unit 1: analyzing media products and audiences
TRANSCRIPT
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OCR – Level 3 Cambridge Introductory Diploma in Media
Unit 01: Analyzing Media Products and Audiences
Evidence
Name: Tom HibbertCandidate Number: 2063Center Name: St. Andrew’s Catholic SchoolCenter Number: 64135
Set Brief - Print
Project/Brief –
Music Magazine & Promotion
1. Focus publisher and product – Slide 32. Ownership Structure – Slide 53. Ownership Model – Slide 64. Brand Ideology/Ethos – Slide 75. Technological Convergence – Slide 86. Associated Products – Slide 97. Market Position – Slide 108. Competitors of Bauer Media – Slide 119. Competitors of Kerrang magazine – Slide 1210. Publishing Process – Slide 1311. Magazine contents page – Slide 1412. Genre – Slide 1513. DPS – Slide 1614. Katz Theory Slide 1815. Hierarchy of Needs – Slide 1916. Demographics – Slide 2017. Psychographics – Slide 2118. Primary Research19. Survey Results Slide 23-3120. Secondary Research21. Reviews – Slide 3322. Promotion – Slide 3523. Social Media – Slide 3624. Distribution – Slide 3725. Stereotypes – Slide 3926. Relevant issues of representation – Slide 4027. Legal Issues – Slide 4128. Role of regulatory body – Slide 4229. Editors code of practice – Slide 4330. How to make a complaint – Slide 4431. Copyright – Slide 4532. Watermark – Slide 46
Contents
1. Europe’s largest privately owned publishing Group2. The seeds of the company’s radio business were
planted in 1990 3. In 1994, the company bought a small magazine called
For Him Magazine which is now the core of the best-selling international multi-platform brand FHM.
4. Bauer Media spans over 80 influential brand names covering a diverse range of interests including heat –
the must have weekly celebrity title, Parkers, MATCH!, CAR and Yours.
5. In 1996, Bauer Media acquired digital music TV channel The Box, as a route into the small screen business, which has grown into Box Television, a
seven channel joint venture TV business with Channel 4.
6. The Bauer Media Group has set the course for sales growth in its domestic market.
7. Bauer media group holds a 56 per cent retail market share of the popular magazine segment, and is also
the leading private radio provider.
Focus publisher and product
1.Kerrang magazine was first published on June 6 1981.
2.Kerrang magazine is the Uk’s no.1 rock magazine.
3.Releases weekly copies.4.The editor for Kerrang is
James McMahon5.Kerrang is not only a
magazine but also has their own channel on TV
6. Kerrang have their own music chart for rock music.7.The magazine includes interviews and ‘exclusive’ talks with the rock band artists featured in the
magazine.8.James McMahon was
appointed as editor on 6 June 2011
9.37,603 copies of Kerrang had been sold by June 2013
10.Kerrang is published by Bauer media group.
Bauer media was first found in 1875.Bauer Media is a global publisher because it has its headquarters in Hamburg. By being a global publisher it is open to a lot of brands which can help them reach their insight which is “to be able to deliver ground-breaking consumer insight to media professionals, having more market leading brands across a wider breadth of markets than any other media owner”.
On each page of Bauer’s website they have the social networking icons on the left hand side. This shows continuously that they are on social networking sites. This attracts younger audiences that are in fact with these networking sites that they can interact with a magazine that they like within their own environment and reach out to Bauer about their magazine.
Ownership Structure
Research Sources
http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/about
Ownership Model
Slogan: “We think Popular”The logo with the slogan contains bright feelings with a range of colours. This range of colours in the image connotes the ethos of the magazine which is to have a wide rang of brands and products. The bright colours reflect how their purpose is to entertain and the wide range of colours show the rang of brands and ideas they have. The slogan also connotes that they ‘think’ that they are popular and are therefore considered popular. This could also suggest that if you read the magazine you will be popular.
Brand Ideology/Ethos
Bauer media Group can be found on twitter. They also have a separate twitter account for jobs available at Bauer Media Group. This not only promotes the publishing group, but also extends the range of people who know about Bauer Media Group as a significant amount of people are on social networking sites. The website also gives access for purchasing an ‘e-version’ of the magazine.
