The KA7 mock exam - 2023 edition

Second year students - Your KA7 mock is coming up after the half term holiday. It is what we sometimes refer to as the ‘final mock’. This year, KA7 will take the form of a component one exam. In a nutshell, component one is a mix of longer unseen analysis and shorter factual recall questions, with a ‘random’ mix of industries coming up.

For the final exam, you will NOT be given advance notice for what industries will come up for component one. For this mock exam, you will. This is to help you with revision and to make sure that you are fully prepared, as well as taking some of the heat off for this dry run.

When is it?

Your exam will be on Wednesday 8th March at 0900, probably in the LRC.

The exam will be the same length as the final component one exam.

What's on it?

The following topics will come up

Section A – media language and representation 

Representation question [30/1 hour] – newspaper industry. A comparison with an UNSEEN newspaper and a set text we have studied (one of the Teresa May covers or double page spreads)

Media language question [15/ 30 minutes] – advertising industry. An analysis of an unseen film poster

Section B – industry and audience

Industry – shorter questions adding up to 25 marks (25 minutes)

Audience – shorter questions adding up to 20 marks (20 minutes)

The two industries which will come up for section b are the radio industry and the video game industry. One will come up for industry, one will come up for audience.

The mock exam questions will be randomly generated using questions from the revision checklist resource. You guys should use the revision checklist to structure your own revision.

How do I revise?

There are lots of ways of revising. But the most important thing to remember is that you will revise a lot more if you're enjoying it. So mix up your revision, and use lots of different techniques. Here's just a few suggestions. You can use the blog for most of these.

• Go to the revision checklist and start ticking boxes
• Past paper questions: open book style
• Past paper questions: closed book style
• Find a study buddy :)
• Pass cards/flash cards with key terminology
• Find an unseen newspaper/film poster and label the whole thing with the textual analysis toolkit
• Go to the INDUSTRIES section of the blog and click around on the four industries that are coming up
• Go to the MEDIA FOCUS section of the blog and watch some videos
• Make notes from your notes!
• Write down three examples for each theory (making explicit reference to case studies!)
• Explain to somebody who's never done media about key theories and concepts
• Listen/read/watch/play the case study newspapers, radio shows and videogames (watching gameplay footage is fine too!)
• Use the blog to find exemplar answers and work out why they are good 
• Make a mind map
• Make a knowledge organiser 
• Find the a-level media factsheets and summarise them on your blog
• Write a PEA paragraph or DAC introduction and email it to your teacher 

Woman magazine - exploring representation and industry issues

 These activities have been presented to allow you to either work independently or in a small group for this session. Please make sure to complete all activities in some detail in your blog. Remember, if you don't write it down, then it's not going in the final exam!

Starter - representations of women in contemporary magazines

Click here to access this task

This is to build contextual information. Please spend around 10-15 minutes on this activity. 

Task one - exploring the ideological implications of advertising

The following two advertisements were included in the set edition of Woman magazine. Both of them present certain sexist, straightforward ideological assumptions about women. But what are they? And more importantly how are they encoded?

1 - Save and import the above two images in to PowerPoint or Slides

2 - Label these two images using key terms from the textual analysis toolkit:

• Codes and conventions – changes over time? 
• Layout and design
• Composition - positioning of masthead/headlines, cover lines, images, columns 
• Font size, type, colour 
• Images/photographs - shot type, angle, focus
• Mise-en-scene – colour, lighting, location, costume/dress, hair/make-up 
• Graphics, logos 
• Language – headline, sub-headings, captions – mode of address
• Copy 
• Anchorage of images and text
• Elements of narrative

3 - Select three of the elements you have labelled, and suggest a deeper meaning/signification/connotation/symbolic element to all three of them. 

Task three - the magazine industry

Check out this contextual information for the magazine industry. Read through it and copy paste it in to your notes.

Now read the following information. Again, copy paste.

• Since its launch, Woman has competed with Woman’s Own (Newnes) and Woman’s Weekly (Amalgamated) to be the top-selling title. The three great rivals ended up as sister titles when their companies merged to become IPC. Their sales peaked in about 1959, at about 2.6m, 3.1m and 1.8m each. 
• In 1937 Odhams (now IPC) opens printing plant in Watford, Herts with Speedry Gravure Process for colour printing. Woman launched weekly in June with low cover price, 2d, for a full-colour magazine. Within a year, the title was selling 500,000 copies a week

KA2 mock: Newspapers - feedback, mark scheme, tips

Let's keep this simple!

This post contains information on what your feedback numeral means, the mark scheme, grade boundaries and 'indicative content', which means the stuff you COULD have written about. 

If you want a short and straightforward tip right now, here's a good one: you get marks in media by demonstrating your knowledge and understanding (often through using 'media language', but also referring to theories and media debates), and backing up your points with key examples from the case studies we have looked at. That's it, pretty much! 

