Evaluation question two
- 1. Evaluation Question Two How does your media product represent particular social groups?
- 3. Overview • My target audience are middle class, teens/young adults of both genders- I chose to use middle class teens/young adults representations to fall in line with my them- gives the audience relatable content so that they can associate themselves to the featured artists- this will create a closer relationship with reader and artist (uses and grats). • Using these models also presents this middle class and young social group as being powerful and dominant (desirable for my target audience as well as relatable)- in later editions of the magazine I could include other social groups (including different ethnicities as all models are white) to display more diversity. • Although my target audience is of both genders, the images I have taken are all of females (see contents page)- this is to attempt to empower women in the male-dominated music industry. This conforms to Gauntlett’s theory (2008)- argues that magazines aimed at young women emphasise that women must be independent and themselves- so will present women as strong individuals and beyond sex-objects for men’s admiration. • The front cover goes against this and sexualises the artist (red lips has sexual connotations)- shows a woman’s right and freedom to be considered beautiful- this will attract dominantly straight males so my media product is overall accessible to both genders and conveys young, middle class females as powerful.
- 4. Front Cover Analysis 1 • Female model as the dominant image of the magazine- I chose this to attempt to engage the female audience by the use of this model in the main image. This is because females can associate themselves with the artist as they are relatable- creates a more personal relationship with the artist (uses and grats). • My model’s facial expression is unclear- this is pluralistic as it provides a positive role model for young females- is not inviting for male’s attention but is not aggressive enough to challenge gender stereotypes. This unclear expression also adds to mystery and unpredictability- this is a common look in magazines similar to my product. • The mise-en-scene is representative of my target audience. Having similar clothing and make-up to what the females in my target audience would wear makes the model an inspiration and someone to base themselves from (the concept of trending is also presented by the word “rocks” to describe the artist). The use of the plain top and leather jacket can also apply to men's fashion so is relatable to both genders of my target audience- however, the clothing (particularly the leather jacket) could be seen as hegemonic to the characteristics of being the stereotypical, rebellious teenager.
- 5. Front Cover Analysis 2 • In my research, when women are presented on the front cover as the dominant image they are typically sexualised (using Mulvey’s theory of the male gaze) e.g. in Q, Rolling Stone and Blender Magazine. I have conformed to this with the use of red lipstick (has passionate connotations so is sexualises lips), but I also go against this with the anchor text: “Mel Kar Rocks”. This represents the young female as more than her looks- as a statement or role model as opposed to an object- this will appeal to both genders of my target audience as shows the young female in a dominant position.
- 6. Layout-Contents Page • My contents page uses five images in order to react to the needs of my target audience. These younger (teen and adult) readers would stereotypically have a lower concentration span- meaning more images and minimal text is required. • I used rows, columns and sub-headings in order to allow my audience to go directly from the information to the article that they want (and therefore fulfil any needs adequately- whether cognitive or integrative). • If I had more columns of text and less images, my media product may appear more professional to an older target audience- but this only further reinforces my target audience as they would not mind a somewhat imperfect product and would appeal/fulfil to their needs more successfully. • The bright colour red supports this as it catches the eye of the reader in a visual way (uses and grats). • This represents the younger social groups as having a lower concentration span and being more interested in the superficial image of the artist than the information provided. This could be negative as it is portraying teenagers and young adults as more interested in the surface than anything else. However, this could also be positive as it would fulfil the needs of this young target audience more sufficiently and capture more attention than if there were less images and more text.
- 7. Language & Content-Double Page Spread • The young, white, middle-class female is presented here as being highly interested in relationships and break-ups- the content that I have included in this article covers this in order to appeal to the stereotypical relationship-orientated teenage girl. This perhaps presents young females negatively as people more interested in romance than the actual music featured. • “…the seventeen year old’s secrets to success”- mentions artists’ age (relatable to the young target audience as within the age range of 16-25 years old and not specific to gender). “Success”- presents the young as desiring intelligence and influence- this is a positive representation as it encourages young people to work hard. • Article uses some colloquial language, power words and short sentences- makes the language relatable as it is stereotypically what young people would use themselves (perhaps presents the younger generation as less intelligent). • Arrow on bottom right shows that there is more of the article- this is done to break up the bulk of text with images- this appeals to the lower attention span of a stereotypical teen/young adult- my target audience is presented negatively as being less focused/interested in information than the average person of an older age.
- 8. Shot Types 1 • In the majority of my images, I have used eye-line shots- this creates direct mode of address which causes the reader to form a closer relationship with the artists (uses and grats). • Using direct mode of address makes the female models’ facial expressions the dominant feature in each image (rather than the models’ bodies). This portrays the young women as more than sexual objects- goes against Mulvey’s theory of the male gaze. • The concentration on the eyes (which is exaggerated by the shallow depth of field used so the eyes are the main focus of the image) conveys the humanity and emotion of the individual and gives the impression of the artist directly looking at the reader. • This presents young females as more than sexual objects and strong individuals not subservient to male domination (due to the direct mode of address used).
- 9. Shot Types 2 • I have used a low camera angle in only one of my images- females are portrayed as being empowered, but not above men in any way- this way social groups defined by gender are presented as being equal (so the female artists are not looking down on the male readers). • This is important to my target audience of both genders as the representation of empowered women would appeal to females, as well as intriguing the male readers as to why the females were portrayed in this way. This could make the magazine popular as it is appealing to both genders (therefore a wider range of people), and features feminist ideals- this is an extremely talked about topic at the moment- the magazine could be read by more social groups so it would be more successful.
- 10. Ideology 1 • Reception Theory- a version of reader response literary theory that emphasises each particular reader’s reception or interpretation in making meaning from the media product- concentrates on the audiences responses. • Understanding this theory and prioritising appealing to my target audience allowed me to create relationships between the artists and the readers through the use of images (concentrating on the comparisons and similarities of the people)- this would entice fans to read the magazine because it would mean them reading about artists similar or relatable to them. • This could potentially lead to a loyal fan-base- if the artist’s were relatable they could be role models for my target audience, which would create inspiration and fandom.
- 11. Ideology 2 • The use of similar-aged models played a big role in my audience- this is a key aspect in if they would perceive the magazine to be relatable or not. • Audience response- using all white, young, middle-class female models, although limited, appeals to the majority of the population (either relatable or sexualised) so the magazine could be more successful. However, if I wanted to make the representation more diverse, I would need to present different social groups in my media product.