Analysis of Double Page Spreads

I will be mainly analysing double page spreads from pop magazines, as this is the genre that already exists which is arguably closest to the genre I am creating (80s style glam pop). Furthermore, I have chosen articles that are interviews in the main because I have planned to do an interview for my double page spread with the cover girl.

Choice of Articles

Large, bold quote from the interview doubles as the heading to grab the audience’s attention. It is a carefully chosen quote that reveals something about her that her audience is going to want to know more about; something that is intriguing, and it’s also something that most people will not know about her, encouraging people to read on for exclusive information.

Big image taking up the whole of the right hand page, completely unrelated to music, even though this double page spread is taken from ‘ilovepopmag.co.uk’. The image featured is a full shot, and he body is positioned in an unusual manner to make the audience look at it. The magazine doesn’t need to show her in a music scene, because she is already famous and so the audience of the magazine will already recognise that she is a pop star, and therefore the article fits the genre of the magazine.

The interview questions are written in a different colour to make them stand out from Cher’s answers. They are written in pink to fit with the colour scheme created.

This article was published on page 30 of the magazine, even though it is the cover story. This works for the magazine because it is so heavily advertised elsewhere in the magazine, the audience knows where to find the article and their target audience will probably turn to page 30 especially to read this article. This also demonstrates that this magazine is well established and has a decent readership because it must have a large amount of content to cover this amount of pages. The page number styling fits with the theme of the magazine.

It is made clear that this article is the same one that it advertised on the cover using a dynamic text box. It is placed at the top of the left hand page, in the centre so that it is noticeable, but is relatively small to prevent it from being overlooked. The typography is clear and the font matches the font used in the heading, helping to create a style. The colours of pink and white also match the colour scheme established elsewhere in the article.

Cher’s styling matches her style of music and is something that the audience may aspire to look like. However, the colour of her outfit does not match the colour scheme, connoting that this wasn’t considered during the photoshoot.

Key parts of the text are highlighted to draw the audience’s attention to it.

There is also a small image located on the left hand page, accompanied by a caption. It is also of Cher Lloyd, but in a different context – she appears to be at a premier, showcasing her star quality an d popularity to the audience, encouraging girls to want to be like her. The caption provides some context to the image, as it is needed. Whereas the other, larger image doesn’t have a caption because it is a shot taken in the studio of her and it therefore requires no explanation. Its purpose is solely to represent Cher’s personality to the audience, making them feel like they are getting to know her.

Cher’s name is used as an endorsement throughout the article, and probably on the cover too, as it is shown to be the cover story.

The register of the text fits its intended audience. It uses fairly simple and ‘trendy’ lexis which would be used by their target demographic – young people. It also uses imperatives to encourage you to read the article.

Large image taking up the majority of the two pages is completely unrelated to music. It is bold, very posed and is integrated into the overall colour scheme of the article.

The heading is located in the middle of the first (left) page. This is a quirky layout, mixing up general conventions and helping to capture the audience’s interest because it’s different. It also connotes that Selena Gomez, who the article is based upon, doesn’t stick to the rules – she is a reckless pop star – a stereotype that young girls (the magazine’s target audience) lap up.

The article is focused upon something that the audience will be interested in – how to be like Selena Gomez, a popular pop star. This heading connotes that the reader is getting an insight into Selena’s life, which is exclusive to the magazine, encouraging people to buy the magazine and read what she has to say.

The use of the personal pronoun “my” connotes that Selena has written the article herself, and even if this is not true, and the article is simply based on what she has said, this implication is something that will greatly appeal to the audience.

The text boxes used are of an unusual shape, helping to create an edgy, alternative layout which is different and exciting for the audience. It contrasts against the typical layout of double page spreads which involves columns. They are cleverly formatted so that they fit within the white areas of the photograph and make the most of the space.

The register of the text fits its target audience on this example too. For example, the lexis “secrets” connotes that the audience is getting exclusive information about Selena that she doesn’t want to be common knowledge, implying that Selena trusts them. This encourages that audience to read on.

Much like the previous example, pink, black and white form the colour scheme of the article. This is largely because the target audience is mainly girls who will be more interested in gossip about a female pop star that they aspire to be like. Stereotypically, girls like the colour pink whereas boys don’t.

The language of the article is informal and colloquial. For instance, the introduction to the article uses words such as “fit” – a slang term used instead of “attractive”. Here, Selena is also referred to as “Sel” which connotes that the magazine is friendly with her and therefore that she has let on some real gossip for the audience to read. There is also a rhetorical question used in the introduction, asking the audience “Do you want to know Sel’s secret?”. It encourages the audience to think ‘yes I do want to know her secret’ and continue reading.

