Existing Magazine Analysis : Front Cover

To further my knowledge of magazine codes and conventions I analysed various different front covers of music magazines that were similar to the genre of my own.

One of these examples is the NME

After a lengthy analysis of the front cover I decided to do an analysis that was based more around the theories involved with magazine front covers.

I did this by analyzing the Q front cover below.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs

This magazine cover uses Maslow’s hierarchy of needs quite obviously through the usage of a close up of the singer Cheryl Cole. Cheryl Cole is a well-known singer and previous TV talent show judge and so many people would call her famous and a celebrity. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is all about the idea that we as humans have needs and the need that he placed at the top of the hierarchy was our dreams and aspirations. By placing a figure like Cheryl Cole on the front cover of this magazine they are directly trying to relate to their target audience as it is likely that the target audience dream of being a famous singer just like Cheryl Cole. They also use the phrase “Cheryl Cole Rocks” which also entices this feeling of people wanting to be like her as they would want to be described like that and placed on the front cover of a magazine. So the magazine is using the theory of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs here to gain sales because people may buy the magazine because they think that they might become Cheryl Cole if they buy this magazine just because she is on it.

Uses and Gratifications

The magazine cover also complies with the four ideas put forward in the uses and gratifications theory. This theory claims that there are four main reasons why we use and consume the media. The four main reasons that it suggests are for information, for entertainment, for personal identification and for socialization. You can see these four concepts being represented on the magazine cover. Firstly they are enticing an audience in by trying to make them think that they have lots of information within the magazine by using stats and buzz words (“The 10 Best New Acts” and “The UK’s biggest music magazine”) both of these quotes create an idea that the magazine contains useful information and so therefore is representing information in the concept of uses and gratifications. They also use the word more on the cover to convince the reader that there is so much in the magazine that they couldn't fit it all on the cover. It can also be said to use the value of entertainment on its front cover because it provides numerous buzz words on the cover to make it seem exciting like “Rocks”, “Best” and “Biggest”. These words make people think the magazine is entertaining because they are excitement inducing words and they make the audience want to read it. They represent socialization as well because they mention content on their cover that could be discussed among friends or family like a list of the upcoming acts and a preview of the next year and in today’s society these are easy conversation topics. Finally, they also represent personal identification in the form of using Cheryl Cole on the front cover. As mentioned while discussing Maslow’s hierarchy, Cheryl Cole is a figure who people want to be like as she is famous and so people have this personal identification with her because they want to be her. So the magazine complies with all the aspects of the uses and gratifications theory all over the front cover, there is no direct reference to anything to do with exchange which is a more recent possible addition to the theory but this could be due to the cover being fairly old as recent magazines usually contain exchange on their front covers (QR codes, free downloads etc.).

Male Gaze Theory

It can definitely be said that the male gaze theory comes into play within this magazine front cover as it is immediately apparent in the photograph they have used. The male gaze theory is a concept argued by Lara Mulvey who said that the camera is male and that women are objectified by the camera as they are made to look weak and vulnerable due to an assumed male audience and the camera being male. In this photograph there are many aspects which comply with the male gaze theory for example she is using direct address which means that she is looking directly into the camera which gives her a very seductive look as she is in a way staring right at the reader. She also is touching her mouth with her hands which is a very childlike thing to do and so it therefore is representing as weak and vulnerable because these are typical traits of a child. She is wearing red lipstick and red has connotations of love and passion and she is also almost licking her lips in anticipation as she knows that the reader is looking at her. However she is wearing a spiked ring which suggests are more powerful role so the male gaze theory is also being subverted by this image but it is mostly being complied with. So the male gaze theory is used heavily within this magazine front cover.

Hyper Real Theory

I cannot comment on the hyper real theory in too much detail in relation to this magazine cover but you can see aspects of it. The hyper real theory is a theory that claims that our perception of reality is simulated and created for us and by us to be as perfect as possible. This can be things as simple as mowing the lawn or as extreme as changing someone’s appearance through technology. Jean Baudrillard suggested that due to the progress of technology this simulated reality is becoming more and more apparent in society. In relation to the magazine cover, it is more than likely that they have used a photo editing program to change the appearance of Cheryl Cole in the photo for example they may have removed any signs of imperfect skin or the appearance of bones under the skin to make her have this perfect figure and therefore creating this hyper reality. She also appears to still be very glamorous even though she is obviously getting drenched by the water that is falling around her so they may have edited this part of the image to help create this hyper reality.

So by analyzing how all the different theories are used on this front cover and by looking at all the codes and conventions of the NME cover I now know how I should construct my magazine if I am to follow the conventional way of creating magazines and looking at these two examples I think it would be best if I followed the codes and conventions as in my audience research I found that they liked current designs and not designs that subverted the usual conventions.