Anisha Karim
Media Coursework Double Page Spread Analysis TOP OF THE POPS
Anisha Karim
Media Coursework Double Page Spread Analysis
Brief Introduction The name of the magazine is ‘Top of the Pops’, which Is based on the genre pop. ‘Top of the Pops’ means pop songs that are at the top of the charts. The word ‘pops immediately shows the genre of the music magazine. Therefore it is direct and had a direct audience, being fans of pop music. Pop music is usually associated with young teenage girls, therefore its target audience are young female teenagers, between the age of 12 and 16. This is shown through the pop stars that appear within the magazine, such as ‘The Jonas Brothers’, who appear in this article. ‘Top of the Pops’ is published by BBC magazine, which indicates that the market is quite wide and therefore not niche. It can also be seen as a hybrid magazine as it includes articles about music, fashion, star gossip and beauty advices. Layout of the Page The double page spread is dominated by images, as young females prefer to look at pictures rather than reading. In addition, the text that appears in the article isn’t all together, as a block of text would not appeal to the target market. By separating the text makes it look like there is less text. The article is about the plot of the film ‘Camp Rock’ which is a Disney favourite, this is shown through the sub heading ‘The Plot’. The plot is in a orange box separate from the rest of the article, which shows that it is part of a different section. There are also gutters in between the article, which as as columns, and also make it look professional. This is conventional as most music magazines have gutters. Images Used There is a dominant, enlarged image of the ‘Jonas Brothers’, who have their own show on Disney channel, as well as being singers. Therefore this can indicate that the target audience might be slightly hybrid, as they will be fans of the Disney channel as well as the music related with them. Two of the members of the group are holding guitars, and one is holding a microphone, this indicates that they are singers. In addition, the group are smiling slightly, which makes it more welcoming for the reader. The group are admired by many teenage girls, therefore it indicates that the females fantasise about them. The group are dressed in casual clothing, which shows that it is not an unnatural image of them. The remaining images at the bottom are of the other characters that appear in the film ‘Camp Rock’. By having pictures of them can widen the target audience, as they can be fans of the film or the other characters themselves. In addition, the individuals at the bottom all appear to be smiling, which is very welcoming. Text Used – Content Most of the text used is quite informal, this is shown through both the content and the typeface. The subheadings are in white with a black outlining, which makes it appear like someone has written it, this is more personal and therefore the reader can relate to it. The text also has many exclamation marks, which indicate expression and this also emphasises what has been said, and therefore attracts the reader more. The words that are used include ‘we’ and ‘us’, which show that the reader is involved within the article. The headings and subheadings are displayed in bright coloured text, which relate to the target audience. However, there are many colours used, which indicates that they are not following a colour scheme. In addition, the text is set out in columns, which add formality. However, this contrasts with the layout of the images. Colours The colours used are bright and bold, therefore attract the target audience more as they are interested in colours, rather than text. The colours contrast with each of the little backgrounds of the shapes. This makes the text stand out. Most fo the subheadings and headings use at least two colours in each, this adds informality to the article.
