Ancillary Research

Harriett CouzensAq102177

“Trashy” TV Magazines

• There are lots of bright clashing colours to create the sense of organised chaos and “tackiness”. This makes them look like they are meant to be thrown away

• The advertisements are always laid out in the same way to train the eye into always looking at the same things in the same order

• Every photo is almost in its own frame and they are all superimposed together

• Text boxes tilted at exactly the same angle

• Borders all of the same width

• Supposed to look trashy and disposable

• Banner across the top

• Colours and positioning mean everything

• The magazine always refers to characters, not the actors themselves

• The look of the magazine matches the class of the characters shown on them

• All the fonts and tilts used on the images and text have to be exactly the same

• Cheap paper and inks are used to give the magazines a “throw away” feel

•There is always one star on the cover apart from some exceptions but this is very rare

•You look at the person and not just the character because the Actor’s name is used; not just their character’s name

•The masthead is always in the same place

•Only one bubble is used

•Always something in a box anchoring the headline

•Little subheadings in boxes that help contain the text and help organise

•Italics alter the view of the original text

•More expensive inks and paper are used to make the magazine look and feel less throw away than weekly TV magazines that are made to be thrown away

•Only a couple of colours are used on the front cover to give the magazines a more sophisticated feel

•Better photography is used to also give a more sophisticated feel to the magazine

“Classy” TV Magazines

How do TV magazine front covers create representations of gender that can be quickly

interpreted?

To do this, stereotypes, gender performance and social codes are used. E.g. Tiara, tie, flower in buttonhole create the narrative of a wedding between two characters, but the text doesn’t match the facial expressions of the stars. This tells the audience that something will happen in the plot that these characters aren’t expecting.

BUTLER: tiara, earrings, blonde hair, white dress: conventional female gender performance. She is alluding to the dream women are supposed to have of “the perfect wedding” aspiration But we want to see her fail.

Soap operas need to convey to the audience the narrative and which characters are antagonists and protagonists.

The price is given two times on this magazine which isn’t traditional of a TV magazine as they would usually use the second spot for another soap opera advertisement.

Characters are portrayed the way their character is going to act in the next episode as we can see the two main stars are smiling which means they are going to be happy. In the bottom left hand corner we can see the two characters looking quizzical towards each other as if they are plotting something

Actors name is used instead of the characters name being used

Reference to vampires which relates to twilight as the magazine is a twilight special

Only a few colours used on the front cover’s layout which adds a feel of the magazine being for a more “sophisticated” reader

Masthead made to look like it has been drawn in lipstick to give the magazine a fun edge.

The text is smaller and the layout has a more restrained feel to it than 33p magazines

Robert Pattinson still fits the typical gender stereotype of a man although his laid back dress sense and messy hair gives him a more approachable feel and makes us want to read the article about him and get to know him.

The date and price is still shown on the front cover but it is less conspicuous

Robert Pattinson’s playful smile and fun posture matches the playful text that is included on the front cover this is different to the weekly TV magazines as the text doesn’t fit to the character’s facial expression.

Billboards & Posters

• There’s always a use of symmetry in the billboard.

• Main characters are always shown to allow the audience to become familiar with them.

•The date and time of the programme is always shown on the billboard to get more viewers.

•The channel’s logo or name is always on the billboard somewhere to let the audience know what channel the programme is on.

•The billboard portrays what the programme has in store for the viewer; therefore it lets them know what the show is about.

•Characters are portrayed by their outfits, facial expressions and the way they do their hair.

How do Billboards and posters for television programmes create representations of gender that

can be quickly interpreted?

As we can see on this advertisement for Hollyoaks we have a unattractive women and man sat in a dingy pub with the phrase “Rub some Hollyoaks on it” above their heads. In the next ad we see an attractive man and women who are similar to the ones in the first but everything is glamorous and clean. This tells the audience that anything to do with Hollyoaks is glamorous and vibrant and the people in the image are wealthy and happy.

On the picture with the actual Hollyoaks star we have the channel’s logo, the days that Hollyoaks is on and the time that it is on.

The shabby lamp has been swapped for a chandelier, this gives off the impression of wealth if the characters are sat somewhere like this. This attracts an audience as they use it for escapism as they wish that their lives were like this.

The characters in the second image are thinner and more attractive than the characters in the other image. This gives off the impression to the audience that if you want the glamorous lifestyle of the characters in Hollyoaks you have to be thin and good looking.

The women in the red dress gives off very strong gender stereotypes. She is blonde and wearing posh heels, this tells us that she has money to go out and get her hair done and buy nice shoes. She is drinking wine from a glass and is sat at a modern table. She is smiling which gives off the impression to the audience that she is happy because her life is good and that’s what the audience want to see when they watch Hollyoaks.

From this billboard we as the audience get a strong idea of what “skins” is about. We have a teen couple kissing. This quickly gender stereotypes the couple as she is wearing hardly any clothes and we can see her underwear and this gives the impression of the “typical teenage” girl.

Again like on all advertising billboards and posters the date, time and television channel is advertised on the image clearly to let the viewer know when to watch.

The boy in the bottom corner confirms that the teens have been at a party and they have crashed out as his glasses are wonky and he has “virgin” written on his head. This is humiliating for him as it tells the audience that the boy is still a virgin and through his embarrassment it tells teens that being a virgin is bad.

The girl in the corner is staring into space, she is wearing make-up which is mise en scene as it is running down her face which tells us that she’s been crying. This tells us that the programme deals with teen issues and emotions.