Magazine Evaluation

Cover

The cover of the magazine shows the genre is rock. The colours are dark and dingy (except for the masthead which is the usual red and white) and connote danger and sexuality. They have dressed Cheryl Cole very provocatively which goes with the colours of the cover. The Cover has a skyline, a masthead, main image and lead article but no other typical features of a cover; the focus is very much on the main image. This is a very confident cover page; they have only shown one article that is featured in the magazine as they know it will sell.

Skyline

Main Image

Masthead

Lead Article

Contents

Both pictures and text have been used in these contents pages. The pictures are to attract the more visually orientated readers and they also break up the text and show readers the main stories in the magazine. Page numbers have been put next to the pictures to link them to the particular article to which it goes with.

Double page spread

This double page spread (above) is picture led; there is virtually no writing at all, it’s very simple. The image used shows Cheryl to be almost superior as the camera is positioned as though we are looking up at her. The clothes she is wearing, particularly the top with spikes, portrays danger and rock. Her make up is very heavy, dark eyes and deep red lips, it looks very hard. She has been super imposed to look as though she is out in the rain in a very urban location, whereas normally she is very girly and feminine, as you can see in this issue of Vogue (right). Here she has soft make up and loosely tied hair, it’s an extremely feminine shot, with flowers and a pink background. Cheryl has publically announced that she is no longer going to have her personal life in the media after everything she has been through and by changing her image like this shows she is doing just that. She has changed, and the pictures in Q

show this, she is sending the message out that she is strong and putting up a hard front. The standfirst is just seven short phrases or words - ‘Pin-up’ - this is Cheryl’s sexy side and is portrayed in the picture opposite where she has wet hair, red lips and seductive clothes on. ‘Player’ – she is seductive and after splitting with husband Ashley, she is being shown around lots of other men. ‘Fighter’ by saying this, the writer is referring to her getting over her divorce and most importantly recovering from malaria- from which she nearly died. This shows she is strong like in the picture on the page opposite. ‘Superstar’ Cheryl’s career has really taken off; she is in the group ‘Girls Aloud’, she’s made it as a solo artist, judge on the X factor and a style icon.

All of this shows that the writer has really thought about the words used and not just put anything, the words go with the photograph and the whole overall theme.