Textual Analysis

1. Textual Analysis • Lauren Kilvington 27th August 2011 11th February2012

2. Front Page NME 27th August 2011 Layout and Design The makers of the magazine have used different typography and sizes for different coverlines to draw the attention of the audience to the main stories and to make the magazine more eye-catching to anyone walking past the magazine. The writing is shaped around the main picture to make the audience focus on the main image first and then read the writing once the attention has been drawn by the image. Written Codes The way that it says ‘Plus’ in an italic and red font, shows that there more to the story and helps the reader focus on it and entices the reader to read more about this story. There aren’t really any more written codes on this page. Colour NME has used a dark baby blue sky colour as the background with white, yellow and red writing to stand out from the background and the image. The creators have used these different colours to contrast and create a more interesting look for the reader. The image shows dark colours and shadows to get the audience interested. The colours also go with the Reading and Leads logos to associate the magazine with the festival. Pose, Style, Hair and Make up The model on the main image of the front is looking down at the camera and therefore at the audience to show strength and authority. It signifies power and ability to manipulate the audience. It could also be convincing the audience to go to the festival because of the way Matt Bellamy, the model, is looking at the audience. There is no make-up on the model that can be seen or identified by the reader. The hair is how he usually has it on stage or in usual magazines, there is no modifications to his image. Language The language on this front page is quite casual and informal to the reader so the reader feels more relaxed and comfortable with the magazine. it is informal but still tells the audience the information they want. This can be good for the magazine as well as the reader because it could entice more audience because of the casual sense of the language. Images The main big image of the front page is the lead singer from the band, Muse. This image would interest fans of the band and help the magazine gain readers and buyers because of the main image. There is another image on the top right corner to make it more interesting for non-muse fans. The main image takes up the whole page so the reader knows exactly what the main story is about. it is also big enough to be seen from afar so the readers can see what the magazine is about without looking at it close up. Relation to Maslow’s Theory This front cover relates to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Belonging and Affection needs: The front cover relates to this part of the hierarchy of needs because it gives the reader a topic to talk about to their families and friends which gives them affection because they will listen to them talk about this magazine or the stories inside it. Esteem needs: The main image shows an inspirational role model for teenagers so they feel self worth by looking like their idol and therefore becoming more confident in themselves. Self-actualisation: By becoming more confident with their image, the audience will have self fulfillment and personal growth and realise who they are and to be proud o fit. Composition and Framing The editors have used a mid close up of the image so the audience focuses more on who the main image is rather than what he’s doing or what he is wearing. The image is of Matt Bellamy, the lead singer of the band, Muse. The main coverline is about a festival and Muse is the headline act, therefore the main image on the front cover is the lead singer of the band. This gets Muse fans interested in the magazine and other audiences interested because there are other bands playing at the festival that they may like. The image is positioned slightly to the right to fit writing and coverlines onto the page so the image isn’t overlapped with writing. There is an image on the top right corner that is slanted diagonally to show a more casual look and to not look so formal with straight pictures. Overall Impression Overall, I think the magazine front cover is good because it represents the magazine, and the stories inside it, well. At a first look, you can see what the magazine is and what is in it because of the main image. I know that the main image is of the lead singer from a well known band that produce rock music. Even if the viewer didn’t know who the main image was of, they could still see the writing of the Reading and Leeds festival. These festivals are well known in the UK and even if the viewer was not familiar with it, they could still read about it inside. I like the way the editor put the headline act name in capital letters to entice the audience further.

