Full analysis of 1 magazine-NME

NME – Front Cover
This magazine uses one main image on the front cover. The band that has been photographed is looking directly at the camera which catches the audience’s eye. The image of the band also relates to the lead story line ‘war paint’ which immediately tells the reader what is going to be in the magazine. The image is of women which could appeal to the male audience. It could also appeal to a female audience because if they see there are women on the front cover they could think that perhaps that this issue of the magazine may appeal to them because of the female content.
According to the socio-economic scale I think that the target audience for this magazine would be C2, C1 and B or a middle/lower upper class audience and mostly male. I think the age range of this magazine would be between 18 and 30 because of the content. For example, the picture of the band featured is of a similar age to the target audience and therefore, the audience would be able to relate to them easier.
There is a definite colour scheme for the front cover of this magazine. It sticks to using red, black and white which are typical magazine colours and are often used in other issues of NME. The colour red is used to highlight the important or most interesting parts of the magazine. By using a bright colour like red could represent a young target audience as bright colours are often associated with younger people such as teenagers. The use of black and red together could symbolise violence and death which is more likely to appeal to men than women. This could imply that this magazine is targeted at a male audience rather than a female audience.


NME – Contents Page



NME labels their contents page with ‘Inside This Week’ which is different Q Magazine. This could be because the target demographic age of the audience is younger so therefore, they approach them in this way as this is more their style of language. It also uses a considerable amount of pictures which you would not usually find in other magazines of a similar genre. However, I think that the amount of pictures relates to their target audience. Younger people are more likely to want to look at pictures than read a lot of writing. It also illustrates what is in the magazine as well.
Compared to Q magazine it isn’t clear to distinguish the feature articles and regulars straight away. However, it is easy to understand that the feature articles are illustrated with pictures whereas, the regulars are under the ‘plus’ list. The page numbers are bigger and clearer to see for the feature articles than those in the regular section. This could be because they want to draw the audience’s attention to them as they are likely to be what the audience are going to buy the magazine for. It could also be because regular readers will already expect to find the things in the regulars section so they feel they do not need to draw attention to these items.
They also use a range of fonts varying in size and the use of italics and bolds. This makes the page more interesting and less repetitive. However, I feel that perhaps the number of different fonts has been overused and makes it harder to read.
This contents page also includes an advert for their subscription. This could be to attract more of an audience, because when the reader reads this they will automatically feel that is a good offer and subscribe to get every issue which would boost sales.

NME – Feature Article









The title of the double page spread is in a bright colour which stands out from the image. The title is also a pull-quote from the text so the reader can relate back to it once they have read the article. By using the key colour pink throughout the double page spread, it keeps the whole article together. It is also use to highlight key point like names in the article. This example, like many other magazines, sticks to a few colours, in this case two. This is a typical feature of a magazine. In the middle of the article there is a big pull-out quote which breaks up the text and also allows the reader to see what is in the text.
Having a large image of the band immediately tells the reader who the article is about. By using one image and some smaller images allows there to be more text and makes the page neat and not cluttered. This is something I may use in my magazine so the audience find it easier to read. The picture of the band is quite simple compared to those of Q magazine. I think that that the demographic for this article would be between the age of 20 and 40 because the band themselves are of a similar age. Also, the article is about them reforming so an older audience that liked them before are likely to like them again and read this article. However, a younger audience may be interested in a ‘new’ band because they weren’t old enough or born when they were around the first time. The use of dropcap letters at the beginning of the paragraphs shows where the new paragraph begins and the change of topic in the article. This is another typical magazine article feature.

The style of the article is chatty and informal with swearing in places. This immediately shows their target audience is more middle class as higher a higher class audience are less likely to read an article with swearing in it and something with an informal style. The article begins with a quote introduction which makes the reader feel involved straight away.
The cost of this magazine is £2.30 and it is a weekly magazine. I think that this is an appropriate price and considering it is a higher class audience (with a target audience of ABC1) they will be willing to pay this for a magazine as they will have the money to spend.
The types of companies advertising in this magazine include converse, Vodafone, canon and the TV show misfits. These companies have chosen to advertise in this magazine because their products will appeal to the magazines target audience. For example it is likely that the magazines audience will wear converse as it is an iconic and well-known shoe because they are likely to care about their image but also will be able to afford them. Another company is canon advertising their new ‘stylish’ digital camera. This would appeal to the audience of NME as they are likely to have money to spend on luxuries like camera’s but also would enjoy taking photo’s at festivals and as recreational use as they are likely to be interested in art etc.