Technological Convergence
Associated ProductsBauer media produces other products outside Kerrang like: Q, MOJO and other magazines which are unrelated to music magazines. By not only producing music magazines, Bauer have attracted different target audiences which will overall give the publisher a wide range of media to publish and entertain their audience with. It also shows how the company have diversified over the years in order to attract a larger readership using a range of media platforms.
54%
24%
22%
Sales
Bauer MediaIPC MediaMusic and Media Solution group
Market PositionMagazines Sold
Kerrang
Q
MOJO
Rock Sound
It is clear that Bauer have managed to achieve a strong majority when it comes to publishing music magazines.
IPC Media IPC media is a similar company to Bauer Media Group. IPC
media are a worldwide company that have global offices in New York Metro London Tampa Stamford Birmingham Los Angeles Bangalore Hong Kong SF Bay Area Chicago Amsterdam
IPC Media is within Timeinc.UK which have o0ver 60 brands including “NME”. Despite being cheaper than most of Bauer’s magazines IPC media have still to achieve the no. 1 spot in music magazine publishing.
Competitors of Bauer Media
Source Usedhttp://www.timeincuk.com
Competitors of Kerrang! Magazine
Rock SoundRock sound is a similar magazine to Kerrang in the sense that they are both covering the same genre. Rock sound uses a completely different shade, tone and variety of colours in the magazine where as Kerrang has one colour scheme per issue that connotes the content mood and theme of that particular issue.
Publisher: Freeway Press.inc
Pick a Subject/Genre/TopicWhen the decision to make a magazine arises you need to have a good genre and subject that is popular and will gather profit.
Choose a name/titleThe name of your magazine will need to be chosen strategically and methodically as you will need to put great thought and time into what your magazine will be recognised as.
Choose the article you are going to coverThe article covered in the magazine should be interesting for readers and your target audience as if it is not interesting then your readership will reject t the magazine completely.
Choose the cover imageThis image will have to catch the reader’s eyes and draw them into reading the magazine because of the look of it.
Design your masthead for you magazineThe brand identity of the magazine lies in the masthead, a font style that is readable and aesthetically pleasing will be best for the magazine.
Write body articlesMore than one article will help to collect the largest amount of information for the readership.
Improve photos/Incorporate graphicsThe photos in the magazine need to be of a professional standard and to a high quality so that the target audience and those reading the magazine can compliment and appreciate the presentation.
Decide on feature articlesFeature articles are the articles that will be featured in the magazine and will hold the magazines unique content together with the overall presentation of the magazine.
Place thumbnailsThe thumbnails will need to preview the article enough that the reader will know what will be in the article.Create table of contents
Publishing ProcessSource Used
https://www.lucidpress.com/blog/2014/02/20/how-to-make-a-magazine-in-twelve-steps
/
Magazine contents page
Consistent Colour Scheme
There is a consistent colour scheme in use of red, yellow, black and
white. The colour red connotes
the idea of stopping, therefore is used on the contents page to make
the reader stop and read what is on what
page.Yellow would suggest bright and cheery, this is used on the contents page to show different
sections of the magazine.
White symbolises purity and is used here to
show a clean background to the
contents page.Black connotes
something of a dark and sinister nature and
is used here as a background to artists
images, perhaps suggesting the nature
of the music they produce.
ImagesThe use of an image that
takes up most of the contents page and does not have a link to any
rock artist is unusual as an artist would usually be here in this size as a pose to a member of a random audience at a
concert.Layout
The layout of the contents page is not very
organised, this is maintaining the rough, tough rock image that
the readership are looking for in this genre.
The editorial has also been included at the
bottom of the contents page, this connotes ownership with the contents page as
suggests a contrast with the un-organisation of
the genre making this a unique magazine.
Genre - Rock
Verbal CodesKerrang’s verbal codes are the text that the magazine displays
on the magazine. The verbal code “ROCK STARS WHO
CHANGED YOUR WORLD” is a perfect example of how they use
verbal codes connotes their genre of rock music. “Rock “ is
literally written on the front cover and makes the reader
very aware that they are in fact a rock magazine.
Kerrang is a rock music magazine and
their front covers clearly display this.On this particular
front cover of Kerrang they have
used non-verbal and verbal codes to
show this.
Non-Verbal CodesThe magazine’s front cover has a picture of many
rock music artists and does this as a constant feature for the magazine each week. This specific front cover
has multiple rock artists such as: Billie Joe Armstrong, Gerard Way and Kurt Cobain.
These are not only rock artists but very well known artists that symbolise rock music.
