Existing Magazine Contents Pages

Before I create my magazine contents page I decided that it would vital to research into existing R&B magazine contents pages so that I can understand the required features which should be included in my own R&B magazine. Also it enables me to create an awareness of R&B magazine in the context of the R&B genre as well as in the text of a magazine. Researching into similar product could insist me with the ideas of what I should include to make my magazine fit in with existing R&B periodicals but also stand out from stereotypical R&B magazines due to the uniques features.

Contents Page Analysis 1

Image: There is a long shot of a female wearing a minimal amount of clothing; she takes up half of the portrait page. The background color is grey and the costume the girl is wearing is grey as well which doesn’t allow the clothing to stand out very much. The lady in the image is young which gives the reader the feeling that it is targeted at the younger generation. The word ‘Contents’ is written in capital letters and isn’t written in one whole line which gives it a youthful and new way of writing.

The headings ‘features’ and ‘fashion’ is a different font from the description, the description is in depth. Only the main topic are shown on the contents page which shows that the magazine may include a lot of in depth specific stories rather than a lot of random information which you may find in other magazines e.g. quizzes.

Only two font colors have been used and this may because they want the magazine to have a clean mature look.

Although the contents page contains a image of a female it comes across as sexual due to the minimal amount of clothes as well as the position which the lady is sat in. The magazine shows that it is targeted at males and this is through Laura Mulvey’s theory of the male gaze which pinpoints ladies being an ‘object of desire’ to the males. Through the perspective of Mulvey’s theory it suggests to the audience that this contents page is mainly to provide pleasure to males through the females being an ‘object’.

Contents Page Analysis 2

On the Vibe magazine contents page there is a two shot of two young ethnic females posing. The image is the most important feature on the page as it is the largest item. The females are dressed up provocatively with there breasts not fully covered, short dresses, shiny legs revealed as well as high healed shoes. which tells me that this magazine could be targets at young ethnic males as through Laura Mulvey's theory she expresses that women are represented to provide pleasure to men which means that women are used as sexual objects. 

There are minimal sections on the magazine page which show that the information in the magazine may not be overwhelming as the audience (young people) may not enjoy reading a lot.

The colours which have been used are very classical (green, black and grey) this reinforces that the magazine is more of a mature and clean look as it isn't full of different colours which corrupt the the magazines look.

Contents Page Analysis 3

There is a mid shot of the musical artist 50Cent's body is facing the contents, I believe that it is very important to include a image of somebody or something famous so that the intended audience find it easier to identify with the information which may be included. The colours which have been used for the text correspond with the colours on the musicians clothing. I believe that this is a interesting idea as it shows that there is a link between the information which has been provided as well as the image which has been shown. The artist is looking at the lens of the camera which looks like he is looking at the audience which allows the audience to know that thy have been considered as they are being looked directly at. The use of the artist facing the

Black hardcore men are usually stereotyped to listen to R&B music so by using the stereotypical figure in this magazine it creates a sense of tradition as the musician is nationally recognized to belong to the particular genre. The features on the contents page are written in black and bold however the information on the features are a few words long which are very concise. This in particular is a good idea as the audience who read this magazine aren't interested in reading long texts as they find it off putting.