GR 604: Rolling Stone - Book 01: The Visual Strategy Guide (Student Project)

01 Visual Strategy Guide

Hsin Yu (Doris) Lin GR604 Nature of Identity Fall 2019

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Visual Strategy Guide This Visual Strategy Guide’s aim was to research a brand and understand its history, soul and mission statement. Then use the knowledge to determine how to advance them into the future most effectively.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Table of contents

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02

Brand Introduction

Personas

Brand Description Brand History Brand Soul New Mission Statement Rebranding Objective Key Words

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Brand Visualization

Competitors

Original Visualization Future Visualization

Current Competitors Adjacent Competitors Future Competitors

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

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01 Brand Introduction Brand Description Brand History Brand Soul New Mission Statement Rebranding Objective Key Words

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Brand Description

Rolling Stone is an American monthly magazine that focuses on popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California in 1967

by Jann Wenner, who is still the magazine's publisher, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason.

In the beginning, the magazine was positioned to report and promote hippie culture, but Rolling Stone magazine itself did not want to be regarded as an underground magazine at the time, so the standard of truthfulness of the report was very strict and avoided political color. Rolling Stone was once politically strong in the early 1970’s , but it was influenced by the absurd journalism at the time.

In the 1990s, the magazine shifted focus to a younger readership interested in youth-oriented television shows, film actors, and popular music. It has returned its traditional mix of content, including music, entertainment, and politics. In recent years, the magazine has resumed its traditional mix of content, including in-depth political stories. It has also expanded content to include coverage of financial and banking issues.

Penske Media Corporation is the current owner of Rolling Stone, purchasing 51 percent of the magazine in 2017 and the remaining 49 percent in 2019.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Brand History

1967

1967–72

1977

1980

Editor Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J. Gleason launch Rolling Stone in late 1967.

The first publications, were in folded tabloid newspaper format, with no staples, black ink text, and a single color highlight that changed each edition.

The magazine moved its headquarters from San Francisco to New York City.

Rolling Stone shifted to more of an entertainment magazine in the 1980’s. It still had music as the main topic, but rage of celebrities, films, and pop culture.

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1990

2005

2009

Dana Leslie Fields, former publisher of Rolling Stone, who had worked at the magazine for 17 years, was an inaugural inductee into the Magazine Hall of Fame.

In the 1990’s, the magazine changed its format to appeal to a younger readership interested in youth-oriented television shows, film actors and popular music.

Taibbi unleashed an acclaimed series of scathing reports on the financial meltdown of the time.

He famously described Goldman Sachs as “a great vampire squid”.

2019 January. 31 Penske acquired BandLab's 49% stake in Rolling Stone, gaining full ownership of the magazine.

2012 November.

22 The magazine published its first Spanish-language section on Latino music and culture.

2016 Wenner is in the process of selling a 49% stake of the magazine to a company from Singapore called BandLab. The new investor had no direct involvement in the editorial content of the magazine.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

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Brand Mission Statement

Exposing truths and supporting the people who are revolutionizing the world.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

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Rebranding Objective

The new Rolling Stone will be exposing truths and supporting the people who are revolutionizing the world. Our future extensions will keep being a proactive primary source for people in the new ages.

We want to help people express their ideas and voices. Our brand has the power to help people in need. We can allow them to communicate their voices and highlight information that should be heard.

As the main source of proactive information we believe we can affect everyone and make life different.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Keywords

Impact Rolling Stone magazine is one of the most influential cultural publications in the Western music scene.

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Truth

Attitude

They are committed to the pursuit of authenticity and strive to bring the most authentic news to everyone.

It's not just about music, but also the attitude of music and expressing your thoughts.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

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02 Personas

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

The audience is mainly focused on today’s generation and the way they express themselves now. Rolling Stone knows what matters is how they can create resonance better than before to influence the world and differently.

Music Lover Name

Jimmy Baker

Age

28

Location

Los Angeles

Occupation Record store sales

_He is a record store salesman, so he knows many different types of music artists and he thinks through their music that he can know what are they express for. _He read a lot of books and magazines that he knows how to discuss with his friends. _He is a music lover and was deeply influenced by rock music because through the lyrics he can understand their concepts. _His personality is introverted and quiet, but he cares about culture and feels that culture is related to a country. _He enjoys exploring a different culture that makes him feel interested. _He likes to read music reviews that will help him know more about this artist at a different angle. _He is a good speaker and likes to share his opinion because he thinks it’s important to express his own thoughts. _He thought that music can change lives and help people to feel different inspiration.

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“Music is a very important part of my life. I believe that music can change lives.”

Feminist Name

Carol Brown

Age

23

Location

New Jersey

Occupation College student

_She is a member of the student union and she likes to help people. _She has volunteered and participated in many public welfare activities. _She read a lot of social news and will post on social media about it. _She cares about what is happening right now, so she wants to use her knowledge and power to make lives better. _She hopes to attract more people’s attention to what's happening in life and the world. _She saw a lot of news is about a woman, so she hope to vote for more women. _She also likes to watch movies because she thinks the movie

“I hope to help more people through my own power.”