BarcodeThe barcode for this magazine has the logo inside of it as well as the
price and issue number.The connotations of the logo in the
barcode are the consistency to advertise the magazine’s title. By having the logo in the barcode
HeadlineThe headline of Kerrang’s front cover is ‘ICONS’. The text is presented in a
bold, bright and coloured format which draws in the readers’ attention as it is the biggest title on the page.
MastheadThe masthead has sharp, broken and
destructive connotations. This
matches the consistent style of Kerrang magazine because they are a
punk rock magazine.
Anchorage textThe Anchorage text on the front cover makes the reader more interested in reading the article because it tells us
that more rock artists are featured
in the magazine, this makes the reader become
more interested as more of the artists they like are in the
magazine.
Adverts/FreebiesThe advert on the front cover of this issue of Kerrang is the free download option for a festival.
This encourages readers to buy the magazine in order to get the
freebies advertised.
Drop Capital
Consistent colour scheme throughoutThis double page spread of Kerrang magazine has a consistent colour scheme of black, red and white. The colour red connotes anger and fire which fits
the stereotype that rock stars are angry and perform angry music as artists.
Credit to interviewer
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Kerrang’s target audience’s spending power is low. This is because the demographic is E/D, this has most likely influenced Kerrang to price their magazine at £2.20 in the UK as everyone in this demographic can afford this.
Spending Power
The uses and gratifications theory was made by theorist Katz. The theory depicts how we understand communication and how the media affects us. The theory suggests that people interpret the media they are consuming into their lives with ‘objectives’.Kerrang’s reader’s objectives would be to gain insight into themselves. This is based on the theme and mood of the magazine which is quite dark, this connotes how they may be a dark person.The typical reader of Kerrang! will be ‘informed & educated’ about the lives of rock artists in and outside of music performing. This allows the audience to indulge themselves in the lives of these artists and escape from their own.
Katz’ Uses and Gratifications Theory
The theory was built by Maslow. The theory states that people do things for self-actualization, esteem, love/belonging, safety and physiological reasons. People would read Kerrang magazine to fur fill their esteem needs. This based on the simplicity of Kerrang magazine and the artists and bands that are featured in the magazine which have been involved in a rough upbringing, alcohol and drugs.
Hierarchy of Needs
Demographic: Demographics are used to pick out potential audience growth and to spot underperformance. All types of media are targeted to
certain audiences. In relation to Kerrang, I think that the demographic for the magazine would be in the D/E sector. I think this because Kerrang is
too un-formal for C1 and above as skilled office workers and those in ‘white collar’ jobs would not be interested in low-end showcase rock
music.
Demographics
Psychographics are parts of a specific media group which have been split up in the market to define a form of media’s reading
group or target audience. The psychographics group that I think Kerrang’s readers fall into would be the strugglers. This is
because they stereotypically buy alcohol and our disorganised. This matches with some of the types of artists in the magazine
and the general look of the magazine may appeal to this psychographic group.
Psychographics
Primary ResearchP3
https://www.surveymonkey.com/
Question 1
This set of results determine the age group for Kerrang magazine as they show that these set of readers are between 16 and 21. These are fairly young ages which connotes that Kerrang appeals to a younger audience than other magazines. It is important to be aware of the readership age range in order to make sure the articles included meet their needs.
Question 2
These results show that the content is in fact the most important feature in a magazine to its readers which means that the success and popularity of the magazine exists mainly on the content.
The content of Kerrang magazine is mainly focused on the artists of the rock music genre which is clearly what readers want to see and read about.
Question 3These results show that against other magazines MOJO and Q, Kerrang has a more favoured colour scheme. However, when it comes to the images used in the magazine the surveyors felt that Q used better pictures in their magazine.Kerrang has always had its unique and controversial font and these results show that the font has 30% more votes then the MOJO and Q font, this outlines the uniqueness of the font. On the other hand the results show how the headlines for Kerrang are not an appealing feature which the magazine needs to gain all support on top of the huge amount that they have already.
Question 4These results confirm my theory about how the Psychographics for the audience of Kerrang magazine are those seeking security in the mainstreamer group. This suggests a difference in what I initially thought would be the predominant group ie strugglers. On the other hand the audience could be aspiring to be mainstreamers as they strive for security whereas actually reading a magazine of any genre is really about escapism.
