1. Soap Opera Genre –
Ancillary Product
Analysis
Name: Emily Vaughan
Candidate Number: 3147
Center Name: St. Andrew’s Catholic School
Center Number: 64135
OCR Media Studies – A2 Level
Unit G324: Advanced Portfolio
2. Cover lines (Secondary Story)- This is in
yellow which matches the main headline
which demonstrates that this is also a
soap opera as the colors match. This also
includes the road sign which demonstrates
it is the typical soap opera.
There are also other cover lines in the
magazine on the header footer and left
hand side. These are good places as it
means they can be seen compared to the
other stories on the magazine.
The cover lines have a boarder which
demonstrate they are separate stories
which makes it easier to read for the
readers. The important stories are in
capitals which signifies the most important
content in the magazine.
Masthead-The masthead has been written
in a white font which has a red background
which could connote danger which
represents the soap opera genre. This also
has a drop shadow so it stands out the
colour has been chosen as it stands out
compared to the rest of the page as it is
also in bold writing which makes it more
striking .
Main Headline- In the main
headline they have used language
such as ‘SHOCK’ AND ‘TWIST’ to
attract the readers attention. In the
main headline it also says
‘MURDER’ which means the reader
questions themselves of who the
murder could be so the reader will
look further into the magazine to
find out who was murdered or who
carried out the murder.
Verbal Codes- Word such as
‘DEAD’, ‘SHOCK’and ‘Prison’ have
been used in order to attract the
readers attention to the story . This
attracts the readers attention as it
makes the event more interesting
so the reader will read the
program or watch the soap opera.
Web Address (Cross Media Convergence)-
They have included web addresses
underneath the masthead, this is
significant as this is a form of Cross Media
Convergence. This is significant as it allows
the reader to access more information
about the magazines on the internet. This
means it could allow the readers to access
lots of information.
Main Image- The main image is a
medium close up of the two main
characters involved in the headline.
The smirk on there faces is
anchored by ‘SHOCK MURDER
TWIST!’, which makes the reader
question themselves of who died or
killed someone. The way that one
male is at the front and the other is
at the back could connote that the
male protagonist could be involved
in the murder.
Masthead- The masthead has
been written in a white font which
has a red background this also has
a drop shadow. This colour has
been chosen as it stands out
compared to the rest of the page
as it is also in bold writing which
makes it more striking .
Cover Images- There are multiple images
surrounding the left hand side, header
and footer of the magazine. This makes
the readers aware of what characters will
be involved in the stories. The main
protagonist is at the front so the readers
know who the story is mainly about.
Furthermore, you can also tell from the
characters facial expressions weather the
stories are something happy or sad.
3. Strapline- The word ‘EVERY’ is
repeated in the strapline which
emphasizes that the magazine
offers a variety of cover lines. The
word every is in capital letters and
is bigger then the other words
which emphasis the amount of
content the magazine include so
they will find out everything there
is to know about each soap which
is updated every week with new
content. This also has alliteration
as the word ‘STORY’ and ‘SECRET’
are used so the strapline is more
catchy which means people
associate it with the magazine.
Date-The date of the magazine is on it
to illustrate which version it is this
means the reader can distinguish
between the magazines so they know
what issue is the most up to date.
Price-The price is displayed on the
magazine which means that
people know how much to pay.
Main Headline- In the headline it says
‘Doomed’ which connotes something
unexpected has happened which leaves the
readers questioning . This has been written in
bold letters with an explanation mark witch
demonstrates the significance of the story.
Main Image- The non-verbal code of the
main image is that it is stereotypical of the
soap opera genre as the female is in front
of the male which connotes she is more
important. The photo is a medium close
up so you can see a close up of the facial
expressions of the characters.
Cover lines- There are smaller cover lines
at the header, footer and the left hand
side of the magazine which means the
magazines has more of a variety which
attracts the target audience. This
promotes the programs and gives insight
into which soap operas are covered.
Verbal Codes- The words
‘DOOMED!’, ‘REUNITED’ and
‘ARRESTED’ are used to attract
the audience to buy a copy of
the magazine and watch the
program. These are eye catching
and they shock the readers so
they think they should go and
watch the soap opera on TV
Masthead- The masthead is written
in a bold red font, this goes across
the page so it can stands out as it is
big. This overlaps with the
characters in the magazine so it
means the mast head is important
so people know which magazine it
is.
Banner- The banner along the top
includes other cover lines from other
programs which has red behind it with
white writing which means it stands
out more this also shows the
significance of other stories involved in
the magazine.
4. Conclusion
After completing this task, I now know I will ‘repeat’(Steve
Neale-1980) the way colours have been used in the magazine by
using bright striking colours. This is carried throughout the
magazine front cover on the boarders of pictures and the text to
create a similar house style throughout the magazine which
attracts the readers attention. Also I will ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale-
1980) the way the images have been taken by having one
character in front of another so you can see who the main
characters are. I want to do this as it is an effective method in
order for the readers to question the storyline so they will buy
the magazine. Furthermore, I will ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale-1980)
the way further cover lines have been used on the header,
footer and left hand side in order to show more variety on the
magazine which will mean more people will buy the magazine as
there are lots of soap operas in involved in it.