Analysis of Pop Magazines

Lauren Morgan

Top of the Pops Magazine Front CoverMasthead: The masthead for this

magazine is ‘Top of the Pops’ which is short and catchy, also clearly showing

what genre of music the magazine contains, making it easy for the target audience to recognise the magazine

they are after. The colours of the masthead are pink and white, also using

curly font, connoting a very feminine atmosphere, appealing to the target

market of teenage girls.Central Image: The central image of this magazine is a mid shot of pop teen idol Justin Bieber, who

has an enormous fan base of young girls around aged 8-17 year

olds, obviously drawing in the attention of his fans and appealing to their target market. He is placed

in front of a white background which highlights himself and

represents innocence, and he is also wearing the colours blue and white, making him look typically masculine in comparison to the rest of the content on the front

cover.

Cover Lines: The cover lines down the side of the

magazine are there to inform readers as to what is

included in the magazine and what they can expect to see, also anchored by the images

along side them.

Alliteration: The alliteration ‘Rock it like Rita’ and ‘OH BOY,

IT’S BIEBER!’ provide the magazine with catchy cover

lines and making it seem more fun.

Flash: The flash ‘9 NEW DATING TIPS TO TRY TODAY!’ is there to

intrigue the audience in to reading that article, therefore making them

want to buy the magazine. The buzz word ‘NEW’ creates the

impression that no other magazine provides this information,

suggesting that they are offering more than others.

Smash Hits Magazine Front CoverMasthead: The masthead for this magazine is ‘Smash! Hits’ which suggests that this magazine is

providing readers with the best and most popular music. The colours

yellow and white make it stand out and connote a happy, joyful mood,

reflecting the genre of pop.

Slogan: The slogan ‘non-stop POP!’ clearly shows

the genre of the magazine and suggests that the

magazine is full to the brim with great pop music that

doesn’t stop.

Flash: The flash on this magazine says ‘HIP HOP SPESH’ which shows what is included

inside and the shortening of the word ‘special’ to ‘SPESH’ can be seen as a buzz word as it gives

the impression that this is a special within this magazine

only.

Colour Scheme: The colour scheme of this magazine

consists of purple, yellow, blue and white. The mixture of these colours don’t exactly make the magazine gender

specific, therefore creating a wider audience.

Central Image: The central image of this magazine is Britney Spears, using a direct mode of address, looking straight at the reader which draws in their

attention. This is seen as an image of perfection, with her wind-swept blonde hair and perfect skin and make-up, appealing to women as they want to look like her and also using the male gaze theory, appealing to men as this

is what they view as good looking and their ideal woman.

We <3 Pop Magazine Front CoverMasthead: The masthead for this

magazine is ‘WE <3 POP’ obviously portraying the genre of music in the

magazine and is short and snappy. The collective pronoun ‘WE’ makes the

magazine seem like a community and involves the readers who also love pop. The colours of the masthead are black,

white and pink, connoting a girly atmosphere and appeals to females, therefore creating themselves their

target audience.

Skyline: The skyline says ‘GOSSIP.FASHION.BOYS’ in white font against a pink background

making it stand out. The fact that it is advertising boys and gossip strongly links this magazine to

females as these are stereotypically seen as girly things to do and

include boys to admire.

Central Image: The central image of this magazine is Rihanna leant against

a white background with her hands above her head, connoting a relaxed posture, supported by the big smile on her face. This suggests that the

magazine has a happy, chilled atmosphere, creating positive vibes.

Buzz Word: The buzz word ‘EXCLUSIVE’ gives the impression that

the magazine is unique and is the only one to cover that specific story, giving it a USP and suggesting that it

is better than other magazines.

Teasers: The teaser ‘girlfriends, naked bits + never seen pics!’ gives a brief idea of what to expect and teases the readers as it appears to be quite a risqué article, intriguing them into buying the magazine and finding out more. Also the ‘never seen pics’ suggests that no

other magazine has those pictures, giving the impression that only this magazine contains

them.

Callout: The callout “I weed on a hamster” catches readers attention as it is quite wacky and outrageous, perhaps then leading on the reader to wanting

to find out more.

Rolling Stone Magazine Front CoverMasthead: The masthead is called ‘Rolling Stone’ perhaps making a

reference to the famous band The Rolling Stones. The colours are red and black, making it look

prominent and bold, also making sure that it isn’t gender specific.