This survey question’s results show that music magazines are not the most popular type of magazine. This reflects on the expectations of target audiences and the public. Film magazines tend to have very detailed information on their films and actors, since Kerrang is quite an ‘informal’ magazine the audience may feel that there is not enough detail in the information they include in their issues. It could reflect the needs of the average music fans which is to find out about their favourite artists and new and upcoming artists whereas film fans might be more concerned with the technology of the film industry.
Question 5
The results show that music magazine’s publishers do in fact make the outcome of the magazine better and successful. If a publisher has already produced a popular and successful magazine it could suggest that the readership will be more open to reading a magazine produced by the same publisher. Magazines produced by the same publishing house will also take advantage of synergy and market their produces on the pages of their own magazines.
Question 6
This piece of market research tells me that Kerrang magazine is not the most popular magazine among teenagers. If I wish to access the same target audience then it will be worth considering the ways in which the magazine uses form and style to present their articles.
Question 7
Question 8
This question’s results show that ‘word of mouth’ is still an effective way of advertising. Young readers are more likely to sit and chat about an article they have read in a magazine with friends and encourage them to do the same so that they have something to converse about. Including captions such as ‘tell a friend’ or ‘recommend to a friend’ could be an effective may to increase market share.
Question 9This question shows a direct relationship between the style, font and form of a magazine and its proposed readership. It is clear that people are drawn to certain colours and images when deciding whether to buy a magazine or read an article. It also suggests that front covers and mastheads are key selling points for magazines. It is vital to have a USP that is clear to a potential reader.
Secondary ResearchP3
http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews9591.html#Reviews
ReviewsOn the ‘review centre’ Kerrang magazine has mostly positive reviews except for one review where the writer states how the magazine has changed from a classic rock magazine to modern stereotypical magazine.The positive reviews however suggest the complete opposite and how well that the magazine is written and how it is ‘awesome’. One particular review states that the posters the magazine give away are an important feature to them, I will reflect on this when creating my own magazine as promotional giveaways are important to my audience and Kerrang’s.
Facebook is extremely popular in the modern age and Kerrang have taken advantage of this by creating their own Facebook page. The page has got 717,901 likes. This means that almost 720,000 people can see information and promotion for Kerrang issues without even having to click onto the page itself. This is reaching a wide range of people and this is only the people who are on Facebook let alone the people who like it outside of social media sites. Kerrang’s audience is huge.
PROMOTION : How does Bauer advertise Kerrang! magazine?
Social Media
Social Media
Joined twitter in 2009Kerrang magazine has ‘535K’ followers on twitter. This not only publicises the magazine but advertises its popularity. By doing this they are showing their audience or people debating to read the magazine that they are a good magazine of high quality which is why they have so many people following them.With Kerrang on twitter it connects them to a young audience that is constantly using social media. With so many young people on twitter currently and reading magazines Kerrang have taken advantage of social media and created the perfect way to gain the most readership and popularity possible.
Network is Australia’s largest magazine distribution and subscriptions management company and has a market share of 53% of copies sold at retail and 52% of the consumer subscriptions market.Network represents 270+ publishers and sells over 170 million copies of magazines, worth over $500 million in retail sales. With over one million subscribers, Network’s subscriptions team manage Australia’s largest consumer subs business.Network’s distribution reach also covers New Zealand for both retail and subscriptions through its sister company Netlink Distribution.
Distributionhttp://www.bauer-media.com.au/services/distribution
Retail Outlets
Kerrang is available in the following shops• WHSmith• Newsagents• Online-Their website www.Kerrang.co.uk • Sainsbury's• Tescos
Buying Kerrang! onlineTo buy Kerrang online you need to log onto their website and select the tab at the top of the page which reads “Get K!”. Once on the page you can select the issue you wish to purchase and then you will be redirected to a page dedicated to that issue and describe the issue’s content.
A stereotype is a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing. In Kerrang magazine they refer to ‘rock stars’ as sex, drug and bad mouth fuelled punks that appear ‘cool’ and as idols.
Stereotypes
Other stereotypes that Kerrang magazine use are the angry mood of the rock stars. On every front cover that Kerrang has all the artists featured on it possess angry faces which suggest that all rock stars are angry and reckless, this creates a bad influence for those who read Kerrang as they read with a negative image of the artists, making their interviews (populating them) pointless.
