Case Study Notes

Choose 2 existing magazines that are similar in some way to the magazine you are planning, and produce a PowerPoint presentation on each of them, covering the following points:- Type/focus of magazine- Publishing Company- Editor’s name- Date of First Publication- Frequency of Publication- Price- Distribution – ie. How/where readers can get it- Detailed analysis of Front Cover- Detailed analysis of Contents Page- Detailed analysis of Double Page Spread- Explanation of aspects you intend to use/imitate in your magazine.

VIBE magazineThis magazine costs $3.99.

It is a magazine that features a couple of different genres. It covers R&B, hip-hop and popular music.

I’d say the target audience for this magazine would be for both male and female and also aimed at teenagers.

VIBE facts• Publishing Company – ‘InterMedia Partners’ are the

main publishers of Vibe Magazine.• Editors name – The Editor-In-Chief’s name is

Jermaine Hall.• Date of First Publication – Vibe first launched in

1993.• Frequency of Publication – Once a month• Price - $3.99 (around £2.50)• Distribution – A magazine store in America and

online.

Detailed analysis of Front CoverVibe magazine has most of the typical magazine

conventions. It is a quite neat and structured magazine with a simple and clean layout. The cover page has a different house style and colour scheme in each issue according to the contents of the magazine. There is a mast head (magazine title) at the top of the page which is sometimes overlapped by the main image on the cover. The main image is usually a medium long shot where the star/icon is in a direct mode of address. There are very few cover lines around the page which makes the cover so simple and not messy. There is a main cover line which is connected with the main image on the cover. The other cover lines around the page represent the content inside the magazine.

The size and boldness of the masthead and the main cover line represents importance of the magazine contents. The biggest cover line will always represent the main image on the magazine and then smaller ones around the page to represent the magazine contents.

There is always a colour scheme to each magazine cover therefore the colours will always match.

Detailed analysis of Contents PageThe contents pages in Vibe magazine are once again clean and structured just like the cover pages.The word ‘contents’ is used at the top of the page to specify that it is a contents page. The typical Vibe magazine contents page has the same masthead at the top of the page.CONTENTS 2,3

It shows the date and issue number on these pages to go with the particular magazine.Each article has a bold title and then smaller writing underneath to give the reader an insight of each article. There are also visible page numbers for the reader to see which page each article is on. There is 1 column used on the page to separate the articles from the main image on the page.Subheadings are used to separate the magazine articles into ‘categories’.

Detailed analysis of Double Page Spread

The images that are used on a double page spread usually relate to the main image on the front cover of the magazine. Vibe magazine use vibrant colours to make the images and text stand out of the page. The articles in these magazines are laid out in columns like a typical magazine article. They have used ‘pull quotes’ from the article and made them stand out to split the article up. It will also attract the readers attention and get them to read the article. They have also used extra pictures on the page in relation to the article. There is 1 main image, in a direct mode of address, surrounded by other smaller images. These pages both have a ‘stand’ at the beginning of the article to tell the reader more about the celebrities in the article if they didn’t know already.

Explanation of aspects you intend to use/imitate in your magazine

For my front cover I will be using a main masthead which is slightly covered by the main image on the page. I will be adding in a few cover lines to give the reader an insight of the magazine but I will not use too many because I don’t want the cover page to look too busy. I will use a colour scheme which will match the ‘genre’ of my magazine and make the magazine stand out. The main cover line that I will use will relate to the main image on the page.

For my contents page I will be using columns to divide my articles. I will also be using article headings, sub-headings and page numbers to order the articles. A picture which relates to the main article on the cover page will be used.

For the double page spread, I will use another image which relates to the main image on the cover page. The article will be about the article featured on the cover page. I will use columns to separate the article. I will use smaller pictures around the pages which also relate to the article. I will use a stand for the readers if they don’t know about the person I am writing about.

KERRANG! magazine

This magazine costs £2.20.

It is a magazine that mainly features rock artists/bands

I’d say the target audience for this magazine would be mainly the male gender in their teens to 30’s and maybe some females too.

KERRANG! facts• Publishing Company – ‘Bauer Media Group’ are the

publishers of Kerrang! Magazine.• Editors name – The Editor’s name is James

McMahon.• Date of First Publication – Kerrang! first published

on 6th June 1981.• Frequency of Publication – Weekly• Price - £2.20• Distribution – A magazine store in the UK and

online.

Detailed analysis of Front CoverKerrang! magazine has a lot of the typical magazine

conventions. It is a very busy magazine with a bold and messy layout. The cover page has a different house style and colour scheme in each issue according to the contents of the magazine. There is a mast head (magazine title) at the top of the page which is sometimes overlapped by the main image on the cover. The main image is usually a medium long shot where the stars/icons are in a direct mode of address. There are a lot of cover lines, puffs and smaller images around the pages which make the covers look bold, eye catching and packed with articles and information. There is a main cover line on each magazine which is connected with the main image on the cover. The other cover lines around the page represent the content inside the magazine.

The size and boldness of the masthead and the main cover line represents importance of the magazine and its contents. The biggest cover line always represents the main image on the magazine and then smaller ones around the page to represent the magazine contents.

There is always a colour scheme to each magazine cover therefore the colours will always match the content.

Detailed analysis of Contents PageThe contents pages in Kerrang! magazine are busy like the cover pages but they’re cute structured. The word ‘contents’ is used at the top of the page to specify that it is a contents page. The typical Kerrang! magazine contents page has the same kind masthead at the top of the page.It shows the date and issue number on these pages to go with the particular magazine.There are visible page numbers for the reader to see which page each article is on.There columns used on the page to separate the articles from the images used on the page.Subheadings are used to separate the magazine articles into ‘categories’.One large image is used to feature a specific article, usually the one on the cover page. There are smaller images around that which relate to other articles in the magazine.Pull quotes are also used from articles to give the reader an insight to an article.

Detailed analysis of Double Page Spread

The images that are used on a double page spread usually relate to the main image on the front cover of the magazine. Kerrang! magazine uses deep colours to relate with the article. The double page spreads in Kerrang! magazine have a certain layout. They have 1 main image on the left side of the page with the article written in columns on the right side with smaller images around the page which also relate to the article. They have used ‘pull quotes’ from the article and made them stand out to split the article up. It will also attract the readers attention and get them to read the article. These pages both have a ‘stand’ at the beginning of the article to tell the reader more about the celebrities in the article if they didn’t know already.

Explanation of aspects you intend to use/imitate in your magazine

For my front cover I will be using a main masthead which is slightly covered by the main image on the page which will be a star/icon in a direct mode of address. I will be adding cover lines to the front cover to give the reader an insight of the magazine. I will use a colour scheme which will match the ‘genre’ of my magazine and make the magazine stand out. The main cover line that I will use will relate to the main image on the page.

For my contents page I will be using columns to divide my articles. I will also be using article headings, sub-headings and page numbers to order the articles. I will have a main picture which will relate to the main article on the cover page and some smaller images which relate to other articles in the magazine.

For the double page spread, I will use another image which relates to the main image on the cover page. The article will be about the article featured on the cover page. I will use columns to separate the article. I will use smaller pictures around the pages which also relate to the article. I will use a stand for the readers if they don’t know about the person I am writing about. I will also use pull quotes which will stand out of the page to attract the readers attention.