Research into current Magazines

Research into Top of the Pops Magazine

History

Top of the Pops magazine was first published in February 1995 by Immediate Media Company due to the hit TV show Top of the Pops. It is most famous for giving the Spice Girls their nicknames; Baby Spice, Ginger Spice, Sporty Spice, Scary Spice and Posh Spice.  The format of the magazine has gradually changed over the years, with less and less music content to more demographic appeal to young girls; boys, fashion, real life stories etc. Even though the TV show was cancelled in 2006, the magazine is still published monthly despite this.

Target Audience:

With the bright, colourful colour scheme such as yellow, pink and purple (as shown in the front cover above) instantly appealing to young girls. With the content of fashion, ‘terrifying true-life’ stories and young popular bands and singers, it draws any young girl in to want to read the magazine.

Ideology:

The main focus on this magazine is interviews with ‘hot’ artists and fashion tips and advice for their target audience. By using large images of famous celebrities grabs the audiences’ attention, the contents of the puffs assisting these images using language such as ‘unlocked- just for you’, shows a direct mode of address making the audience want to read as they feel it is personal to them, giving more sales of the magazine to the company; which is their intention.

Research into Q Music Magazine

History:

First published in 1986 by the Media Group EMAP, founded by Mark Ellen and David Hepworth, originally called ‘cue’ with the subtitle ‘The modern guide to music and more’. However the name was later changed so it wasn’t mistaken for a snooker magazine. It was changed to ‘Q’ so it would stand out and be more prominent when on newsstands.

January 2008 EMAP sold its consumer magazine titles, including ‘Q’, to the Bauer Media Group.

Target Audience:

As the main focus of the magazine is of the hottest things at the time, the target audience is teens and young adults.

However as there is a special edition of ‘Mojo’ magazine including classic great musicians and songs, it also appeals to older adults who have a great interest in music themselves.

Ideology: 

The magazines main focus is on interviews with popular and ‘hot’ artists of the time featuring the biggest stars on the cover and other major artists inside.

With an extensive focus on reviews of music, radio, film, television and live concerts and new releases for the public to look out for.

Another well-known focus of the magazine is on ‘100 greatest’ things of the moment and of all time.

Q has a follow-up magazine called ‘Mojo’ which is a special edition including reviews of classics of all time and the greatest and most influential musicians- also helping the company earn more money with this limited edition extra magazine on the side.