Central Image: The central image on this magazine is of

Taylor Swift, looking directly at the camera whilst sat down

posing. This image would attract the attention of females as her songs are very feminine

and relationship-related, making her an idol for them.

Also, this image would appeal to male audience as she is

attractive and a lot of her flesh is on show, linking to the male

gaze theory.Layout: The layout of this magazine is quite simple and has

nothing too extravagant or overcrowded, making it appear more sophisticated and not as

childish as others, most likely to appeal to the older age group.

Cover Lines: The cover lines on this magazine are there to grab

the readers attention and to inform them of what articles there are inside, using catchy

cover lines such as ‘Lennon’s Lost Letters’ are to intrigue the reader.

Blender Magazine Front CoverMasthead: The

masthead of this magazine is called

‘Blender’ and is in big, bold, black font,

making it stand out.

Central Image: The central image of this magazine is Katy Perry standing

facing away from the camera but looking directly at the camera. Even though the colours of this magazine

are black, white and pink, stereotypically appealing to girls as they are girly colours, this central image would make the magazine

become more appealing to males as well as the picture would grab their attention, also linking to the male

gaze theory.

Skyline: The skyline ‘FREE DOWNLOADS! 10 HOT NEW

TRACKS (P.75)’ lets the readers gain something for

free out of the magazine and the adjectives ‘hot’ and ‘new’

big the free gift up, making people more intrigued to buy

it.

Cover Lines: The cover lines on this magazine are presented well as certain words are made with bigger font, enhancing them so

that readers will be drawn to that certain word first, mainly names

of artists such as ‘Katy Perry’ ‘Metallica!’ and ‘Weezer!’ which shows the audience what artists

are included within this magazine.

Top of the Pops Magazine Contents Page

‘Inside the mag…’ is the title of this contents page, showing

clearly this is what the purpose of the page is for, to guide readers

where to go within the magazine. The white text and pink

background portrays the girly theme of the magazine, appealing

to the female target audience.

The images on this page help anchor the text. It is also an easy way for the readers to

flick to what they would most likely want to read first.

The page numbers on this contents page are in bright pink font, with some of them larger

than others, showing that these are the main articles that they

advise readers should go to first.

The white, pink and yellow colour scheme represent a girly atmosphere, making

the page look fun and lively.

The headings such as ‘We <3 Shopping’ and ‘All About You’ help divide the page into sections and making it easier for the reader to navigate themselves around the page and around the magazine.

Smash Hits Magazine Contents Page

This puff uses red and white colours, making stand out against the black background and is the thing that first draws you to the

page, welcoming readers back to the next issue of this magazine.

The title ‘CONTENTS’ is in bold, capital letters, also in black font

against a white background, making it stand out.

The 4 images are on this page to help guide readers to specific pages, showing what these 4 certain pages are about and

where to find them. They also provide a visual element on the page, making it more interesting

to look at.

This is a list of names of all the people that have worked to create this magazine, showing that it is a well established music magazine.

The red, white and black colour scheme create a

sophisticated style for the magazine, appealing to either

gender.

We <3 Pop Magazine Contents Page

The callout “I’d pose naked for about a hundred quid!” grabs the readers attention as it is quite an

outrageous comment, teasing them and perhaps making them

more inclined to read that article.

Most of the images on this page are of famous male celebrities, which then gives the impression that this

magazine is predominantly for females, using images of males to

appeal to them.

The page numbers on this page are bright and bold,

standing out from the colour of their backgrounds.

The colour scheme of this contents page are white, blue and yellow, creating quite a masculine approach

to the magazine, however the images of the males go against this idea.

The editor’s note on the contents page is a good way to inform

readers of what is going on that week and what to expect from this issue. It also makes the readers feel

welcome and as though they are being talked to directly.

Rolling Stone Magazine Contents Page

The colour scheme of this contents page is quite dull, mainly

using red, white and grey. This gives the impression that the

magazine would be for an older target audience.

Displaying their website link at the top of the page in white

capitalised text against a read background makes it stand out and is guiding readers to view

their website, creating a convergence for their magazine.

The layout of this contents page is very organised, divided into

different sections which then makes it easier for the reader to

navigate around the page, knowing clearly where everything

is and where to go.

The images on this contents page are there to anchor the text alongside it. There are only

images for the main stories and they also have a longer

description, showing clearly that these are the main articles of the

magazine.

