Textual Analysis of The Source Magazine
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The Source Magazine
Denotation: The magazine cover consists of a colour photograph of a man with his eyes shut. It is a medium close up shot showing his head and shoulders. It is not clear whether he is sitting or standing but what is very clear is that he is holding a gun under his chin in a very aggressive manner. The background of the photograph appears to be a dirty looking wall with brown marks across the entire background, and the photograph covers the whole of the magazine cover. Behind the man is the ‘The Source’ masthead and also what seems to be a slogan ‘The bible of hip-hop music, culture & politics’. On the cover there are 10 separate cover lines in white and red. The photographed man’s name is in red and the colour alternates between red and white to separate each cover line from the other. A bar code is also visible in the bottom left corner.
Masthead: The source’s masthead is distinguishing: red with a white outline and black drop shadow. This however isn't the same masthead used for all of their magazines, the colour scheme is often changed to match the photograph used, sometimes outline & drop shadow are not used at all. The font used is sans serif with all the letters printed extremely close to each other and connotes a more modern type of magazine. The word ‘source’ relates to the act of obtaining information and unearthing things that many people won’t be aware of, giving a suggestion of reliability and trustworthiness. The masthead is written in bright red which connotes explicitly and this is often linked to the genre of music ‘The Source’ magazine promotes.
Character: The cover is a very explicit and controversial photograph of the American rapper ‘The Game’.
Composition: He is posed holding a gun in a very aggressive and violent way towards himself. His body language, lack of clothing and facial expression portrays a very negative stereotype of rap music. The extent of his tattoos also complements the type of music his performs and goes well with the genre of the music magazine too.
Costume: The only clothing we see in the photograph is a white vest. The costume has been chosen very carefully to enhance the visibility of the tattoos that are on and around The Game’s neck and shoulders. This appeals to the target audience of the magazine, which are most likely to be male and fans of rap music culture. The clothing worn is similar to the type of clothing he is often seen wearing in many of his music videos in order to show off his tattoos. A quite scruffy beard and a low cut haircut complete the look.
NVC: His non-verbal communication in the photograph is very distinctive: aggressive yet there is still a minor sense of innocence as well. His eyes are shut so closely together, they begin to look like lips that have been shut. This portrays innocence and that he may be scared of his own actions while it could also portray that he is fearless and is ready to put his life on the line for what he believes in. Considering he is holding a gun to himself, his NVC is very important as it gives the readers a slight insight into the type of person he is.
Lighting: The lighting is high key, as the photograph is meant to display daytime. The lighting also makes it possible to see all of his tattoos clearly.
Setting: There is very little setting in this cover as much of it consists of his face and his actions involving the gun although the dirty background has connotations of prison or a rough area and is therefore keeping with the aggressive nature of the photograph.
Cover lines: The main cover line that relates to the photograph says: “The Game: suicide is not an option”. This is a massive contrast to the photograph as in it he is holding a gun towards himself in what appears to be an attempt to commit suicide. The cover line makes reference to The Game contemplating suicide in the days leading up to his March jail term, due to him not being able to handle the pressures of fame. The Game was sentenced to 60 days behind bars in February after pleading guilty to felony gun charges relating to an incident at a 2007 basketball game. The photograph is really controversial at it relates to the reason he was charged and ultimately sent to prison all those years ago. The ‘Suicide is not an option’ reference relates to the fact that despite all the thoughts that may have been going through his head, he ultimately prevailed and carried on making music. The different cover-lines tell us that this magazine is really focused on one specific genre of music – hip-hop/rap. Artists mentioned on the magazine include The Game, Lil Mama & Twista (there is a very clear emphasis on American based artists). Strangely there is also a cover-line which is placed on top of the masthead; this simply portrays the importance the cover-line holds. The cover-line reads “Under New Ownership Pg.17” which is evidently a topic the magazine would want to stress as it could affect their readers and potential celebrity endorses alike. What also specifies its importance as a cover-line is the page number indication which isn't present on any of the other cover-lines on the cover. The fact some of the cover-lines are printed in bright red could connote a type of blood feeling which would tie in perfectly with the main cover-line about The Game.