3. Contents Page Colour The whole magazine is a vintage old style kind of newspaper which gives it an older, 70’s look; this is the colour of the background. All the writing is black a part from the writing in the bottom right corner because there is a teal colour box with information about other magazines on it; the writing on the teal box is white to contrast from the rest of the writing and to stand out for the reader. In the teal box, there are small images of colourful magazines to advertise the subscription for the magazine. The colours entice the reader to read what it going on in this teal box. Layout and Design There are 7 images, different sizes, positioned oddly to make it more interesting for the reader. There is writing underneath each image to help the readers get a better understanding of why the images are there. The title of the page ‘Inside This Week’ is like a newspaper font and which adds to the newspaper kind of paper background. The italic font is set out like a newspaper on the bigger images caption quote. There are different fonts for each caption to relate to the story for each image. There are lines between some pictures to help the readers reading path because the pictures go downward and journey back up to make it more interesting for the reader instead of just reading left to right. Some captions and writing are made bold to, again, create a newspaper effect for the reader. Written Codes On the first image the information under it reads ;The Vaccines and the Strokes join forces. No animals were harmed’ This suggests a humourous connotation that there could be some tension with these two bands and therefore could have caused ‘animal harm’. Images There are 7 images, excluding the small images of the magazines on the bottom right corner. The images are all straight and are of bands relating to the story they are attached to. Each one has a number on the bottom right corner of them to show which page each relating story is on. Each image is of a band or singer to get the audience interested in that story. Most of the images are dark but the one with Florence and the Machine show her with her hands in the air, with a white top on with the baby blue sky in the background. This shows the innocence of the band and shows that the magazine isn’t just full of dark rock bands, it opens the magazine to another audience and reader. Language The language involved in this magazine consists of humorous and sarcastic sayings and quotes. The caption for one of the photos is ‘We ate a pig’s face, a pigeon and a whale’s blowhole.’ This adds humour and light heartedness to the magazine and relates to the friendliness of the audience to make them feel as if the magazine is talking to them like a friend. Pose, Style, Hair and Make up The different pictures have different poses and most of them are bands playing live but the one on the middle left is of Florence from Florence and the Machine. She is dressed in white with her hand in the air with baby blue sky behind her. This could represent innocence and peace. This makes the magazine friendlier to other audiences because it shows the not all the magazine is about dark music or rock. Relation to Maslow’s Theory This contents page relates to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Belonging and Affection needs: By looking and reading this page, the audience can talk about these events briefly to their peers and feel more included in their interests by making them listen to the readers thoughts on the subjects shown on the contents page Esteem needs: By seeing the different images, there are different styles and people and therefore more variety of inspiration. By looking at the middle left image, the teenage girl audience can see the innocence and purity of the artist and aspire to be like her. Self-actualisation: after aspiring to be like the artists on this page, the reader would start to find their own style and personality and discover their self worth as a person. Composition and Framing The whole page is quite busy and messy looking which could be a representation of their teenage audience and to relate to them further. The editors made sure they filled the whole page up with as much as they could by sizing different fonts and images to make the page look busier. The top half of the page is neater but still adds to the messiness of the whole page. Overall Impression Overall, I think this page is doing a good job because it relates to the audience and introduces the magazine well by representing the bands, artists and audiences. I like the way they’ve made it look like a newspaper with the different fonts and sizes. The paper colour also adds to the newspaper theme which could relate to another audience which of whom enjoy reading newspapers. Even though there is not much colour or brightness to the concept, I think it looks eye-catching to the viewer if you just opened it.

4. Double Page Spread Layout and Design Looking at the double page spread from afar, the most noticeable thing about the pages are the images and how they are laid out. The smaller images on the top right and bottom left ,of the larger picture, are slanted and shows the informality of the magazine and story the article is about. The larger image is there to entice the audience and catch their eye in order for them to read the whole article. The image is of Matt Bellamy, the lead singer of the band, Muse. This is the same person from the front cover and makes the audience read more because of the image. If the audience like the image on the front of the magazine then they are most likely going to like this photo. Colour The different contrasting colours represent the brightness and fun of the magazine and the festival it is writing about. This page is a lot brighter than the contents page to get the audience interested in reading the story. The main image is quite dark in the background to get the audience in the festival mood. Written Codes The title ‘This could go either way’ Makes the audience want to read more because it leaves the audience wanting to know the connotation of the title. There are not many of the written codes in these pages. Pose, Style, Hair and Make up The main larger image is of Matt Bellamy while he is playing at the festival. I think the image was chosen because it shows him having fun with the performance and shows his confidence on stage. This could be to inspire the audience to as confident as their idol. Images There are 5 main images on these pages and they are placed differently to keep the audience interested. The first image that the audience will notice is the larger image of Matt Bellamy. The smaller images around the larger image is to keep the audience interested in the story and for something to look at. The images are of the band, Muse, and their festival shows they have done at the Reading and Leeds festival. The logo for the festival is on the top left so the audience can see what festival the article, and images ,are talking about. Language The quote in the yellow circle ‘We will do whatever we can get away with’ Shows a humourous side to, not only the magazine, but to the person they quoted which could make the audience like him even more. Throughout the magazine, they display a friendly a humour filled approach to the audience to make them feel more comfortable and relaxed with reading the magazine. NME’s audience is ABC1 72% so they have found a balance between simplicity but not becoming patronising for the readers. Relation to Maslow’s Theory These pages relate to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Belonging and Affection needs: By showing an article like this, the audience can see the information and detail into the story and therefore talk about it with their friends and family. They will feel more included in conversations and feel more self worthy. Esteem needs: By talking about these events and articles, the audience will feel more included and respected by their peers and therefore become more confident in themselves to do what they wan to do. They will look at the image displayed and feel more self worthy with the way they look if they were to aspire to become like the model in the image. Self-actualisation: After becoming more confident with themselves, the reader will start to do activities that they have wanted to do but haven’t had the confidence to do. The will have more self fulfillment because they start to become who they really are and feel more comfortable to express themselves. Composition and Framing The main image is taken from lower down which suggests the photographer was in the audience. This gives the perspective of the audience and makes them feel as if they were there. The whole larger image is of one person which also shows his importance to the article and festival. The whole article is based around the larger image which shows that the image is important to the article. They have put the main image more to the centre to make the audience notice it as they are going passed the page. It also give the double page spread a more central feel and makes the audience feel more comfortable reading and looking at it. Overall Impression Overall, I like this page because it relates to the front page and gives the audience the information about the festival and makes them feel as if they were there. I like the way the designer has placed the images slanted to give it a more laid back approach which relates to the teenage audience.