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Editor Name

Allen Young

Age

32

Location

Seattle

Occupation Magazine editor

_He is an entertainment magazine editor, but still wants to know the content of different magazines. _He likes to collect different news and compare which one is more truthful and valuable than others. _He doesn’t listen to that much pop music because he thinks there are no meaning and their songs is too fancy. _He likes to listen to underground bands, but not many media report them, so he wants to know more about that style’s music articles. _He has to do a lot of research and report it, but sometimes he doesn’t know if the source is true or not. _He likes to go to travel and know different cultures because he wants to understand how different humanities work. _He is not familiar with political news, so he think this magazine can help him know more information. _He thinks there is so much information on the website, half is not trustworthy, but he doesn’t know which website is credibile.

“The right information can bring people the right values and change people’s ideas.”

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Newcomer Name

Aiko Hayashi

Age

30

Location

Portland

Occupation Clothes store owner

_She likes to explore new things and express her own thoughts. _She is from Japan, she just moved to the US for one year and she has her own second-hand stores. _She use social media very often, but most of the sources are seen on social media, so she is not sure truly or not. _She is not familiar with national issues, but she wants to know more. _She likes to talk to a customer about life and culture, so she think this magazine is good media to know about American lifestyle. _She also care about LGBT culture, sometime she will participate in the parade. _She has her own fan page, so she always posts her life or through of the American on the website.

“I am curious about everything that is unknown. I hope to explore the United States in more depth.�

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Social media activist Name

Alejandro Gomez

Age

35

Location

San Jose

Occupation Software engineer

_He is a heavy Internet user and he always look at his page to see if there are any new updates because he likes to receive new information. _He thinks there are too many media reports on national news, but the text or style of each article is different. _He always watches social media and give them comments because he likes to give them feedback and sometimes the feedback that will make him feel surprised. _He likes to use social media to express his opinion. _He likes type more than talk because he thinks typing is more easier to express his ideas. _He likes to watch movie interviews on Youtube. _He does not often participate in social activities, so he is good at texting to talk to people.

“After reading many media reports, I want to know what is correct and what is not correct.�

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International Students Name

Gina Kim

Age

20

Location

New York

Occupation Marketing student

_She is new, so she is very interested in American culture. _Her personality is outgoing, lively and curious about life. _She feels there are not many international students paying attention to American culture. _She likes to listen music and watch movies, especially movies related to history that will make her want to know more about topics. _She wants to explore different music type, but she doesn’t know how to find it. _She hopes to talk about more topics about classmates in class. _She used to be an international volunteer, so she cares about a lot of environmental issues.

“I hope to have more topics with my classmates, so I am looking forward to a variety of different topics.�

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Explorer Name

Taylor Jackson

Age

55

Location

Austin

Occupation Retirement

_He reads the news every morning. _He wants to know what young generations are paying attention to now, and he wants to know what his grandson is thinking. _He used to be a reader of this magazine, he wants to see what new changes have been made. _He is not very good at using technology, but he will ask his grandson to teach him how to use it. _He thinks times have changed a lot and he wants to learn morenew things. _He will travel once a year to experience different cultures and he likes to observe different type of people. _He doesn’t understand the LGBT issue, but he respects them.

“I like to see and explore new things.”

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New Generation Name

Iris Lee

Age

18

Location

Orange County

Occupation Restaurant waiter

_She is not confident and she doesn’t really like to talk about herself. _She does not agree with some policies, she still has no ability to change. _She didn’t continue to study at university. _She is full of doubts about her future and she doesn’t know what is her next step. _She cares very much about what other people think of her. _She likes to read different types of article that makes her consider things more and she will them post to her blog. _She thinks life experience is more important than learning because they can’t be learn in the textbook. _She cares about anything with her family because its an important pillar and ther family will always listen to her and support her.

“I am confused about the future, I hope someone can bring me directions.”

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

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03 Brand Visualization Original Visualization Future Visualization

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Original

Rolling Stone 28

Originally, Rolling Stone looked serious, vintage and simple. It looked less active, but in the 1960's it made people feel hope and trust.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Future

Rolling Stone 30

The future visual Rolling Stone will give feelings of strength, spirit and authenticity to people which hopefully others can bravely feel confident to express their voice too. It will bring new ideas through the change of Rolling Stones.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

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04 Competitors Current Competitors Adjacent Competitors Future Competitors

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Current Competitor

Billboard publishes pieces involving news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style, and is also known for its music charts. It also hosts events, owns a publishing firm, and operates several TV shows. Their magazine theme is similar to Rolling Stone and also a music magazine.

New Musical Express is a British music journalism website and former magazine that has been published since 1952. Now they have stopped publishing and changed to online publishing.

