Analysis of NME Magazine

Front CoverThe target audience of NME are aged 21-30 and are mostly male. This is suggested by the magazine showing bands and solo artists that aren’t new, but haven’t been around for a long time, who are mostly male. The social class of the target audience would be BC1, and they would’ve most likely gone to College and then got an apprenticeship. This would be suggested through the use of little text on the cover, meaning that the audience don’t necessarily enjoy sitting down and reading long articles, but prefer to go out and do things they enjoy, suggesting that they would have a more active job, where they get to travel and move around a lot. They are extremely passionate about music and are constantly going to concerts and festivals with friends, as they enjoy travelling to new places and experiencing new things. The target audience are single, as they are young and their life of travelling to different festivals doesn’t suit a partner, who might not want to travel around a lot. When they’re not out listening to live music they enjoy playing different sports and finding new places to visit with their friends.Whilst this issue of NME features the rap artist Dizzee Rascal, the magazine doesn’t have a specific music genre. This is shown by the names of other music artists on the cover of the magazine, who aren’t of the hip-hop genre, but of rock and indie.

Task 2a

The masthead of NME is placed in the top left hand corner of the cover, since this will be the first thing that the audience will see, as when it is displayed on the shelf in a shop, conventionally, only the top part of the magazine is shown. It is also where the audiences’ eyes will be drawn to first because in the English language we read starting from the top left. In addition, the masthead of NME doesn’t change with each edition meaning that readers will be able to identify the magazine with ease. Furthermore, as the font that the masthead is written in denotes red, with a white and black stroke, and it is large and bold it stands out and draws the audiences’ eye straight away.

Front CoverThere is a clear colour scheme within the magazine, as only black, white, and red appear on the cover. Black and white are contrasting colours that are bold and striking, meaning that the text will stand out and the cover will grab the attention of the reader. Red is a stimulant colour meaning that it would make the audience make quick decisions, like the decision to buy the magazine. These colours are also very commonly used on many different types of music magazines, meaning that it relates to different genres of music. The colour scheme is used thoughtfully and isn’t too garish, to ensure that, before even reading a cover line, the reader isn’t put off by the clashing colours, but attracted by the strategic placement of the three colours.The main image on the magazine is a full shot of Dizzee Rascal. Dizzee is looking at the camera and therefore making eye contact with the reader, which would denote direct address. The placement of Dizzee’s eyes is also following the rule of thirds, as they are in line with a hotspot point on the magazine cover, meaning that the audiences’ eyes are immediately drawn to the eye contact. By directly addressing the audience, NME is making them intrigued and feel as though they need to buy the magazine because it’s addressing them personally. The magazine also appears friendly and welcoming to the reader as Dizzee is crouched down with open arms and a wide, open smile. This also links to the quote from Dizzee in the main cover line, saying that he is ‘spreading joy around the world’. The mise-en-scène is quite minimal within the main image. The image is bright and well lit, which would reiterate the friendly and welcoming feel of the magazine. There isn’t any dramatic make-up, use of lots of different props, but there is a graffitied wall in the background, which would connote the hip-hop genre.

Task 2a

The barcode is placed in the bottom right hand corner of the cover, as this is the last place that the readers’ eyes will be drawn to. This means that the barcode won’t interfere or distract from the important information on the cover.

Front CoverThe main cover line anchored to the image appears just below the middle of the cover. ‘Dizzee Rascal’ is at a slight slant over the main image, and the rest cover line isn't slanted and is to the bottom left of Dizzee. The fact that the main cover line is slanted, would have connotations of rebellion, which would link to hip-hop music, which reiterates the genre of music that Dizzee Rascal produces. Also the slanted text could appeal to the audience, due to it seeming friendlier. If everything on the cover was ordered and in straight lines, then it may appear too formal and put the audience off buying it, but by making the main cover line slightly slanted it makes the magazine more approachable.There are also other cover lines and straplines on the cover that appear on the right side of the cover and next to the masthead, so that they don’t distract from the main image and cover line. Across the top of the cover there is a strapline for the ‘Autumn Tour Special’. As it’s along the top, NME clearly thinks that the special will appeal to the audience, and that it will intrigue readers, as it will be visible to the audience when the magazine is displayed in a shop. The strapline also contains names of music artists, which would attract fans of them to purchase the magazine. The list of artist featured in the magazine are continues along the bottom of the magazine, to widen the audience. On the right of the cover there is a cover line, which is in a small, white font. The use of a white font, means that it stands out against the red background, but the fact that it’s small means that it doesn’t over power the main cover line.

Task 2a

The mode of address within the cover is quite informal, like the use of ‘man’ in the main cover line, which would continue the friendly and welcoming feel of the magazine. There are two exclamation marks featured on the cover, making the magazine sound more exciting, which in turn makes the audience more excited to read it.

Contents PageThe masthead of the contents page is placed in the top right hand corner of the page, as this is on the opposite side to the masthead on the cover, meaning that they won’t look the same, but the masthead is still where the readers eyes are drawn to first, as it is at the top. The NME logo is next to ‘Contents’ because this continues the branding and links the contents page to the cover. Furthermore, as the font that the masthead is written in denotes white against black, and it is large and bold it stands out and draws the audiences’ eye straight away.