The page numbers are included on both pages so that the audience can find the article using the contents page, or potentially the cover more easily. They are fairly large and are written in clear typography for the same reason. They are also black and white to fit the colour scheme.

Another small image is featured in this article too, helping to put some text into perspective. The article is claiming that Selena has “fab friends”, and so she is pictured with one of her friends under the heading “fantastic friendships”.

This image of Rihanna takes up the majority of the right hand page. It is a medium to full shot which is heavily posed. It has nothing to do with music, again, but is exclusive and is therefore something the audience will want to see as she is a famous pop star, and the target audience for this magazine is interested in pop stars.

Rihanna’s name is used as an endorsement because she is so famous.

The colour scheme of this magazine is blue, pink and white. Although these colours work well together, they are an unusual choice for a pop magazine as the colour blue is closely associated with boys, and pop magazines are generally more aimed at girls. However, pink – a stereotypically girly colour – is also incorporated. This could suggest that this article in particular is aimed at both boys and girls, particularly as Rihanna is a star admired by both genders.

The questions of the interview are written in blue to match the colour scheme and differentiate them from Rihanna’s answers, which are printed in black. The main body of the text is written in black because it stands out against the white background more and makes the text easier for the audience to read.

This article uses a quote as its heading, like the first example. It is a weird, unusual and intriguing quote that grabs the audience’s attention because it appears to be so out of context. The reader is encouraged to read on by this quote so that they can find out the context of the quote so that it makes more sense to them.

The article begins with the first letter of the first sentence presented in a different font, and much larger. This helps to attract the audience’s attention to the typography. This is the same for the first example. The formatting of this means that it fits in with the colour scheme established elsewhere in the article. Underneath the heading, the best bits of the article are summarised. This is written in a different font to the heading and the article, differentiating it and drawing attention to it. It encourages the audience to read on so that they can find out what “Rihanna rates her rivals” (which is also written using alliteration, making the phrase sound more appealing), and “Katy Perry’s love of dangly bits” (which is ambiguous and thus intriguing).

A small image is included in the centre of the left hand page –a prime location to be noticed by the audience. In this case it is a selfie, which connotes that it is exclusive as it was actually taken by one the stars. The fact that it appears to be exclusive is interesting for the audience because they feel that they won’t find it anywhere else. It also features another pp star, Nicki Minaj, making it even more appealing for the audience. A caption is included to provide context and let the audience know who else is in the photo.

The page numbers are located in the bottom far corners of the page so that the audience can find the article, but they are small so that they don’t detract from the design of the spread.

This image of Justin Bieber takes up the whole of the right hand page. It is a full shot which is extremely posed. His body positioning is unusual, drawing attention to it. He is hanging off a clear chair, which is completely unrelated to pop, although the chair is difficult to see because it is clear. This is something I need to be careful of when I take my own photographs.

The lexis “exclusive connotes that the information within this article can’t be found anywhere else, encouraging people to read it.

The article’s heading is a quote from the interview. This appears to be common for interview articles to grab the audience’s attention and give a flavour of the information they will receive if they continue reading. This quote is aimed more at attracting girls to read the article, because they are likely to want to know why girls give Justin Bieber a headache because a lot of girls ‘crush’ on him and this is the last thing they would want. The small banner underneath the heading of the article contains text. It summarises the article using a rhetorical question and alliteration. The rhetorical question makes the audience consider if Justin has become a “bad lad” (which also rhymes and is more catchy) and the alliteration makes the text more memorable and it rolls off the tongue better. The summary includes all the best bits, encouraging the audience to read the article and find out more about these bits. The typography is also different here – a different font, size and colour. Justin’s name is also in a different font to make it stand out from the rest of the text. His name is turned into an endorsement.

Justin’s styling fits in with the colour scheme of the article – red, white and red. He is wearing red and black, and it makes the article aesthetically pleasing. His clothing also represents the style of music he is involved with – pop – because it represents current pop fashion trends.

Some of the text is presented in a red text box, rather than on a white background. This helps the text to stand out, and this is what the editor of the magazine wanted as the ‘Dressing Room Demands’ section is designed to really appeal to the audience because it is inside information that they wouldn’t know if they didn’t read the article. Young people love knowing what they consider to be ‘inside information’ because they feel like they know the pop star on a more personal level, which is why this section is appealing.

There is also a small photograph on the left hand page of Justin and his girlfriend of the time, Selena Gomez, and this provides context to the heading which states that “girls give me a headache!”The language used in the article is relevant to the target audience of the magazine – young people. They use an informal tone with colloquial language, asking questions by beginning with “let’s talk girls”.