http://prezi.com/yxs5w6dfls14/media-evaluation/

This is my Prezi evaluation of my media product

This is my finished double page spread

( Click to enlarge ) 

This is my finished contents page

( Click for full size )

Mothership Magazine - Cover

This is my finished front cover

( Click to Enlarge )

MoodBoard

This is a small moodboard I have made to show typical layouts and themes for my chosen genre (Gothic / indie). The examples show desaturated images, lending connotations to a bleak outlook on life, a classic stereotype* of 'Goths'. It also displays all of its performers as smartly dressed, and impeccably groomed; this also complies with a steretype that 'Indie' artists don't want to be displayed as rough or their music displayed as unorganised / discordant.

* - Although the stereotype may apply to some, not all want to be associated with it.

NME Analysis

Looking at NME’s live review, it’s clear from the start whether or not the review will be positive or negative from the very first sentence. In the first two lines we see the Arctic Monkeys are described as “Striving to distance themselves from other people’s perceptions”; as a common and recurring band on NME, Arctic Monkeys can do little wrong, so it is to be expected.

Within the whole review there seems to be an overabundance of adjectives and adverbs, this can sometimes be overwhelming, I would imagine that this is used to make the artists seem more exciting, but It can be disorienting, e.g.:  “Older songs such as ‘Florescent Adolescent’ throb and shine with the power of rejuvenation and their pulsating reworkings”.

This is the layout of my music magazine. i will stick to this when designing it, however i may make some layout changes if it does not all work well when executed.

This Is my analysis of 'Q' Magazine, I have annotated it, pointing out 

the features it uses with true technical terms.

Maiden Erlegh High School

Maiden Erlegh
High School


Whilst this newsletter hasn't got a lot wrong with it. however it does make some layout mistakes.

The main text is intimidating and bland. There is too much text in one large portion, this could be helped by using subtitles before paragraphs or simply condensing the text. however it does do some things well: it uses fonts well and its colour scheme is simple, sticking to 3 colours to keep itself simple and professional looking.

Moral Panic

Stanley Cohen first came up with the theory of Moral Panic : Identified when an object, person or event is identified as 'Harmful' to the general public. Cohen acknowledged that these accusations are often misconstrued  and ill informed - And are often used or generated to simply create fear in times of boredom.

A popular case was that of the video game Mass Effect; Fox news jumped on the opportunity to disparage it when they found out it contained sex when it was only rated a 15. They circulated lies such as in the game the player could "see full frontal nudity for up to 20 minutes at a time" and "Could have intercourse with any female character the player encounters" -- Fox news reporter

Ideology

Ideology is a fundamental part of any media product: be it film, music, comics, video games, newspapers or magazines. An ideology is a set of ideas that constitute ones goal's, expectations and actions. The goal of any ideology is to highlight a section of society, or a certain aspect of life, that is wrong - Or to promote a certain lifestyle that some seem to think are better. This can be either subtle or overt.

A popular example of this is V for Vendetta. The ideology it follows is that the government is corrupt, we cannot under government rule, if we are to survive equally we should have community based living.

NME magazine is a the music for the so called 'Indie' stereotype, following bands like Arctic Monkeys or The Strokes.

The Rule of Thirds

The 'Rule of Thirds' is a common technique used by photographers to make their work seem more natural, and to capture the background effectively.

As a rule of thumb only one third of the frame should feature the subject of the photograph.a grid system is used across the lens or the line of sight of the camera to divide the frame perfectly into nine sections: the subject is captured in two or three of these segments, and the background is placed in the remaining seven / eight.

Semiotics

Semiotics means the use of symbols or emblems to signify what an object or idea is. It teaches us that just because we perceive the letter 'A' is perceived by the English speaking world to sound like it does and spell what it does, does not make it so to everyone, this is just how we've been trained or taught in our society.

There are two main theories associated with Semiotics. Ferdinand de Saussure's Dyadic Semiotic System is one of them. In this, there is the Signifier and the Signified. The Signifier is what is seen or what is there, and the Signified is what is meant or understood.


The second is Charles Sander Pierce's Triadic Semiotic System. This explains that there are three terms of state: The sign, the object, and the interpretant. One is a symbol that we assign meaning, we assing this meaning beacause 'something' must have a name, according to human nature, and the final is the interpreteant who is use, we carry out these operations to form language and meaning.

There are two methods applied when creating questionnaires



The First is Qualitative.
- This method is when a questionnaire generates numerical data that can be easily stored by using: tick box (Multiple choice) questions, questions that require one word answers, or questions that require numerical answers.



The Second is Quantitative.
- This is when a questionnaire asks questions that cause the answerer to explain their answer more extensively, they do this by asking questions like why? or how?

Introduction to my blog

I am Callum Ferguson and this is my blog to record the progress of my media coursework. We are to create a mock up and rough draft of a college magazines contents and front cover; we are then to do the same, plus a finished copy of a music magazine featuring a local artist.

-- Callum 'Fergs' Ferguson