The main image on the contents page is a medium shot of a girl outside an tour bus. The girl is making eye contact with the reader, which would denote direct address. By using direct address above the editor’s note it make the reader feel as though they are being addressed personally within the note. The use of the tour bus anchors the image to the title ‘Touring Special’, meaning that the image is related to something on the page and not there for no reason. There is also a white border around the image and it is on the page at a slant. This makes the image appear to be a photograph that’s been stuck onto the page, making the magazine appear more fun and friendly.

Task 2b

Contents PageThe layout of the contents page consists of three columns that follow the rule of thirds. By putting the information into different columns, it organises it so that it is easy for the audience to navigate. It also makes the page look neater and more appealing. The majority of the text is written in sans serif font, meaning that the information is the main focus to the audience, as sans serif fonts are very plain and simple. However, the editor’s note is written in a serif font, meaning that the text will appear more welcoming than the rest of the page, as sans serif fonts can appear quite harsh. The editor’s note needs to appear more welcoming because it is almost like an introduction for the magazine and it will appeal to the reader if it is more friendly. The article titles and page numbers are set out on either side of the page. On the right hand side there is a list of the main articles within the magazine, as this will indicate to the reader the highlights and features of the issue. These articles have been split up into sections with headings, which will help the reader to find the type of article they are looking to read. On the left hand side there is a list of bands in alphabetical order with the page numbers that they feature on. This makes it easier for readers to find certain bands within the magazine, as opposed to the numbers being in order, which would make finding these bands harder.

Task 2b

Double Page SpreadThe double page spread on Dizzee Rascal has used one page for the main image of Dizzee, and the other page for the title and the other text. The page number is located in the bottom left hand corner of the page, so that the audience can flick through the corners to easily find the page. The image and text are integrated by the use of props connecting the second page to the first. Also the graffiti theme is carried across both pages.The main image on the page is a medium long shot of Dizzee Rascal. Dizzee isn’t looking at the camera, meaning that direct address isn’t direct address isn’t present within the image. This is so that the readers’ eyes are more drawn to the title of the article, as the article itself is the most important part of the double page spread.

Task 2c

Within the image Dizzee seems to be looking out for someone, as he is in the act of graffiting. This anchors the image to the title of the article ‘From Tags to Riches’, as someone graffiting would connote deprived areas, linking to the original phrase ‘from rags to riches’. Unfortunately, the fact that Dizzee is graffiting and looking quite suspicious, would imply the negative and harmful stereotype that black men, in particular, are criminals. However, the graffiti would also link to the hip-hop genre of music, so would connect to Dizzee in terms of the music that he produces, as opposed to just the colour of his skin. The mise-en-scène is used to emphasise the genre of Dizzee’s music and to link it to the cover and contents page. The red jacket, that he wasn’t wearing on the cover, is used to connect the double page spread to the colour scheme used on the cover and the contents page, so that the brand of the magazine isn’t lost throughout it. The props of the empty beer bottles and the radio would connote having fun and partying, which is the type of artist that Dizzee Rascal is. They also make the double page spread look more interesting and appealing, as they fill empty space below the text.

Double Page SpreadThe mode of address within the double page spread is quite informal, shown by the use of a pun in the title and the props of the empty beer bottles. It also doesn’t use direct address, as the article is about Dizzee’s life and music, not about personally addressing the readers.

The title of the article is written is a large, sans serif font that takes up half of the second page. It denotes black against a white background, so that it stand out and catches the readers’ eye, and appears slightly slanted with spray paint drips behind it, which would link to the graffiti within the main image.

Task 2c

The subtitle is significantly smaller than the title and is written in a serif font, as serif fonts are considered to be easier to read when smaller and in large sections of text. The text in the article is also written in a serif font for the same reason.

The text in the article is smaller than the subtitle, so that the subtitle stands out more to the reader. It also starts off with a drop cap, which is an effective way of grabbing the audiences’ attention and add visual strength to the page. In addition, the article is divided up into four columns, so that the text doesn’t interfere with the image by going too far down the page.

Elements that Connect the Different Parts of the Magazine

It is important that different parts of a magazine are connected, because otherwise the brand identity will be lost throughout it.Within NME there are many elements that connect the cover, the contents page, and the double page spread to each other. One element would be the colour scheme of black, white, and red. The use of a colour scheme is very important because, before any text is read, the audience will see the colours and general layout of a magazine.Another element that connects the three parts of NME would be the fonts. NME uses mainly sans serif fonts, with the exceptions of paragraphs of text and on the straplines on the cover. The use of the same or similar fonts means that the magazine doesn’t look mismatched and unorganised. It also means that the audience isn’t overwhelmed with lots of different styles of fonts.In addition the use of music artists, in this issue Dizzee Rascal, on the cover and double page spread, means that the cover relates to the articles within the magazine. This is so the audience knows what to expect from the magazine just by looking at the cover and isn’t mislead by a cover that has nothing to do with the content of the magazine.

Task 2d