male*

50% 16-24*

23% 25-34*

79% ABC1*’

The representation of Arctic Monkeys is quite old school and Alex Turner’s hair looks very 1950’s. They look very rock and roll.

The stereotype you get from the main image on this front cover is indie/rock with a 'mardy' attitude.

This front cover is extremely simple as it only four sections of writing on it.

The name Q connotes cueing the next record to be played.

The image connects to the main cover line (headline or strapline) because the band is breaking through glass and the cover line says ‘KINGS OF LEON BREAK THROUGH’. The deck of this cover line is 2.

In total there are two cover lines (both with decks of 2) and one main cover line. It also has some writing in the bottom left corner, which is lyrics. This is unusual for a magazine because there is normally so much more content on a front cover.

The artists included in the cover lines are both rock bands, this shows the genre of that month.

The ident (masthead) is in the top left corner which is exactly where you would expect it to be. This is what they place on every ‘Q’ magazine so that you can identify the brand. The reason for it being here is because this is where the ident traditionally is in the top left corner and it becomes the first thing you look at by being there because when you read something you read from left to right and from top to bottom, so it should be the first thing the audience look at.

The layout of this front cover is very tidy. The image overlaps the ident a lot but we still know what magazine it is. The main cover line covers the image in bold writing so you know what the image is about straight away. Then the other two cover lines are smaller writing and they don’t overlap any people in the image however you still notice them.

The puff of this product is probably their TV music channel on Sky.

The institution of Q magazine is Bauer Media Group; this is a very large company and publishes several different magazines.

The magazine conveys the band as being quite rebellious and aggressive/violent, which makes them seem really cool. All of the band members faces are scrunched up and they look like they are really trying to ‘break through’ the glass. This suggests that the target audience are people who like the band and rock music or the audience could include women/girls that are into ‘bad boys’ or men/boys that like the idea of being rebellious.

‘Q's audience is composed of passionate, engaged and open minded music fans driven to continually discover new music - and to use this lust for discovery to influence their friends. The audience is split 75% male to 25% female’ this information was taken from http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/Brands/Q/.

The representation of the featured bands is rebellious and cool. It gives the audience a positive outlook on the artists.

The banner headline of this page is ‘Biffy Clyro’ which is the name of the band in the main image.

There is a caption under each photo and there are three photos not including the main image. The caption underneath the image of Hayley Williams is a play on words because her top in the image says ‘RIOT’ and the cover line/caption underneath says ‘HAYLEY STARTS A RIOT!’

The skyline is promoting something in the magazine therefore making you want to buy it to get the offer inside.

The ident/masthead ‘KERRANG!’ is across the top of the cover and it is an onomatopoeic word because it is the word used which sounds like the power chord of an electric guitar. The exclamation mark emphasises how loud the music involved in the magazine should be.

The layout is very in your face and everything is set in front of the ident this could be connected to the type of music ‘Kerrang!’ advertises which is rock music; it is loud.

The puff for Kerrang! is the music channel on sky, the Kerrang! website and the radio channel.

The splash is in the skyline and it is an offer on downloading music which is connected to the genre of the magazine and simply because it is an offer it will attract people to the magazine.

The strapline is a play on words because their album in 2007 was called ‘Puzzle’ and this magazine was published in 2007 which means that Biffy Clyro was a current topic and means the magazine will make more sales because of Biffy Clyro being popular at the time. The strapline also connects to the image because Simon Neil (the lead) has his hand on his chin which is what people do when they are puzzled.

The institution of this magazine is Bauer Media Group; it is a big company and produces lots of other magazines.

The message Kerreng! puts across on this magazine front cover is all the free posters you get inside and they make all the artists featured look good, which means the artists sales will go up.


The audience of Kerrang! is 'Young, individually minded and passionate consumers, an audience defined by attitude, passion and loyalty.'  This information was taken from http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/Brands/Kerrang/.

The representation of the artists in this magazine is positive because the artists that are featured are all one type of music which is rock music.

Audience

My magazine is aimed at men and women aged 16-24. The style of music that will be included is rock music so it will appeal to people who enjoy listening to and have good knowledge of rock music.

