Evaluation Draft - Part 1

Question 1

Front Cover

My front cover follows many conventions set out by professional magazines. The case studies I researched helped me to decide what conventions to include and what to challenge. The first magazine I used in my case study was XXL. The masthead of the magazine had bold white lettering, which contrasted with the red background. This helps it stand out from other magazines and catch the eye of passers-by. It also makes the brand easy to market, as everyone will recognize it and associate the red and white with XXL. I reinforced this convention in my cover page by having a bold and easy to read masthead with the similar colour scheme of red and white. Furthermore, the name Rap Report makes it easy for readers to understand what the magazine is about: the latest news and gossip in the rap community. Vibe was the other magazine I researched for my case study. The low angle of the focal image means the readers are looking up at Usher, giving him a higher status. Also, Vibe the uses direct address to engage with the readers. I reinforced this convention of direct address by having the model look straight at the camera. This forces the reader to look into his eyes, which draws them in. The convention I challenged on my front cover was the skyline. I didn’t include one because it takes the spotlight off the masthead, which was the most important convention on my cover page.

Contents Page

My contents page follows a variety of conventions included on a professional magazine. One example is a contents that is easy to read and understand. In the Vibe issue I analysed, the contents was set out clearly with a title and description for each feature. This inspired to construct a simple contents that makes my magazine easy to navigate. Furthermore, XXL encouraged me to include interesting titles, such as ‘Top 5 Paparazzi Fights’, to entice readers into buying it. The XXL Summer 2016 issue contents page included the same models as the front cover, but in a long shot, presenting their whole bodies. I followed this convention because it allows readers to get a better look at the model on the cover page. The convention I challenged in my contents page was the idea of multiple images. I included my focal image, which fitted the page and the text, and a smaller second image, relating to one of the features. I did this as I wanted most of the attention on the cover story.

Double Page Spread

My double page spread follows numerous conventions that professional magazines use. For example, I made sure all the social media links for my artist took up significant space on the page and were easy to read. This is important because it allows readers to learn more about the artist and promote him. I learnt this convention from XXL, who informed the reader of each artist’s social media links in the 2016 Freshman Class. The Vibe double page spread I analysed included a pull quote. I reinforced this convention because the quote ‘without Hip Hop I would be dead or in prison’ entice them to read the article and find out why Ty would be dead. A convention I challenged in my DPS was different fonts. In XXL, different fonts and styles are used to differentiate the rappers. However, I used the same font throughout my magazine, which allows readers to associate that font with my brand.

Question 2

Teenagers

Teenagers constantly want to keep up to date with what’s going on. Therefore, to represent teenagers, my magazine focuses on the latest news and gossip in the rap community. On my cover page, I included the cover lines ‘what’s next for Kodak after jail’ and ‘new December releases’ which informs teenagers that if they buy this magazine, they will learn about Kodak’s situation and find out what music people are listening to right now. The majority of these teenagers will be males, as rap music is dominated by male rappers, appealing to males. Also, most of them will be from poor urban areas, where rap started. I represented this in my double page spread. Ty uses a lot of slang, which people from urban areas will understand, as they use slang regularly. This is a positive representation of teenagers because, being a teenager myself, I know it’s true. It does reinforce the stereotype of youths always using slang, but these stereotypes do exist.

Young adults

My magazine represents young adults as it upholds an element of class, with clear text and a smart format. I achieved this by constructing two matching columns and a drop cap for my double page spread. Furthermore, I had a simple title and description for each feature on my contents page, and a consistent font that is easy to read. This representation is negative, as not all young adults enjoy an element of class. This reinforces the stereotype that adults are smart and neat.