People is an American weekly magazine of celebrity and human-interest stories, published by Meredith Corporation.

With a readership of 46.6 million adults, People has the largest audience of any American magazine. This is a bit different from the Rolling Stones, a magazine based on people's stories.

Relix is a magazine that focuses on live and improvisational music. The magazine was launched in 1974 as a handmade newsletter devoted to connecting people who recorded Grateful Dead concerts. It rapidly expanded into a music magazine covering a wide number of artists. This magazine is mainly about music.

Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom. The magazine has an extensive review section, featuring: new releases, reissues, compilations, film and live concert reviews, as well as radio and television reviews. This magazine is mainly focused on music and television reviews.

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Alternative Press is an American music magazine based in Cleveland, Ohio. It generally provides readers with band interviews, photos, information on upcoming releases, and music charts.

This weekly publication provides the latest news on celebrities, film, and television, including unique sections that recommend the best shows airing on a particular week, an in-depth information about modern celebrities.

Blender was an American music magazine that billed itself as “the ultimate guide to music and more”. It was also known for sometimes steamy pictorials of celebrities. It compiled lists of albums, artists, and songs, including both “best of” and “worst of” lists.

For the internationally respected source on DJ's and dance music, Mixmag has it covered. Learn about the people and places that are relevant to electronic music in this publication.

Music Week is a trade paper for the UK record industry. It is published by Future. This magazine foucus on music news, comment, opinion and charts analysis and video.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Adjacent Competitor

MTV was a music television station launched on August 1, 1981. It would play music videos which were a relatively new concept presented by video jockeys or VJ’s. MTV would change the way we consumed music and has lead to some of the most significant moments in pop culture.

Sight & Sound is a British monthly film magazine published by the British Film Institute (BFI). The magazine reviews all film releases each month, including those with a limited (art house) release, as opposed to most film magazines which concentrate on those films with a general release.

The Hollywood Reporter is an American digital and print magazine, and website, which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries.

Us Weekly is a weekly celebrity and entertainment magazine based in New York City. Us Weekly covers topics ranging from celebrity relationships to the latest trends in fashion, beauty, and entertainment.

Jango is a free online music streaming service available worldwide. Stating that its uninterrupted playlists are handmade by music experts and many of them are updated weekly, the service will recommend its users on various playlists mainly based on mood or activity.

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HuffPost is an American news and opinion website and blog, with localized and international editions. It is edited from a left wing political perspective.

Guitarists of all levels can get something positive out of Premier Guitar, a magazine that offers expert advice, DIY plans, and interviews with industry giants.

BuzzFeed, Inc. is an American Internet media, news and entertainment company with a focus on digital media; it is based in New York City.

IndieWire is an online publication covering film, TV, and digital news, reviews, and interviews for passionate fans and industry insiders.

Reuters is an international news organization owned

by Thomson Reuters. Reuters provides a variety of news and financial data, operating in 128 countries. Reuters provides news reports to newspapers, TV stations and other media, and has always been known for its speed and accuracy.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Future Competitors

YouTube is an American video-sharing platform. YouTube allows users to upload, view, rate, share, add to playlists, report, comment on videos, and subscribe to other users. It offers a wide variety of user-generated and corporate media videos.

Reddit is an American social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website. Registered members submit content to the site such as links, text posts, and images, which are then voted up or down by other members.

The New Yorker is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry.

Instagram from Facebook or simply Instagram is a photo and video-sharing social networking service owned by Facebook, Inc. The app allows users to upload photos and videos to the service, which can be edited with various filters, and organized with tags and location information.

Vice Media LLC is a Canadian digital media and broadcasting company. Vice expanded primarily into youth and young adult– focused digital media, including online content verticals and related web series, the news division Vice News, a film production studio, and a record label among other properties.

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The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market newspaper published in London in a tabloid format. Founded in 1896, it is the United Kingdom's third-highest-circulation daily newspaper, after Metro and The Sun.

Time is an American weekly news magazine and news website published in New York City. It was founded in 1923 and originally run by Henry Luce.

i-D is a British bimonthly magazine dedicated to fashion, music, art and youth culture. i-D was founded by designer and former Vogue art director Terry Jones in 1980.

Paper is a New York City-based independent magazine focusing on fashion, popular culture, nightlife, music, art and film.

Life was an American magazine published weekly until 1972, as an intermittent "special" until 1978, and as a monthly from 1978-2000. During its golden age from 1936-1972, Life was a wide-ranging weekly general interest magazine known for the quality of its photography.

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Image Source Unsplash.com Google.com

Information RollingStone.com Wikipedia.org

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Rolling Stone | Visual Strategy Guide

Design HsinYu (Doris) Lin Class Information GR604 Nature of Identity Fall 2019 Academy of Art University Instructor Hunter Wimmer Pring&Binding Blurb.com Typefaces Source Sans Pro

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