I am going to advertise my magazine through other magazines with the same publisher. At first a small version of the magazine could be included when you buy a different magazine (with a percentage of the price from the magazine it is with going to my magazine) and then after it is established and people know of the magazine it could be sold as a seperate product.

To make profit on my magazine I will have space for advertising. The type of products I will advertise is band CD's, music channels and music shops for example HMV.

I want my audience to think of my magazine as a cool magazine and I would like the audience to think of it as quite an upmarket magazine.

Genre

The genre I have chosen is rock. This genre developed during and after the 1960’s. It is mainly based in the UK and US. It was influenced on genres like rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and country music, folk, jazz and other genres.

The genre heads off into a lot of different sub-genres such as alternative rock, puck rock, indie rock, garage rock, hard rock, grunge and many more.

The main musical elements of rock are bands. The types of instruments used are vocals, electric guitars, bass guitar, drums, synthesizer, acoustic guitar and keyboard.

The magazines that cover the genre I have chosen are NME, Rock sound, Mojo and others.

The Music Magazine Brief

Main Task: the front page, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine. All images and text used must be original, produced by you - minimum of four images.

Promotion

The way I would promote my magazine is through college open evenings and induction days. I would also use the college website to advertise my magazine.
If I had a print magazine it is more likely to gain the attention of my target audience because it would be sold around college which is where my target audience are. However if my magazine was on the internet there would be a wider range of audience.

Audience feedback

“An appealing front cover.”

“It's totally awesome."

"Lots of content."

"Bright and grabs your attention."

"The plain background allows the image to stand out."

Final Front Cover

The LIIAR Evaluation of my magazine front cover

In my evaluation I am going to write about how I made the decisions to produce this front cover and also about any problems that arose in the creation of it.

The first thing I did was decide a name for my college magazine and because it is a weekly magazine I decided on the name ‘Wyke’s weekly mag’ but that sounded very strange because it was obvious that it is a magazine, so I then changed it to ‘Wyke Weekly’.

The second task I had was to create several drafts, with each one improving. This helped create my final production because it clearly showed what didn’t work well and what did.

The language I have used is very simple. It is also positive and promotes wyke college to be a happy learning environment which is what I intended to do.

 I have used a question in one of my cover lines and the answer will be inside the magazine so this makes the audience want to buy the magazine and find the answer so this I thought putting a question on the front would be a good way to make sales.

A technique I have used in my masthead is alliteration as both words in ‘Wyke Weekly’ begin with a W.

The ideology is to represent a bright and welcoming learning environment and having a student who is smiling is a cheerful representation of wyke.

The image stands out from the background because the student is wearing dark clothes in comparison to the bright orange background.

My magazine has a barcode and is clearly priced and also has two offers in the top corner, I think the offers will attract an audience because firstly you can buy the magazine for cheaper and secondly people will want to buy the magazine more if they are saving money on driving lessons. However this would only appeal to the students who are 17 and over. Originally I put ‘Driving lessons for free inside’ but I then realised that it is a very unrealistic offer and changed it to ‘15% off’ because that is a lot more realistic.

The institution for my magazine would be the college.

The audience for my college magazine is both girls and boys aged 16-19, the colour scheme links to this because it is very neutral colours. Nothing on the front cover is aimed more for boys or girls.

The representation of this magazine is a female student that is smiling; this creates a positive atmosphere for the front cover.

There are four different cover lines on my front cover and a main cover line (anchorage).

I think a good thing about my magazine is that it isn’t empty and has a lot of content. I also think the fact I have used several different fonts and font sizes is good because it isn’t bland and boring which it would be if I hadn’t changed fonts or sizes.   

In conclusion I am happy with my magazine front cover because I think it will appeal to the target audience.                                                                                                                                                                                                    

My Drafts with Analysis

Draft one:

• I don’t like the colours that I have used because they blend in too much.
• I don’t think there is enough content on this draft.
• The text doesn’t stand out enough.
• The title isn’t bold enough.
• The layout hasn’t filled the page properly and doesn’t really fit together correctly.

Initial Ideas for my College Magazine

Initial Ideas for my College Magazine on Prezi