Evaluation (Q1- In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?)

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Magazines generally share a range of  conventions e.g a masthead, bar code, issue number, date of release and a main image, however, these conventions are coded in a way that appeals to a target demographic as different audiences are attracted to different things. Some magazines may even twist these conventions to attract their target demographic. Magazines use Maslows hierarchy of needs' idea of 'self-actualization' which is the idea as humans we wish to better our selves and reach our full potential. Magazine companies know this and use it to their advantage meaning they know how to attract their target audience by selling their magazine as a 'dream' rather than a product. 

For example in a magazine such as Vibe they already have a vast knowledge of their target demographic and use this to their advantage in the construction of their magazine, their main image shows a reflection of their audiences aspirations which is an example of the use of the idea of self-actualisation. The model is looking up with the American flag reflected in his sunglasses, this has connotations of patriotism which is consistent with the demographic as they are mainly American, as well as giving the impression of looking up at the future which also is applicable to their target demographic as they are young (18-25) and they have their whole future ahead of them. It could also be said that by using the reflection of the American flag is representative of the fact he is pursuing the American dream. This also taps into the audiences aspirations.

Another convention in magazines is the use of male gaze. 'Male Gaze' is a theory proposed by feminist Laura Mulvey who believes that in the media the camera acts as a heterosexual man in the way it views women. It depicts women as submissive to men which reflects our patriarchal society. Why, you may wonder, does the media represent women in such a negative way? Well the answer is simple, sex sells. The way this theory works is that men who are viewing women through the male gaze are attracted to this as it puts them in a position of power. However women who view this are also attracted to it because they believe paradoxically that women who are being depicted as submissive actually have power over men and they aspire to this. An example of this is the Chanel advert 'coco mademoiselle'. In the image she is shown in a recumbent position wearing very little clothing. This makes her seem weak and powerless which is in line with the male gaze, men viewing this advert would aspire to dominate her. However women viewing this advert see her as powerful and seductive as she seems confident enough to not need to wear clothes because she knows men will like what they see and also she is looking straight at the camera almost invitingly. This makes her seem confident and powerful.

Because my magazine is aimed at young girls i do not want to inflict such a negative view of women on them as they are impressionable. I know this because I tested it subconsciously, girls around the age of 11 had internalised the male gaze subconsciously due to their experience of the media. To do this i showed each of them six pictures of women and asked them to put them in order of most attractive to least attractive. This was the order given unanimously.

The first woman has been obviously portrayed in line with the male gaze, she is wearing pink which has connotations of femininity, she has a red flower in her hair which has connotations of passion and romance and her head is canted to show she is being submissive. She also is not looking at the camera giving the viewer complete power over her. The fifth image is interesting as the woman in the image is actually a well known model who is an attractive woman however in this picture she is looking up at the camera giving her dominance which my sample found unattractive. This is astonishing because if a man was pictured in that same pose they wouldn't be viewed as unattractive because as a society we comply with hegemonic values and believe that men should be dominant.

 This man is looking up at the camera in almost the same way as the woman who was put fifth yet my focus group rated him 8/10 in attractiveness. This result shocked me as young girls at the age of 11 had already internalised the male gaze.These findings shocked me and encouraged me to represent women in a positive way in my magazine. Although i will have to use some aspects of the male gaze to attract my audience, e.g. using photo shop to edit my model. I am determined not to sexualise my model or make her seem submissive in anyway.The picture they rated least attractive was of a woman who was wearing no make up. This tells me that the women they see in the media who have their make up done have had a big impact on the views of young girls and also explain why more and more young girls wear make up and try to look older than they really are. This is an example of hyper reality. Due to the impact of the media real life is becoming a reflection of what we see in the media, essentially, they want to look like the stars on t.v. This is worrying as the gap between reality and the stimulation of reality we see in the media is closing, with makeup acting as a mask to create a hyper real representation of the person underneath.

In the construction of my front cover i asked my model to wear loose fitting clothes. This is because i wanted the focus of the picture to be on her face and not her body. Also i wanted to show my audience that body image is not important and they don't need to be a size zero to be important. The model also had her head canted and her eyes have been slightly whitened. This is in line with the male gaze but i wanted to apply this in order to build an attraction to my magazine. She is smiling in the image as i want my audience to see this as an aspirational image of being happy. Around her neck is a lollipop necklace which is appropriate for my audience as this is quite childish and my audience is around the age of 8-11. My masthead is the same green as in the template my focus group chose as the most appealing, this is because green has connotations of nature and life and iconically green represents good things.

My front cover follows many codes and conventions e.g. it has a main image, a tagline, feature stories, a barcode, and my masthead is on the top left corner. My tagline is 'for little pop stars' the word pop is capitalised to highlight that it is taken from the name of the magazine. Also the tagline draws the reader to understand this is a pop magazine for young girls.

I used many different types of typography on my front page so that it seems bursting with content. Many magazines do this because they know that magazine sales are declining due to audience fragmentation so they try to make it appear that their reader is getting alot for their money. Also, like other magazines i included synergy in my magazine by creating a 'vote online' section meaning readers can access content on the lolpop website as well as in the magazine. The magazine and website would work together in a mutually beneficial relationship in order to create synergy.

Something conventional of magazines aimed at young girls is an additional incentive. For my additional incentive i offered a free Miley Cyrus make up set as i know this will attract my audience. Although this seems to be reinforcing  the idea of hyper reality by engaging with my audience in a way that allows them to make themselves like the reality in the media. Research into my demographic found that this is one of the main reasons magazines are purchased by young girls and it would ensure my magazine to be a success.

I also included a banner on my front page which listed four female artists who i believe are independent, powerful, and successfully thus a good role model for my audience. My front cover is very colourful which will attract my audience as young girls are attracted to bright colours. The use of a range of different colours also ties into the effect of the range of typography used. I want to give the effect that the magazine is bursting full of content so the reader feels it is worth buying.

Something i found that was conventional specifically to magazines aimed at my demographic was speech bubbles on the front cover and groups of shapes scattered across the pages as a design element. This use of semiotics is iconic of girls magazines. This knowledge enabled me to attract my audience as well as give my magazine a sense of professionalism. I constructed a symbol that was unique to my brand identity, it consisted of a sun, a heart and a star. This created a collage type effect and made my magazine seem childish which is appropriate for my demographic.
My contents page was very consistent with conventions of other magazine aimed at young girls. It was colourful included images, page numbers, page titles and anchors.  The images i used were chosen carefully. One image is of the main star of my magazine, sitting down and reading. Although it could be argued she is in a recumbent position which is in line with the male gaze, i think it as inspiring image that will encourage young girls to enjoy reading as their favourite artist is doing so.

The colours i used throughout my magazine all had a similar tone and this was an element of my brand identity. Brand identity is important in the construction phase as i have seen with magazines such as NME. They have a recognisable brand identity which enables it to be so well known ad popular.

My double page spread was also consistent with other music magazines and i chose to go along with the convention of having one of the pages to be primarily a picture. Another thing i added by means of convention was the info box on the picture. This was isolated from the rest of the copy so as to draw attention to it.

In conclusion my magazine presented me with a balancing act as i had to follow some conventions as well as go against others in order to create a magazine suitable for my demographic.