Magazine Analysis Coursework

TEEN NOW

Target audience profile:

This magazine is aimed at teenage girls that are interested in fashion, boys and celebrity gossip. These girls would normally shop in high street stores such as Topshop, Miss selfridge, Accessorize and they would also like designer brands such as Pauls Boutique. Their favourite television show would be Glee, Disney channel programs such as Wizards of Waverly Place and these girls would hardly ever miss an episode of X-Factor. Their favourite movie would be Twilight and favourite artists and bands would be N-Dubz, JLS, One Direction, Pixie Lott and Selena Gomez. This may be because many of these teenage girls aspire to be like Pixie, Selena and Tulisa from N-Dubz. These girls enjoy going out and socialising with friends and hearing gossip about their favourite celebrities. They would read ‘Teen Now’ as a way to escape from their own lives, to get advice and to use the magazine as a talking point for social interaction or discussion.

Masthead:

The masthead is in sans serif which makes it more casual and informal and this is suitable for the target audience as they are teenagers. The masthead is eye-catching and bold which is reflective of the girls that read the magazine. It’s called ‘Teen Now’ because the word ‘Now’ describes things that are current and ‘in’ and these girls always follow the latest trends and are on track with everything that happens in the fashion, Hollywood and music world. The background behind the word ‘Teen’ is a bright, vibrant pink and this connotes femininity, friendship and innocence whereas the background for the word ‘Now’ is in blue and because the ‘N’ is in italics, it seems more sophisticated.

Layout:

The layout contains the typical conventions of a teenage girl’s magazines with images of male and female celebrities and cover lines about shoes, make-up and fashion. The layout contains many images and they all use direct mode of address to engage and attract the reader. It also makes it more personal and it makes the reader feel involved. The layout is also very busy as there are various images, slogans and cover lines overlapping each other and this connotes the busy and exciting lives that these teenage girls may lead.

Colour scheme:

The bright vibrant colours make the magazine seem loud and noticeable just like the teenage girls are loud because they too want to be noticed.  Yellow is used a lot; yellow connotes happiness and energy so therefore, reading the magazine will make you happy. Brighter colours are often placed near darker colours to create a contrast to again make the magazine more striking. Tulisa is wearing pastel colours and this connotes femininity as well as inocence.

Cover Lines:

The cover lines persuade people to read the magazine because of the interesting stories/gossip and the fashion and relationship advice. For example: ‘99 HOT FASHION & BEAUTY BUYS FROM £2’, the use of alliteration makes the cover line more catchy and memorable. Also, the cheap price makes it more appealing as teenage girls always want to look good but may not have the money to buy the clothes they want.