5. Front Page 11th February2012 Colour The main colours of the magazine cover are red, yellow, black, white and purple. The colours relate to the audience and to the theme of the magazine which is valentines for this particular issue. Even though there are bright colours on the magazine, the front page still looks dark in a way. The brighter colours contrast with the darker colours and create a more dynamic view to the magazine because other audiences may view the magazine as dark and scary. Yellow represents courage, happiness and riches which relates to the Layout and design The whole page is busy and eye catching. The editors have tried to use as much space as possible. However, it doesn’t look unorganised, it looks more like a controlled chaos. I think the magazine represents the audience with the slight messiness and the way it is shows a busy lifestyle. The editors have tried to show as much information as they can on one page to make their audience, and passers by, interested. The writing in front of the main image is slanted to make the magazine look more relaxed and casual rather than looking formal and uptight. Written Codes On the images towards the left, it says ‘Exclusive 1’ ‘Exclusive 2’ and Exclusive 3’ This shows thte audience that this is the only magazine they will find these articles in which gives the magazine more uniqueness and a marketing edge. Pose, Style, Hair and make up The main image shows a well known band, Young Guns, to entice the audience into reading the magazine. The band is positioned with the lead singer at the front and the rest of the band in a diagonal line behind him. This shows the importance of the lead singer and could show the authority of the lead singer against the rest of the band. However, they could be positioned like this because the lead singer is the most recognisable out of the rest of the band and the audience would know the band from the look of the lead singer. The lead singer at the front of the rest of the band is wearing red, whereas, the rest of the band are wearing white shirts; this could be to make the lead singer stand out more for the audience an to catch their eye more. The images along the top are previews of the posters inside to entice the audience to buy the magazine for the posters inside. The images on the left show lead singers from other bands such as MCR, Slipknot and Paramore. This, again, it to show a variety of artists to entice as much of the audience as possible and because the lead singers are the most recognisable member of the band which would interest the audience further. Images There are 11 images on this page and they consist of well known singers and artist that the audience would know. I think they have put this many variety of artists on this page to make sure they relate to almost all of their audience which entices them more to the magazine. Relation to Maslow’s Theory This front cover relates to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Belonging and Affection needs: With this front page, the audience can see who is in the magazine and some of the stories and therefore fulfills the idea of the belonging and affection needs category because the reader can start a conversation with a family or friend about the information displayed on the front of the magazine and therefore become part of a group. Esteem needs: The images on the front of the magazine display a style for the reader to be inspired by. The way the models are dressed and their pose show confidence and helps the reader to aspire to be like the models therefore becoming more confident. Self-actualisation: By becoming more confident in themselves, the audience will decide their style and become who they want to be and feel comfortable with who they are. Language The magazine has an image on the left hand side of My Chemical Romance, which has a caption saying ‘Gerard Way Speaks!’ This gives a clue to an unfamiliar audience that the singer doesn’t usually speak and shows a humourous side to the magazine. The captions on most of the images show exclamation marks at the end to show excitement and to make it look like the stories are interesting for the audience. Overall impression Overall, I think this magazine is doing well because of it’s outgoing nature and it’s relativity to the audience’s habits and personalities. The colours and compositions help the magazine gain more readers because of it’s variety and theme with this issue. The readers would also be interested because of the images displayed. The amount of images adds to the readers view of the magazine because, the more variety, the more recognition and audience. Composition and framing The main image and the first image on the left have their eyes lined up which shows the rule of three and makes the audience look straight at the eyes of the models which entice the audience further because the eyes draw the audience into the image and the magazine.

