Explain how media producers create products for specific audiences

Explain how media producers create products for specific audiences

Here is a set of questions designed to help you explain how media producers create products for their specific audience.

Find the magazines companies media pack so that you can accurately find out who the target audience is – this usually has the demographics of the audience listed.

Create a PowerPoint that answers the questions, use visual to show your specific examples/point.

1. Who is the target audience for this magazine?

The target audience for this magazine front cover is woman within the age rang of 18-30 and socio-economic class of A, B, C1. 

2. How has the publisher used images to appeal to this audience?                               The publisher of this magazine has used direct address, by making the model look directly at the camera to draw in the audience. In addition to this, they have used a very beautiful female model with a nice body and dressed her in sexualised, fashionable clothing, in order to draw in the female audience because it makes them dears to be like her. the model is also standing in a very power, dominant stance, which makes the female audience desire to be like her because many women aim to be confident with them selves. 

3. How has the publisher used words to appeal to this audience?

 The publisher has used certain buzz words within the cover lines that will appeal to a female audience, that link to desires of the female audience, for example: "Sex," "Fashion," "Powerful woman," and "Makeup." These will appeal to a female audience because they are all things that women are thought to be in to.  

4. How has the publisher used colours to appeal to this audience?

 The publisher has used colours that are associated with woman such as pink, white and other bright colours like orange. this will appeal to the target audience because stereotypically woman are said to like bright colours like pink, therefore by using the colours it will draw woman in. 

5. How has the publisher used fonts to appeal to this audience?

 The publisher has used some fonts that would appeal to the target audience, such as the curly font of the word "Fashion" however, the rest of the bold fonts aren't seen as very girly and may be less appealing to the target audience, however, the colour of the writing makes up for he lack of curly fonts that would appeal to a woman audience. 

6. How have the publishers used the layout to appeal to the audience?

 the publisher has placed the subject of the main image directly in the centre of the front cover and the text mainly surrounds the images, with exceptions, in addition to this the front cover isn't crowded with text therefore, it makes the cover easier to look at and less confusing thus making it look more appealing to the stereotypical passive audience, women. 

7. How have the publishers used cover lines to construct a product suitable for their audience?

 The publisher has used certain buzz words and cover lines that will appeal to the target audience because of the topic of them. For example some of the cover lines support the main image by talking about being a powerful woman and having a good career, this would appeal to a female audience because it talks about woman. in addition to this, one of the main cover lines is about fashion, this will appeal to a female audience because stereotypically woman are seen to be interested in their appearance and knowing about the latest fashion. Moreover, many of the cover lines mention things about sex, which would appeal to a female audience because stereotypically woman should be good at sex because they're often represented as sexual objects in the media and through gender performativity many woman think they should be good at sex. Furthermore, one of the cover lines is about make up, this would appeal to the target audience because millions of woman wear make up. You should show where codes and conventions have been used in the media product.

Do this for two different magazines examples.

Extension: What methods can be used for a publisher to find out what people think about it’s product
 The producer can use methods such as: How people have responded to the magazine on social media mediums such as Twitter and Facebook. They can also find out what people think if the magazine gets nominated for any awards by the audience. Finally  they can find out what people think by looking on the internet at critics responses, ratings and reviews from the audience. 

             

Case Studies

Gender; 
Men:
Dior Sauvage fragrance advert: 

• Opening shot is an establishing shot of a urban environment, this helps to appeal to the male audience and it also links to actions films, where men are represented as being masculine because they are aggressive, fearless and heroic in some case, which could foreshadow the representation of Johnny Depp in the advert. It also puts forward the idea that to be masculine is to be a typical urban man, rather than the type of fatherly figure man that you'd possibly find in suburb areas. 
• He plays an instrument, could suggest he's famous, with a lot of money, typical representation of the working man. The men are stereotypically the money makers.  
• Low Key lighting suggests he's dangerous and fearless because it shows that he is not scared of the dark, thus representing him as masculine.  The low key lighting also puts forward the idea of mystery, thus making him more attractive to the female audience. 
• Fast pace editing, car shots, suggests an action genre, suggesting he's a tough, fearless person, a stereotypical representation of a male in todays media. 
• Close up shots of his face from the side in the car, shows he is emotionless. 
• Low husky voice, hyper masculine. 
• Shots of industrial work equipment, elaborates on the idea of a working man. 
• Vicious,predators, lonely animals, metaphors for him, he's independent, tough/strong and fearless. 
• Skids the car, rough male. 
• Asking questions, mystery.
• Desert, lonely life. 
• Digging, manual labour, working man, strong. 
• Has a lot of bling, subverts typical man, he's shown as a bit of a new man, slightly female, looks after his appearance. 
• Fact he's in a perfume advert, shows he cares about his appearance too. 
• Looks like he's wearing eyeliner, intertextuality, reference to pirates of the Caribbean, when he played a masculine, tough, violent pirate, who was in charge. 
• Extreme long shot of him in the dessert, shows he doesn't need anyone else, he's independent. 