On this contents page, there is a section which advertises there poll, persuading the readers to also vote, giving them something to do and get

involved with, relating to the uses and gratifications theory.

Vibe Magazine Contents PageThe layout of this contents page is

extremely simplistic, with no masthead and only one image. This suggests that this certain magazine isn’t aimed at the

younger audience, more likely to be targeted at 18 year olds and

over as it gives off a very sophisticated look.

The central image on this contents page is of a woman,

leant over and posing with a stick. She is showing a lot of flesh and also has a suggestive look upon

her face, supported by the stance that she is in. This could appeal to

both males and females. With females perhaps wanting to look like her and with males perhaps

wanting her, creating a wide target audience.

There are only a few page numbers listed, alongside the

article and a short description of what that article is about, letting readers know where to go and

helping them navigate around the magazine.

Top of the Pops Double Page Spread

The body copy on this double page spread is

separated into different sections, making it

easier for the readers to navigate around the

page.

“I’d dress like Lady Gaga!” is the title of this article,

in a big white font against a black background with pink inverted commas,

typically connoting a girly style. This is also known

as a pull quote, as this is one of the things that

Leona Lewis has said in her interview, obviously

then intriguing the readers into reading the article to find out more.

Here is another pull quote for readers to see and then

engage the readers into wanting to find out more.

The image on this double page spread is of Leona Lewis as this is

who the interview is with, showing a picture of her looking attractive and smiling, portraying the nature of the interview and that it is positive and

fun.

The subheading “We asked Leona our silliest questions ever – you won’t believe her outrageous answers!” is there to catch the readers attention and make them want to read the interview as they suggest that readers would be shocked at what she has to

say and that the article is worth reading.

Smash Hits Double Page Spread

The image on this double page spread is of Cher Lloyd bent over in a comical pose with a

camera. The atmosphere of this image suggests that the article will be fun and wacky, also that

some parts of it may shock readers as that is her

expression in the picture, which then makes people want to

read the article.

The colour scheme of this double page spread is white, black and pink,

making it come across as very feminine and girly, also supported by the image of the female, suggesting

that this article is mainly aimed at the female target audience.

The drop capital ‘W’ indicates the start of the article and the

colours black and pink also contribute to the colour scheme of the

page.

The highlighted quotes draw attention to them and suggests that this is

the key information that they would want the readers to read.

Pop Double Page Spread

The image on this double page spread is a close up of Beyoncé.

The image is rather unique as she has a net of metal around her face, however this unique

image links to the title ‘FIERCELY CREATIVE’ as it shows that she is

being creative and not just following the crowd, giving herself a personal identity.

The colour scheme of this double page spread is white

and hot pink, connoting a sexy atmosphere which

reflects the image of Beyoncé and her persona.

The by-line shows who wrote the

article.

Rolling Stone Double Page Spread

The image for this double page spread is of Lady

Gaga, looking directly at the camera. She isn’t

wearing any clothes apart from a huge metal

necklace and is covering her body with her hands.

This connotes a risqué atmosphere and is very suggestive, which could

perhaps reflect the article itself, which then may

make readers more intrigued to read it.

The colour scheme is white, black and red, making it very simplistic

and easy to take in. The hint of red adds a sign of sexiness and danger,

which then links to the image.

The text ‘Lady Gaga’ is separate from all the

other body copy, which makes it stand out and

can then be looked upon as the title of the

article, using a simplistic approach.

The big red ‘L’ is what you are first drawn to when seeing the article as it is the

only colour on the page, obviously done for a reason. The L must stand for Lady

Gaga, creating herself an identity.

The drop capitals make it easier for

the reader to know where the new paragraphs are.

We Love Pop Double Page Spread

The image on this double page spread is of Joe Jonas from a famous band with his 2 brothers. He looking

directly at the camera and is wearing a black vest, with

his arms and evident muscles on show. This

shows that the article is predominantly aimed at women as he is made to

look sexy and appealing for the female eye.

The title ‘THE BROTHER WE WANT TO SMOTHER’ is in bright white text against

a red background which then makes it stand out. It

also rhymes, making it catchy and sound

interesting.

The colour scheme of this double page spread is

white, red and black, all which connote a sexy

atmosphere, supported by the central image on

the page.

The layout of the body copy is clear and easy to read as the questions and answers

are all separated into different sections, making

the page look more appealing to the readers.