Target Audience: Taking into consideration all of the points, the target audience would most likely be people (male and female, though more male audience members than female) aged 16-25. They would have a keen interest in the current music industry and a definite interest in hip-hop/rap music generally. They are likely to enjoy the picture aspect of the magazine as it allows them to view the choices of clothing worn by their favourite artists. They are likely to be quite young, and have an interest in American popular culture. Adults may take offence to the controversial photographs and cover-lines used were as the younger generation are likely to be more free minded about the debatable topics.
Masthead: The source’s masthead is distinguishing: red with a white outline and black drop shadow. This however isn't the same masthead used for all of their magazines, the colour scheme is often changed to match the photograph used, sometimes outline & drop shadow are not used at all. The font used is sans serif with all the letters printed extremely close to each other and connotes a more modern type of magazine. The word ‘source’ relates to the act of obtaining information and unearthing things that many people won’t be aware of, giving a suggestion of reliability and trustworthiness. The masthead is written in bright red which connotes explicitly and this is often linked to the genre of music ‘The Source’ magazine promotes.
Character: The cover is a very explicit and controversial photograph of the American rapper ‘The Game’.
Composition: He is posed holding a gun in a very aggressive and violent way towards himself. His body language, lack of clothing and facial expression portrays a very negative stereotype of rap music. The extent of his tattoos also complements the type of music his performs and goes well with the genre of the music magazine too.
Costume: The only clothing we see in the photograph is a white vest. The costume has been chosen very carefully to enhance the visibility of the tattoos that are on and around The Game’s neck and shoulders. This appeals to the target audience of the magazine, which are most likely to be male and fans of rap music culture. The clothing worn is similar to the type of clothing he is often seen wearing in many of his music videos in order to show off his tattoos. A quite scruffy beard and a low cut haircut complete the look.
NVC: His non-verbal communication in the photograph is very distinctive: aggressive yet there is still a minor sense of innocence as well. His eyes are shut so closely together, they begin to look like lips that have been shut. This portrays innocence and that he may be scared of his own actions while it could also portray that he is fearless and is ready to put his life on the line for what he believes in. Considering he is holding a gun to himself, his NVC is very important as it gives the readers a slight insight into the type of person he is.
Lighting: The lighting is high key, as the photograph is meant to display daytime. The lighting also makes it possible to see all of his tattoos clearly.
Setting: There is very little setting in this cover as much of it consists of his face and his actions involving the gun although the dirty background has connotations of prison or a rough area and is therefore keeping with the aggressive nature of the photograph.
Cover lines: The main cover line that relates to the photograph says: “The Game: suicide is not an option”. This is a massive contrast to the photograph as in it he is holding a gun towards himself in what appears to be an attempt to commit suicide. The cover line makes reference to The Game contemplating suicide in the days leading up to his March jail term, due to him not being able to handle the pressures of fame. The Game was sentenced to 60 days behind bars in February after pleading guilty to felony gun charges relating to an incident at a 2007 basketball game. The photograph is really controversial at it relates to the reason he was charged and ultimately sent to prison all those years ago. The ‘Suicide is not an option’ reference relates to the fact that despite all the thoughts that may have been going through his head, he ultimately prevailed and carried on making music. The different cover-lines tell us that this magazine is really focused on one specific genre of music – hip-hop/rap. Artists mentioned on the magazine include The Game, Lil Mama & Twista (there is a very clear emphasis on American based artists). Strangely there is also a cover-line which is placed on top of the masthead; this simply portrays the importance the cover-line holds. The cover-line reads “Under New Ownership Pg.17” which is evidently a topic the magazine would want to stress as it could affect their readers and potential celebrity endorses alike. What also specifies its importance as a cover-line is the page number indication which isn't present on any of the other cover-lines on the cover. The fact some of the cover-lines are printed in bright red could connote a type of blood feeling which would tie in perfectly with the main cover-line about The Game.
Target Audience: Taking into consideration all of the points, the target audience would most likely be people (male and female, though more male audience members than female) aged 16-25. They would have a keen interest in the current music industry and a definite interest in hip-hop/rap music generally. They are likely to enjoy the picture aspect of the magazine as it allows them to view the choices of clothing worn by their favourite artists. They are likely to be quite young, and have an interest in American popular culture. Adults may take offence to the controversial photographs and cover-lines used were as the younger generation are likely to be more free minded about the debatable topics.