Drive: 
 

• Driver is represented as a hyper-masculine male 
• hes angry 
• dominant 
• violent 
• this has been done to appeal to males because its an action film
• on the trailer we hear his voice playing over the top, he sounds very in control and his voice is deep and husky
• lots of low key lighting represents that he could be dangerous
• also subverts the representation sometimes
• see shots of him and Irene makes him seem loving as well 
• see him violenting driving cars
•  see shots of him being violent, on top of blanche and holding a hammer
• we see him be protective over Irene, dominance   

Peaky Blinders: 
 

• Tommy is represented as a typical male
• very masculine 
• dominant
• violent 
• in charge of the family
• tells his younger sister what to do 
• fights with the Lee family 
• sometimes subverts representations by showing emotions 

Women:








Fish Tank:

• Mia is very masculine 
• violent
• wears tracksuits 
• her mum is sexulised 
• reliant on men 
• not domesticated 

Brooklyn 99:

• Roza Diaz subverts
• doesnt show emotins like a female
• very masculine 
• angry 
• violent  
• bad reprisentation 

Coco Channel:

• sexulised 
• very pretty 
• powerful 
• goes against men "this is a mans world" playing
• rides a motor bike 
• fragmentation 
• does stunts
• poses for the camera
• regects the man  
• feminism 
• target audeince women

Age;
Old:

Harry Brown: 

• Very boring 
• lonley 
• scared of the younger generation 
• only has one friend 
• plays chess 
• kind to people 
• stereotypical  

Shreddies Advert:  

• subverts the rep because theyre funny 
• still doing old people things like knitting 
• dancing to ganster music 

Mrs Brown's Boys; 

• Funny 

• non stereotypical 
• swear 
• active 
• making jokes 

Young: 
Misfits: 

• Negative representations 

• doing comunnity service 
• theyve done something wrong 
• theyre shown as violent disrepectful
• seen using weapons 
• dont seen bothered that theyre doing community service
• very sexual 
• swearing 
• taking drugs 
• chavy appearance 
• wearing orange all in ones 
• target audeince teenagers

 Spring Breakers: 

• Negative 
• rebelious  
• trouble makers
• partying 
• drinking 
• sirens=trouble 
• sexual, bikinis
• violent, guns, money 
• fast pace, heavy beat house music 

Newspaper article:
 

•  chavy clothing 
• covering face 
• standing next to burning car
• heading suggest he has caused the riot, negative rep
• its been done to please the older people who read the newspaper
• important, takes up the front page
• strong emotive words, important serious

 Ethnicity:
Kencoo ad: 

• subverts rep 
• shows that latino;s are usually involved in crime and gangs
• 
  

course work

                                                                                Album cover: George Ezra    
The first thing we see when we look at this album cover is a man image. the main image is import and it give us an insight as to what type of genre the album is or what some of the songs may be about. Main can also show us who the artist is we are listing to. For example in this main image it does not make the genre of the music clear, but it does suggest that the songs may be quite loud and lively, and possibly chaotic, because the image comes across as chaotic and we can clearly see a lot of people talking within the image, thus causing us to imagine it would be loud and lively if we were in the image. Furthermore, this image also shows us who the artist is and what he looks like through the use of direct dress, therefore we know that George Ezra is the person directly in the middle of the image as he is the only person who is looking at the camera, and the rest of the image is revolving around him. The fact that his is the only person looking at the camera and also the only person wearing a bright colour, further suggest concepts of songs, for example they could be about not being able to fit in or even breaking stereotypes. Moreover, the colour connotations of his red shirt could suggest a possible concept of danger or anger. Furthermore, the album cover also tells us the name of the artist and the name of the album in large bold letters, in a contrasting colour so that they stand out. These are important so that we know what and who we would be listening to when we go to buy the album. Likewise, the name of the album is also useful to suggest concepts of songs and the genre of the album.

