Signs & Signifiers AnalysisBy Phoebe Woodward-Page

HOW DO YOU KNOW THIS IS A POP MAGAZINE?Lady Gaga is a well know pop artist so by having her feature on the front cover it makes pop fans recognise her as a pop artist and will buy the magazine.

The large title of LADY GAGA makes the magazinereaders aware that the magazine will feature the popularpop artist Lady Gaga. This is not just a front cover imagine this shows that the magazine have had an exclusive interview with Lady Gaga.

The branded magazine Billboard is a well known pop magazine so it is a household name toreaders and to the public.

By using the monochrome theme on the front cover is makes the logo and the cover models hair stand out as it grabs your attention. Rather than blending in with other magazines on the shop shelf the brightness of the hair and logo draws your attention tothis specific magazine.

The purple hair of Lady Gaga makes her seem feminine as these stereotypically female colours such as pink, purple and orange gives the audience the girly impression.

On her hand Lady Gaga seems to be wearing a Christian cross ring. This is a symbolic sign as most cultures know that it is a religious symbol. However this ring could be a indexical sign as it could suggest that she is a practicing Christian. However this could just be a fashion item chosen by her stylist rather than a religious representation.

The font that Billboard have used have used for the coverlines is both Serif and Sans Serif. I think that the use of both styles looks good and works with the mix and match theme on the front cover.

The costuming is quite plain so that the focus is drawn on the hair which leads you to look at her face. Monochrome looks really effective as the readers eyes are drawn to the cover model. The camera angle is also effective as I think that if it was a full shot the pose could have taken away from the popstar. Even though she has her detailed hand up near her face it does not draw away from her face as the hair is the main focus on the whole front cover.

I think that the preferred reading in this front cover is that even though Lady Gaga can be a crazy artist, she can be plain without loosing herself and her iconic hair.

I think that the oppositional reading could be the Christian symbol. Some readers could take this as promotion of the Christian religion.

HOW DO YOU KNOW THIS IS A POP MAGAZINE?One Direction are a well known pop group and so is TOP OF THE POPS magazine. By having them feature of the front cover it emphases that they are pop artsits and so it TOTP magazine. One Direction are a massive household name so by not having the group name on the front cover does not effect the message that they are pop artists. Top of the Pops is a well known pop magazine that feature only pop artists so by only featuring pop artists the readers can assure that genre of the magazine.

The bright and vibrant colours of the magazine fit with the fact that they feature a lot of bubblegum artists such as Taylor Swift, Little Mix and Conor Maynard.

This magazine cover displays the cover models One Direction not as a typical boyband with matching clothes.

The display of this magazine cover is very girly and the colours and typography support this. The mix and mash of fonts look very childish which appeal to a younger audience.

The majority of photos are paparazzi images as they would be staged more and look ore professional if they magazine had taken them directly. This effects what they cover models look like as the magazine stylist cant decide how each celebrity would look. By using a paparazzi photo the magazine cant decide on many things such as the body language, the lighting or the clothing, hair and make up.

The preferred reading in TOTP is to try and helping teens/tweens be like the celebrities featured as there is fashion and school advice from the popstars.

However some readers could take this message in a negative way and use oppositional reading to think that the magazines is pressurising children to grow up quicker than they should be. However i think that as it is a teen magazine the content is acceptable for the target audince.

Comparison The difference between the two

magazines are that the target audience are different. So therefore

the magazine content will be different, even though they are both pop magazines the content will be very different to suit both readers.

The front covers differ as they both suit the specific target audiences, the Billboard magazine has a more mature and sophisticated theme whereas Top of the Pops magazine has a more immature and childish theme to it. They both work for their specific target audience even though they both cater for pop fans.

Contents PageThis contents page shows that the theme of the magazine runs throughout and fits the genre and target audience age range well. Its shows a girly and childish theme in the contents page which is what TOTP is about so it looks like what they represent.The typography used in the contents page are also very childish, by suing the handwritten font make sit look like a teen helped to produce the magazine and this makes the reader feel at one with the editors etc.The colour scheme with the pinks and whites are very feminine and really collaborate with the bubblegum pop genre.

The images used are photos taken my other people such a paparazzi and the occasional studio step up photos.

Contents Page This contents page has a much more mature theme about

it and the colours and layout portray this. As billboard is a mature magazine this shows what they represent.The No1 in the top left corner is a suggestive sign as it is the first in the lost of contents but also No1 could also mean that their magazine in No1.

The images on the=is contents page are all photographed by the magazine, you can tell this as they are all positioned in the correct places, they all stick tot he colour theme and the generally just look more professional.

The plain images and backgrounds looks better because they have a more neutral theme and can suit any environment. I think that the editors want the message that they are number one to get across tot he audience where as other people may view this as a very vain and modest opinion of the magazine.

Comparison The difference between these contents

pages is so strong even thought they both cater and suit the same genre and target audience of pop music. The whole presentation of them is different but still get the same message across the audience.

The Top of the Pops magazine is ore suited for the younger pop fans while the Billboard contents page suits the older pop fans and this is evident in their displays in the magazines.

Double Page Spread

This double page spread follows the very bubblegum artists theme with the colour coordinated clothing, to the way the models are placed and the facial expressions. They represent the stereotypical boyband look here which is perfect for the featured again Top of the Pops.

By having the sae size camera shots for both models it gives a look of consistency and fluidity. By having the sae background and the image on the same side it keeps a neat look throughout the pages.

I think that the editors of this magazine want the readers to feel sorry for the two models as they used such strong statements from the two boys. However I think some readers could find this as a negative thing and they will have no pity for the two boys.

Double Page Spread

I think that this double page spread really embodies what Billboard represent, they have a sophisticated and classic magazine and I think that this image supports that theme strongly.

I think the monochrome theme on this double page spread is effective because monochrome is often found as a classy effect to have. The close up of the model is also effective and the large Serif front sticks with the theme of the magazine really well. Even though its a pop magazine I think that the classiness of the whole magazine is really effective and looks more appropriate for an older audience. The lack of eye contact with the camera is also very vintage looking which some older teens are very into at the moment.

I think that the editors of the magazine wanted the readers to get the message of a classy popstar and not just of a cheesy popstars.

ComparisonThe way these two pop magazines display their double page spreads are very different but both effective and still getting the message across of the pop genre. Even though the colours aren't that different the way the are presented and the detailing used makes the magazines different.