Research: Annotated Examples of Existing Magazines

To study the conventions in magazines, particularly music magazines, we were instructed to analyse and annotate existing front covers, contents pages and double page spreads. In particular we were instructed to look out for the conventions used and how each magazine challenged/developed them. We were also told to look especially at theories such as Maslow's hierarchy of needs, the male gaze and the uses and gratifications theory. 

I will be looking at pages from the music magazines Kerrang! and NME as they have similar demographics to me so I feel like it will be beneficial for me to study them in depth.

Front Covers:

'Kerrang!' and 'NME' are both aimed at a fairly similar demographic. Both magazines are aimed at males but NME is aimed at a slightly older audience. Kerrang! is aimed at young teenagers, whilst NME is aimed at older teenagers/young adults. NME is aimed at fans of rock/indie music whilst Kerrang! is also aimed at fans of rock music, but heavier sub-genres such as metal and post-hardcore.

Both magazines have followed the convention of having the main image slightly covering the title of the magazine because it has connotations of a magazine filled with content, subconsciously making people think that the magazine has more content thus making them buy it. NME has slightly challenged this convention though as only a small section of the title is covered by the image whereas Kerrang! has a large chunk of it covered by the main image. 

Both magazines have used similar buzz words to try and attract readers, they have both opted to use terms like "exclusive" and "preview" because this makes readers think that you can only find this information in their magazine, making them only buy that magazine for their music information. 

The main image on both magazines is using direct address, but for different purposes. It has been used in Kerrang! to portray the female (Hayley Williams) as powerful and in control (breaking the male gaze). NME has the three males looking at the camera to try and appeal to Maslow's hierarchy of needs. The magazine is directed at males, so they will see this front cover and will want to be like those in the picture. 

The mode of address on both front covers is somewhat similar, both magazine front covers are quite lighthearted and "upbeat." This is because the demographic for both magazines is so alike. 

Contents Pages:

Both Kerrang! and NME's content pages share that they are very unconventional for music magazines. They have both tried to portray themselves as unique and different, in particular NME's use of only two images on the contents page showed this. Most music magazines have small images with anchors on them for every other article on the contents but NME have just two images for one article, with no anchor. Kerrang!'s use of images is closer to the conventional use, including 4 images linked to articles. 

Both magazines have used the colours and shapes to reassert their brand identity, this can be seen especially through NME's contents page, as they have even included their name in the same position it was in on the front cover. Kerrang! have also included their name on the contents page but much smaller than on the front cover, I believe this is more successful at asserting their brand identity as it is much more subtle.

Double Page Spreads:

NME and Kerrang!'s double page spreads have the same rough outline; image on one side, article on the other, small sub-articles on the side, other images etc. Although they both follow the same rough template/outline they are very different. Kerrang! have stuck to their typical red/black colour scheme whilst NME have changed to a blue/white colour scheme. This has been done because they want to portray two bands in different ways. Kerrang! using their colour scheme suggests the band belongs in the magazine and is a regular there, to the point in which they are part of the magazine whereas NME's article on the newcomers shows them as people who haven't been in NME before, using a different colour scheme to show this. 

Kerrang! has not used direct address whilst NME has, this is odd as Kerrang! are featuring a band that have been around for a long time whilst NME are featuring new comers. You would presume that the new comers would not be confident and would be looking away from the camera but it is the band featured in Kerrang!'s article that are made to look submissive. 

In general NME and Kerrang! have both followed similar conventions and have the same rough outline, both of them breaking conventions in similar ways to express their "individuality" and "uniqueness." If I am to emulate the success of magazines like NME and Kerrang! I must do the same, following most of the conventions regarding form but developing some and breaking a few every now and then to make my target demographic feel unique.