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1. Introduction
 The genre of the magazine I have chosen to annotate
is Pop. I have chosen to annotate two covers, two
contents pages and two double page spreads of Q
magazine and We Love Pop magazine. The genre can
usually be identified through it’s use of bright colours,
gossip talk and script text.

2. Masthead
Main
Image
Main
Cover
Line
Anchorage
Secondary
Cover Line
Secondary
Cover Line
Footer
Secondary
Image
Puff
Masthead
Puff
Main
Cover
Line
Secondary
cover line
Anchorage
Secondary
Cover line
Main
Image
Secondary
Cover Line
Secondary
Cover Line
Although they are both pop magazines, they appear
very different. For example ‘We love Pop’ has used
very bright colours to theme their magazine attracts
a young audience, whereas ‘Q’ magazine is mainly
red with some splashes of blue which attracts an
older audience. The ‘We Love Pop’ colour theme is
mainly pink with a pastel blue which mainly attracts
a female audience whereas the colour theme of red
for ‘Q’ appeals to both male and female. The colour
pink symbolises friendship which is the preferred
reading, however the oppositional reading for this is
that pink symbolises sexuality which doesn’t suit that
target audience of children. The colour red
symbolises lover and passion which is the preferred
reading for this magazine, however, the oppositional
reading is that red symbolises anger and hatred.
The main image for ‘We Love Pop’ is of Tulisa
looking happy and smiling. The preffered reading for
this is that Tulisa is a strong woman as she has
perused a solo career after breaking away from her
previous band. The oppositional reading for this is
that she has had a very controversial past and has
had some trouble with the police causing her to be a
bad role model for children who this magazine is
targeted for, also her tattoo is visible on this cover
which can be seen as controversial. The main image
for ‘Q’ magazine is of Florence looking very serious.
The preferred reading for this is that Florence is a
strong independent woman which contrasts with the
cover line story “I feel so alone”. The oppositional
reading is that she looks angry which may make
someone hesitant to buy the magazine, also she is
wearing a lot of makeup.

3. Masthead
Main
Image
Main
Cover
Line
Anchorage
Secondary
Cover Line
Secondary
Cover Line
Footer
Secondary
Image
Puff
Masthead
Puff
Main
Cover
Line
Secondary
cover line
Anchorage
Secondary
Cover line
Main
Image
Secondary
Cover Line
Secondary
Cover Line
The text on the cover of ‘We Love Pop’ is informal
to make it look more childish and appeal to a
younger target audience whereas the text on the
cover of ‘Q’ magazine is formal to make it look
more classy and appeal to and older target
audience. The oppositional reading for the ‘We
Love Pop’ magazine is that the text varies on the
cover making it look messy and confusing. The
preferred reading for this is that it looks fun and
busy for children who this magazine is targeted for.
The text on the cover of ‘Q’ magazine is formal to
make it look mature and appeal to an older target
audience. The preferred reading for this is that it
appears to be a classy and neat magazine making
it easier to read and understand for adults. The
oppositional reading for this is that the genre of Pop
music is seen to be fun and young whereas the text
presents this magazine to be classy which doesn’t
really mirror the genre it’s based on.
The storylines in ‘We Love Pop’ and ‘Q’
magazine are both very different even though
they are about the same genre of Pop music.
‘We Love Pop’ covers storylines such as “I
snogged 17 girls last Sunday” and “The
Wanted’s latest crush” which are both very
gossipy and immature story concepts. The
preferred reading of this is that the stories appeal
to a young audience to match the target
audience. The oppositional reading is that the
stories aren’t appropriate and are too mature for
the audience this magazine is targeted for. The
storylines for ‘Q’ magazine are mature for
example “heroin, hookers & hair metal”. The
preferred reading for this is that the stories are
mature which match the target audience,
however, the oppositional reading is that the
stories are rude and inapropriate.

4. Headline
Main
Image
Branding
Sections
Secondary
image
Pull
quote
Branding
Headline
Main
Image
Puff
Secondary
Image
Editors
Letter
Sections
Although both magazines are about the same genre
of Pop music, they have very different styles which is
shown on their contents page. For example, the
headline in ‘We Love Pop’ is big and bold whereas
the headline in ‘Q ‘ is small but clear. The text in ‘We
Love Pop’ changes colour and font throughout it’s
contents page. The oppositional reading for this is that
it appears very messy and unorganised which is the
opposite of what a contents page should be, also it
would make it difficult for children to focus on the text
as this magazines target audience is children. The
preferred reading for this is that it looks fun and busy
which may appeal to the target audience of children.
The text in ‘Q’ is consistent and formal which is also
shown through its contents page. The preferred
reading for this is that it looks smart, organised and
classy which appeals to the target audience of adults.
The oppositional reading for this is that it doesn’t
match the genre of pop which the magazine is based
on.
The main colour theme of the ‘We Love Pop’
contents page is bright colours yellow, blue and
black. The preferred reading for this is that it appears
fun and exciting, for example, the colour yellow
symbolises joy and happiness. However, the
oppositional reading for this is that the colour yellow
symbolises weakness. The main colour theme for ‘Q’
magazine is black, red and white. The preferred
reading for this is that the colour red has
connotations of love and passion, however the
oppositional reading for this is that it also symbolises
anger and danger.