6. Contents Layout and design The strapline title on the top stands out with the red, yellow and white to make it unique to the rest of the page and to interest the reader. The main image is to catch the eye of the reader and to make their eyes draw to the page. The contents on the right can be noticed from a distance because of the black and yellow contrasting sub-headings which makes the reader want to see what is written. There is also the editors comment on the bottom of the page to make the page more interesting and the magazine more unique. Written Codes The word ‘Win!’ in red and yellow makes the audience want to read more because it is interesting. The exclamation mark also makes it seem there is an exciting connotation to be known with this word. Colour The main colours of this page are red, yellow, black and white. The page matches the front cover with the different colours to keep an on going theme throughout the magazine. The colours contrast with each other to make the page more interesting for the audience. Language The caption of the main image says ‘Hang time with Enter Shikari’ By using the word ‘Hang’’ it gives the magazine a more friendly, casual approach to the audience and interests the audience by using casual words. Throughout the magazine, they constantly use exclamation marks to make it more interesting and exciting for the audience which makes them read it and therefore buy the magazine. Pose, Style, Hair and make up The main image of the well known band, Enter Shikari, shows them sitting casually as they would in front of a friend. The way the lead singer is in front shows that is the more important band member and more well known to the public. Therefore, by putting the lead singer at the front of the photo, the magazine is advertising the whole band. The image of the editors at the bottom show the person who wrote the comment at the front, with a ‘thinking’ face and his arms crossed to make him look more important, and the other magazine editors behind him making hearts with their hands. This shows a humourous nature to the editors and makes the magazine seem more friendly. Images There are two images on this page. The main one shows a well known band with a caption advertising a competition to meet them. This entices the audience to read more about it and therefore buying the magazine. The smaller image on the bottom shows the editors with the editors comment next to it. This gives the magazine a connection with the audience because the editor is talking to them as a friend would. Relation to Maslow’s Theory This contents page relates to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Belonging and Affection needs: Esteem needs: Self-actualisation: Composition and framing The larger image is placed on the left and narrowed to make room for the writing. The main band member, which is the singer, is placed at the front of the photo because he is the most important and most recognisable which promotes the band. The audience who know this band would naturally look at the front person first and notice that he is from the band Enter Shikari. Overall impression Overall, I think the audience would enjoy this page because of the appreciation from the editor and the main image which is the first thing the reader would notice when they open the page. I think the contrasting colours and compositions make the page more interesting instead of the standard black and white composition.

7. Double Page Spread Colour The main colours of these pages are red, white and black which suit the theme of the pages. The red could represent blood or anger, the black could represent darkness or death and the white could be there to contrast with the red and to interest the audience. There is yellow writing on some parts of the pages, this matches the rest of the magazine because the other pages have these colours on them. It also shows contrast and makes the writing stand out form the rest of the page. Layout and design The whole page is based around the large image. The film role on the word ‘Movie’ and the film strip on the top right, relate to the article of the double page spread. This makes the article more eye catching and interesting for the read. The right page has a red background to suit the theme of the article which is the band ‘Slipknot’. Where the background of the right page meets the main image, it looks like ripped paper. This gives the page more effect and relates to the article more because it shows distortion which reflects the band and the music they produce. Written Codes The title ‘Slipknot Go To The Movies’ makes the audience think about what the article is about but the title does not mean what it says, the band isn’t physically going for a day out at the movies, the article is about members of the band becoming movie makers and producing their own movies. Pose, Style, Hair and Make up The two band members of Slipknot, Corey Taylor, left, and Shawn ‘Clown’ Crahan, right, are shown wearing their well known masks that they usually wear on stage when they produce their music. These masks are known amongst the band and their fans and therefore are noticeable if the reader were to flick through the magazine. These pages and images stand our because of the aggression in what we can see from Corey’s face. Language The whole article is an interview about the members movie business plans. The first question is ‘What’s the deal with living breathing films?’ This way of phrasing the question gives the interview a more casual, friendly approach. The magazines audience is ABC1 52% and they have found a balance between having an intelligent wording but not having it too patronising so it is suitable for everyone of their readers. Images There are two images on these two pages and they are both of the band Slipknot. The main image is of two band members, Corey is the lead singer and Clown is one of the percussionists. They are well known and would be noticed if the reader was flicking through the magazine. The smaller image is of the whole band to show them all together and in case the band did not recognise the two members of the larger image. Relation to Maslow’s Theory These pages relate to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory. Belonging and Affection needs: Esteem needs: Self-actualisation: Composition and Framing Even though they are in the movie business together, Corey is still a bit further in front on Clown because he is the lead singer of Slipknot which means he is the most recognisable and familiar of all the members. The larger image takes up Overall impression