Ethical Issues
Relevant Issues of representation
This rock artist on the front cover of this magazine appears as the stereotypical rockstar. The artist connotes unhygienic and a drunk stereotype which could influence Kerrang’s readership to follow.
If a younger audience was to see an image like this on the front cover of a ‘famous’ magazine then it may allow them to think that it is ok to do these things if you are famous or not and could lead to further promotion of inappropriate behaviour in society. This is a good example of how a rock artist can be completely misrepresented.
This would be considered a negative role model as most adults wouldn’t see this as a socially acceptable way to behave. The magazine lacks positive role models for its readers.The hypodermic needle theory would suggest when applied to this topic that if other readers and audiences were to see this influential artist’s image, they would be inclined to follow the artist’s actions/behaviour.
One of the legal requirements, for the lead editor of a magazine is that they have to follow the ‘Editor’s code of practise’ as set out by the PCC ( Press complaints Commission). This code sets out a number of requirements that editors have to follow when publishing their magazine. For example:
AccuracyThe code of practise states that the press must not publish inaccurate or misleading information, including pictures. If there is an issue where great inaccuracy is the case, a published apology is required where appropriate.
DiscriminationThe press have to avoid references of an inappropriate nature involving an individual's race, gender, religion, sexual orientation or disability.
Confidential SourcesIf confidential information is given then the source must remain confidential as journalists have a moral obligation to do so.
Legal issues http://www.pcc.org.uk/cop/practice.html
IPSO is an organisation that is in charge of enforcing the ‘Editor’s code of practise’. By enforcing this code, they help to maintain the highest professional standards.If you wish to make a complaint, you can make it directly through IPSO and they also handle issues of harassment.
Role of relevant regulatory bodies - IPSO
https://www.ipso.co.uk/IPSO/cop.html
1.Our remitIPSO considers complaints that publications which are members of IPSO have breached the Editors' Code of Practice. If you are unsure whether a publication falls within our remit we will be happy to advise you. Most of the complaints IPSO receives relate to editorial material published by member publications, whether in print or on their websites. This includes: Articles; Images (including video);Audio material on newspaper and magazine websites; Readers' letters; Edited or moderated reader comments on newspaper and magazine websites. IPSO also takes complaints about the physical behaviour of journalists. This includes: Refusing requests to stop taking photographs or asking questions; Using hidden cameras to obtain material; Failing to be sensitive when dealing with cases involving grief and shock; Failing to obtain the proper consent before speaking to children or individuals in hospital or similar institutions.2.Who can complain?IPSO will take forward complaints from any individual or organisation that an inaccuracy has been published on a general point of fact. Where an inaccuracy relates to a specific individual or organisation, we may be able to take forward a complaint from a third party, but will need to consider the position of the directly affected party in deciding whether it is appropriate to do so.3. Delayed complaintsIPSO is able to consider complaints within four months from the date of the conduct complained about, or publication of the article. We may also be able to take a complaint forward about an article, where it remains accessible on a newspaper's website, within 12 months of publication, although it is required in such cases to consider whether it is fair to do so in the circumstances.4. Submitting your complaintPlease note that if IPSO believes that your complaint raises a potential breach of the Editors' Code, we will send the detail of your complaint to the publication, which will then have the opportunity to resolve the matter directly. This is to ensure the swift resolution of substantive complaints wherever possible.Complaints must be made in writing, and should be made via the IPSO complaints form, You will need to provide us with a copy of the article in question (if there is one) and set out how you believe the Editors' Code of Practice has been breached. You are also able to provide any other relevant letters or documents which would help us to assess the complaint. Further information is available below about how we will handle your complaint.If you would prefer to submit your complaint by email you can do so by writing to [email protected]. Complaints may also be sent via post to: IPSO c/o Halton House 20/23 Holborn London EC1N 2JDhttps://www.ipso.co.uk/ipso/makeacomplaint/makingacomplaint.html
One of the main things a magazine has to concern themselves with is copyright, copyright is the process of using someone else's work or information and publishing it without authority or permission provided by the original author/source. If a magazine does carry out copyright then they can be sued for it. If a magazine wishes to protect any of its written work then journalists make their artists intellectual property. This can protect it from being used elsewhere without permission.
Copyright https://www.gov.uk/intellectual-property-an-overview
What is a watermark?A watermark is a digital stamp which can be used by businesses to show the product is theirs and can also be used to display ownership of the business in the product.
Watermark