Q Magazine Analysis

Q Magazine Analysis Adam King

Front cover The fact that the front cover of the magazine is different for subscribers than what it is for people who buy it off the shelves is key because it shows that Q take care in there readers and it also suggests professionalism, this is good because it will make readers want to keep reading because they will think that the whole magazine will be professional, so this also shows that Q pride themselves on quality as well as the content. Also the colours used for the front cover are dark, this relates to the article titled “Cheryl Cole Rocks” .

The Mise-En-Scene in the image is key because the spikes on her clothing relates to rock. The unexpected thing in this is that Cheryl Cole is normally seen as being a pop icon and on the magazine front cover she is seen as being a rock icon, so it suggesting that Cheryl Cole has got two sides which her fans don’t know about, so this is key because her fans will want to buy the magazine to find out more. The city background suggests that her life is either unsteady or on a high because it can be suggesting a busy life because of traffic and the rushing of the city, or could be suggesting high life because cities are related to partying. Also because she is standing on a high building is suggesting that she is living the high life. Also the fact that she is whipping her hair can be related to partying or living the high life and that she is having fun. Also the slogo on the front cover says “THE UK’S BIGGEST MUSIC MAGAZINE” can suggest that they are priding themselves on how good they are. The rain can suggest simplicity or freedom so could be suggesting that she is free from her busy/hard life and she has stepped into a simple yet elegant life. The way her body is clenched up can suggest wanting to let go but holding herself back. Also because she is slightly bent at the knee is quite a sexy pose and can come across as being a sex object. The fact that her clothes are revealing is suggesting Cheryl Cole is the sex object in this image. As we can tell the main audience they are aiming this image at is males. Also it is demoralising women in suggesting all women are like this and they all wear revealing clothes and that they are all sex objects. Also because she is in the centre of the image and is standing in front of the Q logo is suggesting that she is the main focus of the image and that they want the audience to focus all their attention to her. Because they have chosen the setting and the clothing, they are trying to show that their magazine isn’t just sexual images or content and that they’re serious.

Also in the contents page the font is the same as the font used in the logo, this shows consistency and professionalism.

Also in both pages there are previews of pages, this is key because it shows the audience a preview but it doesn’t give them the whole thing so readers will read on and be interested in the article and pages to come.

LEFT THIRD

Contents Page Analysis

On the first page of the contents page there are two images of Cheryl Cole and John Lennon, the picture of Cheryl Cole is sexy so she is suggested to be a sex object in the image also with the image of John Lennon puts across being sexual. Also the red is a fiery colour so can come across quite sexy. The colours in the contents page are red and black, the black colour links to the black costume that Cheryl Cole is wearing. Red and Black are both related to rock music because the Black is the colour associated with rock as well. The crammed images on the second page of the contents page can come across as being crammed with information, this might attract the audience because they will feel like they’re getting all the information they need. Also the fact that on the second page of the contents, top left there is a posh looking man also wearing a suit which shows that the magazine doesn’t just focus on one genre of music it varies. Another thing is that the wording/font is simple and on the first page of the contents the layout is simple this can suggest to the audience that the magazine wont be complicated to read and that they will enjoy reading it and wont have any issues. The way the titles are bold and capitalised show importance on the page and that the reader will want to see these titles, this will make the audience want to read on. Because I find when I want to read/buy a magazine I tend to look at the front cover and then look at the contents page to see if I will enjoy it. If I saw the bold, capitalised titles and then read that they were interesting things that I would enjoy, I would buy. So this is a marketing strategies which is also appealing to the eye. On the first page of the contents it shows the titles of all the celebs featuring in the magazine this will attract the audience because not only is it on the first page of the contents also it is on the left third of the page and the reader will read it first.

Double Page Spread The fact that the double page spread includes the masthead “New To Q� and the image also includes the type of product wrapping when you get new products, it is mainly related to models. With them being on changeable and pull apart product type, this can be suggesting that the artists are interchangeable and that they are products rather than artists, this is ironic for Q because they are making their own comment on commercial aspect of music by putting there own opinion across. Putting Chase & Status with a keyboard and The Drums with a tambourine suggest what both the artist play and what sort of genre of music they are, such as Chase and Status could be electronic or dance and The Drums could be Indie or Folk, this is also suggested through the Mise-En-Scene because of the clothes they are wearing for example The drums are wearing rolled up trousers with skimpy button shirts and pointy shoes which relate to Indie music or Folk. Whereas Chase & Status are different because they are dressed in formal/casual wear which relates more to Jazz or Rock and Roll music and make it hard to decide what genre they are although there is an album/image of a band/mega group called Magnetic Man and they play electronic dubstep music and they are dressed in formal/casual clothing.