Album back: George Ezra 
The back of the album cover juxtaposes the front of the cover, as it is very plain and a no longer lively or chaotic. This could also give us some insight into the concept of the album, with the colour connotations of the black possibly suggesting that the songs are quite down beat or sad. On the other had the plain album back in contrast with the front of the album cover, could also suggest the concept of escapism, as on the front he seems trapped and surrounded by people, however on the back it is just a blank space. Moreover, a lot of people listen to music as a form of escapism, thus suggesting that the album is based around escapism. This is further supported by the album name "Wanted on Voyage" People often go on voyages as a form of escapism, thus further proposing the concept of escapism.  The back of the album cover also contains a list of tracks that feature in the album and the order that they will occur. The track list is useful as it further suggests what the songs may contain and it also helps to suggest the genre of the album. The order of the track list is also important as it enables us to identify the names of the songs as w are listening to them. Furthermore, other features on the back of the album cover suggest what we may hear when listening to the album. For example, the album has got the "Parental Advisory," stamp, revelling that the songs contain explicit content, this also suggest a target audience for the album, as it means you have to be over 15 to listen to it. The back of the album cover also contains the legal text, record company and possibly the distribution company. This is important as promotion for the companies and so that we get an idea of the quality of the album, as some companies are known for producing better music. The legal texts are also important as they warn us about copyright to prevent someone copying the album illegally. Lastly at eh bottom of the cover there is a barcode, this enables to actually buy the album.


Album cover: Die Antwoord 

This CD cover for the album "Mount Ninki and Da Nice Time Kid" by Die Antwoord features a main image which introduces the audience and possible context and genre of the album. The bold and open body position of the artists suggest a possible context for the album, it creates the idea that the album is going to be bold and open and possibly make a statement. Moreover, the weapons and guns that they are holding also suggest violent content, which further suggests the idea that the album is to make a statement against something. In addition to this the artists are dirty and wearing warn out ratty clothing, which could be to propose the idea that the concept behind the song is going to be raw and real. Moreover, the outfit that Yolandi is wearing is very minimal and revealing, therefore sexualising her, thus putting forward the concept of sex. Likewise, the phrase "I fucking hate you" has been written on her shorts, therefore suggesting that the songs are going to contain swear words and may be offensive.
The front of this CD cover also features the name of the duo, however the writing has a high opacity, therefore making it slightly see through so that is blends with the image instead of sticking out and looking out of place. I have incorporated this idea into my final CD cover. The artists name also allows consumers to know who's album they are buying. Unlike other CD covers, this cover does not display the name of the album, therefore the name of the album has been put on a sticker on the packet of the cover, however i did not use this idea on my final piece because there is the possibility of the sticker getting rubbed off, therefore i thought it would be easier to put the name of the album on the image instead. The "Parental Advisory" sticker has been placed on the front of this album, which means that the consumer has to be over the age of 15 to buy it, thus putting forward the idea that the album contains strong content that is unsuitable for younger teens.



Album back: Die Antwoord 
On the back of the cover there is a similar main image to the front, however it just features Ninja this time, instead of both of the members of the duo.This could therefore emphasise that he is a large part of the album, it is also named after him. The image also gives more of an insight into content of the songs, for example, he is covered in blood and holding two weapons, this could therefore suggest a theme of violence throughout the songs. In addition to this he is wearing cultural clothing which could also suggest that the songs have some sort of cultural meaning or refers to a culture. The image also features the band logo that has been faded using the opacity tool so that it doesn't draw the audiences attention from the main image. The band logo has been placed on the image to advertise the band so that the when the audience sees that logo again they automatically associate it with Die Antwoord. The back of the CD cover also features  track list, this is so that the buyer knows what songs the album contains and what track number they are on. The track list also suggests the type of genre of the album and what the songs might be about, which also provides information about the target audience. For example, names such as "Wings On My P*nis" and "Fat Faded F*ck Face" suggest that the genre may be alternative and weird. They also suggest a theme of violence and sex, which is further supported by the main image on the front and back of the cover. In addition these tracks also suggest an age range for the target audience, for this album it would be around 15-21. Furthermore, the track lists have been hand written, which is a common convention of the alternative, weird, indie genre therefore i wish to incorporate this idea into one of my final pieces. The hand written track list could also add to the idea of a sense of realism and raw topics, which is also supported by the main image on the front of the cover. Other common conventions of CD covers in general that are featured on this one are, the barcode, which enables people to buy it, the legal text, which prevents confusion with copy right issues, the cereal number on the spine and the record company. The record company also often suggest the genre of the album because sometimes record companies are associated with certain genres. For example "Zef Recordz" tells the audience that the genre of the album if predominately Zef. Other common conventions are the band name and logo on both spines, this enables the consumer to store the CD in a CD rack and always be able to know what the album is regardless of which way it has been placed.

