Analysis of Non Fiction

EMPIRE In pairs, answer the following questions as fully as possible from researching the Website. Each person should keep a copy of the answers for future reference. Who do you think reads this magazine? What are their interests/lifestyles/levels of interest in film? How would you define their socio-economic, demographic and psychographic profile (related to personality, interests, lifestyle etc.) What kind of brand image does Empire try to create of itself? Who might not like this magazine and why? What opinion do the producers of Empire want the target audience to have about the magazine (preferred reading)? All magazines rely on attracting advertising as a main source of income/investment. Look at the types of advertisements in Empire, the way they are designed, and the amount of space they take up. In what ways might the need to attract these advertisers affect content, style and representations in the magazine as a whole? Is there a difference in the way men and women are portrayed/represented in the magazine?

Categories Select and apply categories appropriate to the text. The categories to be applied are: medium, form, genre, purpose, tone and style. Medium In assessment, state the medium. ‘Medium’ is the channel of communication through which a text is produced and consumed. Obviously, Empire is in the medium of print.

Medium In assessment, state the medium. ‘Medium’ is the channel of communication through which a text is produced and consumed. Obviously, Empire is in the medium of print.

Form In assessment, you should be able to state the form, and justify what you say by referring to the text. Look at the front cover in particular, the size of the magazine, paper quality and print finish. ‘Form’ is the shape a text takes. Form is often closely related to genre. Each medium embodies many forms. The forms of print, in particular, are virtually never-ending and may include advertisements, websites, leaflets, brochures, newspapers, fliers, magazines and so on.

The magazine form has several characteristics. These include: coverlines which indicate that the magazine contains a number of different articles, with the implication or direct information that they are by a number of different authors. the date of publication, indicating that it is produced periodically. a bar-code and cover price, which indicate that it can be bought over the counter and is therefore partly distributed via the newsstand. a size which is approximately A4 (210 x 297mm), and therefore typical of most consumer magazines. a glossy, full-colour cover, whose main content is a photograph/ illustration of people/equipment connected with the subject(s) that the magazine covers.

Genre In assessment, you should be able to identify the genre, and justify what you say by referring to the text. Look particularly at the content and front cover. ‘Genres’ are ‘types’ of media text that we associate with particular media.

Genres are constructed around a central, core element or series of elements. They are identified by the particular conventions they use and which we come to recognise through regular consumption. Conventions are any elements which are repeated in such a way that they become familiar, predictable and associated in their use with a particular genre.

Genre – Empire Film There are various magazine genres. These can be split into trade and consumer magazines. Consumer magazine genres can be discussed in terms of general interest or special interest. General interest magazines provide content on a wide range of subjects that the target audience may be interested in. A special interest magazine is likely to contain specialist terminology as well as content and in- depth features revolving around a narrow range of topics, all related to one special interest area.

Empire Film - Genre Therefore “Empire Magazine” would obviously be considered as a special interest (film magazine)

Look again at the front cover. Which elements identify the magazine as a film magazine? Words related to film such as: “movies”, “box- office”, and “blockbuster” Instantly recognisable film titles such as “Titanic” and “Harry Potter” Instantly recognisable film stars such as Will Smith and The Rock The roll of film design of the “featuring” section

Genre and Audience Media producers want their texts to be instantly attractive and understandable to the audience, and they do not want to waste valuable time setting up characters and plots or describing what a text is about. Genres using key components that are quickly recognisable are therefore particularly valuable.

Genre and Institution Dividing products into genres is also a useful marketing tool which allows media products to be packaged and targeted at audience segments.

Genre and Purpose Genre is useful for attracting investment. Because their potential audience, and consequently their potential profit, can be relatively easily assessed, a genre product and its audience can be easily packaged as a commodity to advertisers or investors who want to minimise risk. Thus, genre can be seen as a way of delivering an audience to the media industry which, like any other, is primarily concerned with profit. Audiences are, however, fickle, and no amount of analysis can guarantee success!

Purpose In assessment, you should be able to identify purposes at both a communicative level and at an industry level, and justify what you say by referring to the text. Consider individual articles and the magazine as a whole. ‘Purpose’ refers to the reason(s) for production. Communicative purposes may be to: inform, entertain, instruct, investigate, report, criticise, persuade, educate, and so on. The purposes of a media text at an industry level may be to: attract investment, make a profit, attract advertising, fulfil regulatory requirements, justify investment and so on.

Consider this front cover for its communicative purpose(s). Identify the main purpose(s) and the features of the front cover that contribute to them. (Comment on technical and cultural codes where appropriate.)

Tone In assessment, you should be able to identify tone(s), and justify what you say by referring to the text. Consider particular articles and pull-quotes. ‘Tone’ is the way that something ‘sounds’ or the manner in which it is written/conveyed. In media texts, tone can often be analysed with reference to more than words. It often indicates the producer’s attitude towards the subject being treated, or the attitude he/she wants you to adopts towards the material when you consume it. Words to describe tone might include: humorous, serious, light- hearted, sarcastic, critical, sad, irreverent, dramatic and so on. There may be an overall tone in the text, or there may be a number of tones that you can analyse. The latter is usually the case with magazines.

Consider this front cover for tone Identify any use of tone that you see and comment on how it is created; mention technical and cultural codes where appropriate.

Style In assessment, you should be able to identify style, and justify what you say by referring to the text. Consider the magazine as a whole. ‘Style’ is the way in which something is done, designed, expressed or performed. An analysis of style involves the consideration of many aspects of the text and the ways in which they combine to form an overall ‘style’. Words to describe style include: modern, traditional, unconventional, realistic, surreal and so on. Styles may also be typical of particular forms, genres or other categories.

Clearly and validly justify at least 2 categories by relevant textual and contextual references. It is not usually necessary to have a separate section for this part of the assessment. It is likely that you will use textual and contextual references throughout justify your analysis. Relevant textual references … This means that you should back up the analysis of at least two categories by referring to, describing or quoting relevant aspects of the magazine’s content and/or appearance. This, in conjunction with (a) above will form the bulk of your analysis.

Relevant contextual references … This means that you show your understanding of the ways in which the basic categories relate to production and consumption contexts. If you analyse purpose at institutional level, you are immediately making relevant contextual references. You will also do this if you relate purpose, tone and/or style to audience. You could also talk about the relationships between genre, audience and institutions. It is difficult to be specific about how much you should write about this part, as it really depends on your level of understanding. Aim for at least one or two paragraphs.