5. Headline
Main
Image
Branding
Sections
Secondary
image
Pull
quote
Branding
Headline
Main
Image
Puff
Secondary
Image
Editors
Letter
Sections
The main image in ‘We Love Pop’ is a mid-shot of two
music artists looking happy and friendly with each
other. The preferred reading for this is that it mirrors
the genre of magazine as they are pop artists. The
oppositional reading for this is that Tulisa, one of the
artists in the image, has recently been in the media for
trouble with the police causing her to be a bad role
model for children who this magazine is targeted for.
The main image in ‘Q’ magazine is a long shot of a
band looking down the camera with direct address with
a serious facial expression. The preferred reading for
this is that it shows they are a serious band, however
the oppositional reading for this is that they look so
serious and not happy enough which may make
people hesitant to buy the magazine etc.
The sections in ‘We Love Pop’ and in ‘Q’ are both
very different. For example, in ‘We Love Pop’ the
sections are mainly based around gossip articles
and relationships like ‘hot boys you’ll faint for’. The
oppositional reading for this is that it is a bad
influence for children to be gossiping and the target
audience for this magazine may be thought to be too
young to be reading about magazines as it is written
for children. The sections in ‘Q’ are mainly based
around the actual music and it’s background, for
example in the Oasis special section ‘The 20
greatest Oasis tracks’. The preferred reading for this
is that it appeals to adults, who this magazine is
targeted at, as it is informative and covers mature
topics. The oppositional reading for this is that it may
appear too serious and not entertaining enough.

6. Headline
Main
image
Branding
Columns
Headline
Strapline
Main
Image
Secondary
Image
Branding
Columns
Block
Quote
The main colour theme of the ‘We Love Pop’ double
page spread is bright colours such as pink, black and
yellow. The preferred reading for this is that it appears
exciting and fun, for example the colour pink symbolises
friendship and affection. The oppositional reading for
this is that the colour pink also symbolises a lack of self
worth. The main colour theme of the ‘Q’ magazine
double page spread is dull colours such as red, white
and black. The preferred reading for this is that it makes
it look classy and easy to read, the colour red
symbolises love and passion. The oppositional reading
for this is that red also symbolises anger and danger.
The main image on both the ‘Q’ and ‘We Love
Pop’ double page spread are very different. The
image in ‘We Love Pop’ is a long shot of Cher
Lloyd. The preferred reading for this is that she is
a famous artist who matches the genre of this
magazine. The oppositional reading for this is that
Cher Lloyd has had some trouble with the press
making her a bad role model for children who this
magazine is targeted at. She is also wearing a lot
of make up which some people may think isn’t a
good image to be enforced on children. The image
in ‘Q’ is a mid shot of Lady Gaga. The preferred
reading for this is that Lady Gaga is a very big pop
icon who stands up for individuality such as gay
rights etc, however the oppositional reading for
this is that she is a very controversial person, also
she isn’t fully clothed in the picture making it
provocative.

7. Headline
Main
image
Branding
Columns
Headline
Strapline
Main
Image
Secondary
Image
Branding
Columns
Block
Quote
The text in ‘We Love Pop’ is in informal
typography such as Sans Serif. It is also
written in 3 different colours, pink, yellow
and black. The preferred reading for this is
that it is fun and exciting making it appeal
to children, who are the target audience for
this magazine. The oppositional reading
for this is that it looks messy and therefore
could be more difficult for people to read,
especially children. The text in ‘Q’
magazine’s double page spread is also in
informal typography such as sans serif,
however the big letter ‘L’ going across the
page is the main focus of this double page
spread and is written in formal typography
such as serif. The text is written in black
and the capital ‘L’ is written in red. The
preferred reading for this is that it looks
classy and organised making it easier to
read and more appealing for the target
audience of adults. The oppositional
reading for this is that the ‘L’ makes it
difficult to read the text, also the colour red
symbolises anger and hate.