Double page spread: Kerrang 

This double page spread from Kerrang, rock magazine is dominated by the mast head hat reads "My Dinosaur Life" which is spread across both pages of the double page spread. It has been written in a hand written type font, which is a common convention in music magazines. The words are written in a red and black colour scheme that continues throughout the double page spread. The word "Dinosaur" has been written in read which suggests a sense of danger, this idea is further supported by the 4 red claw marks just above it. There is a main image then placed on the right of the page, which features a member of the band leaning forwards out of the page and directly addressing the audience by looking straight at the camera, this will help to draw the reader into the article. Moreover, his childish scared expression and the mast head, instantly set the mood of the article and give the reader an insight into what they may be reading about, which is important so that the magazine can successfully draw their target audience in. The mast head and main image of this double page spread, suggests a childish and funny mood for the article, this further proposes a target audience of around the 14-18 age range. In addition to this, the topic of dinosaurs, main image of a man and red and black colour scheme suggests that the magazine is trying to target a more specific teenage male audience.












                                 

dvd cover

The colour red is used throughout the dvd front cover, this suggests there will be violence in the film, which suggest that the film could be an action film. Furthermore, the guns pictures in the main image and the stills on the back also suggest that it may b an action film.
The main image on the cover reveals to us that the film is set in London, this also suggests the genre of the film, as action films typically take place in a city. The main image also reveals to us who the main character and supporting characters are by putting the main character at the front in the middle. The main character is played by Bruce Wills, who is only usually cast in action or crime films, also helping to suggest the genre. Moreover, we can see an explosion taking place behind the characters, who are stood boldly and facing towards the camera, which not only suggests genre, it also suggests the narrative, revealing that these people are going to be taking a front line role in the action and that they are confident and dominant.
The characters we see in the image are all quite old, however wearing quick young clothes, along with the slogan "The Best Never Rest," this helps to suggest the narrative.

Magazine analysis

We can clearly see that this is the magazine front cover of the popular Cosmopolitan magazine, by the bold masthead at the top of the page. The fact that the main image is in front of the masthead shows us that that the magazine is well known and appeals to a mass audience.
The pink and orangey colours of the text suggests that the target audience for this magazine is females. Furthermore, other things, like cover lines such as "Cosmo makes sex an Olympic sport," suggests that it is trying to target woman of an older age because we would not expect to see anything about sex in a magazine targeting a female teen audience.
The audience is instantly drawn to the main image of a woman. In the image the woman is wearing a dress and looks very glamourous. Her body language and empowering stance suggests that she is inviting and confident, thus supporting the idea that the magazine is trying to appeal to woman because women may look at the magazine front cover and aspire to be like her.
The lighting used to take the main image, is high key lighting, which creates a soft and happy atmosphere, which also helps to draw the audience in, because it makes the cover aesthetically pleasing to look at.
The sell lines that have been used convey the genre, for example "The Groom Cheated With The Brides Mum," suggests that it is a gossip magazine, this helps to draw in the target audience because stereotypically middle age woman enjoy hearing about gossip.

This magazine front cover is minimalistic compared to the previous one, whit only a few a few cover and sell lines. This could be because they want to draw as much attention as possible to the main image and man story. It is clear that it is not a very well known magazine, due to the masthead being behind the main image, showing that the masthead is more important. Furthermore, the black background makes the main image and text stand out more, therefore putting more emphasis on the main image and story.
It is clear that the target audience for this magazine is men, due to the masculine colour theme, the image of David Beckham and the tag line "Malaysia's Definitive Men's Journal"
It is possible that the magazine is trying to attract a younger male audience more specifically. It would typically be the younger generation that would look at David Beckham and aspire to be like him, therefore the use of David Beckham for the main image would attract a younger male audience. Furthermore, some of the sell lines also suggest that the magazine is trying to attract a younger male audience in the A, B, C1 class category, for example  "Young and In Charge, Entrepreneurs Doing it By Themselves."
One of the sell lines also talks about summer trends and the younger generation typically care more about fashion than the older generation.
"Its a Whole New Ball Game For David Beckham," has been used as the main story line, which is clearly referring to football, which stereotypically appeals to younger males, which also suggests that the magazine is trying to attract a younger male audience.

Gender: In my opinion, this image is a negative representation of woman in politics. In this image there are 4 women politicians placed in the front row, this is meant to portray a positive representation of women, however, it is debatable that this could have just been done for show.