All of you need to include more media language in your responses as a matter of urgency

The stat block

This is an example of a stat block for this KA. From left to right, it reads:

1. Q1
2. Q2
3. Total
4. Grade
5. Feedback

Red means that you have achieved LESS than your minimum expected grade (MEG). Yellow means you have achieved your MEG. Green is higher. As we can see in this example, it's possible to get less than your MEG for individual questions, and still exceed it for the overall grade!

Your grade is a fine grade. Here, an A3 is a low A. A C2 is a mid C. A B1 is a high B. You get the picture!

Your feedback numeral can be decoded below. 

Feedback legend

i - You must include more media language. Shot types, camera angles, mise-en-scene, lexis, colour, setting, whatever, if you're not using these words, you're not getting marks!

ii - You must focus on analysis and suggesting meanings. What do the de-saturated colours mean? How does the lexis target a working class audience? Don't describe... analyse!

iii - Focus on theory. You don't use enough. You should use more. Make sure to properly revise at least three theories for the next mock!

iv - Focus on presenting a clear argument or point of view. You've ticked every other box, so what do you think? Get argumentative! Get angry! And make a big conclusion!

v - Avoid colloquialisms and find your academic tone. Check out the detailed feedback below for more information on this. This one will take time: there's no quick fix!

Mark scheme

Band 5 - 26/13 - Excellent knowledge and understanding of media language and the theoretical framework. Excellent knowledge and understanding of the newspaper industry. Examples given are detailed, relevant, and accurate. Appropriate theories will be accurately applied.

Band 4 - 20/10 - Good knowledge and understanding of media language and the theoretical framework. Good knowledge and understanding of the newspaper industry. Examples given are good, and generally accurate. Theories may be accurately applied.

Band 3 - 14/7 -  Satisfactory knowledge and understanding of media language and the theoretical framework. Satisfactory knowledge and understanding of the newspaper industry. Examples given are reasonable but straightforward, and may have inaccuracies.

Band 2 - 8/4 -  Basic knowledge and understanding of media language and the theoretical framework. Basic knowledge and understanding of the newspaper industry. Examples given will be limited. There will a tendency to describe. 

Band 1 - 1/1 -  Minimal understanding of media language and the newspaper industry. Basic, or no supporting examples

Grade boundaries 

This assessment didn't have a lot of questions, so the grade boundaries are really close together! Something to keep in mind when working out how strong your grade was...

A* - 81% - 36

A - 71% - 31

B - 61% - 27

C - 52% - 23

D - 43% - 19

E - 35% - 15

U -  14 or below

Questions and indictive content 

Representation

Question 1 is based on the following:

Digital print resource, a front page from The Sun, published after the resignation of Liz Truss, on October 21st 2022

and

The front page of The Times you have studied (the 'partygate' edition)

1 - Compare how these pages from the The Sun and The Times construct versions of reality. In your answer you must: 

• consider the choices media producers make when constructing versions of reality 
• consider the similarities and differences in the representations 
• make judgements and draw conclusions about how far the representations relate to relevant media contexts. 

[30 marks, 45 minutes]

A proper introduction sets the tone

Here's a good example:

Stuart Hall argues that representations construct reality. Representations are constructed by the producer of a media product for the purpose of presenting, and even forcing their ideology on to their target audiences. In this essay, I shall argue that newspapers can construct substantially different representations of reality. In order to explore this idea, I will be referring to The Sun, a UK tabloid newspaper owned by News UK, a subsidiary of the vast conglomerate News International, and The Times, a UK broadsheet newspaper that is also owned and published by News UK.

You must make explicit reference to the texts

Since the unseen newspaper is right in front of you, the examiner (and of course me, the person marking your paper) is fully expecting you to conduct a detailed analysis of it. In media studies, detailed here means you must make reference to media language, i.e. the stuff on the toolkit. Here's an example.

One way in which the front page of the Sun constructs a version of reality is through the highly biased and potentially misleading selection of images. Boris Johnson, the former UK PM is here represented with a particularly unflattering choice of image. The mid-shot emphasises the mise-en-scene of his poorly fitting suit jacket, which constructs an ideological representation of a confused and disorganised politician. This is further reinforced by the MES of his wild and chaotic hair, and the somewhat discomforting direct mode of address formed by Boris Johnson staring directly in to the camera, which functions as a proairetic code, suggesting the foolish things that he is likely to do. The combination of this media language constructs a highly biased and leading ideological perspective that the UK parliament is in a position of extreme confusion. This simple and straightforward reading will be particularly popular with the working class, right wing target audience of The Sun.

This straightforward reading is further anchored through the use of leading and manipulative lexis. The selection of the word 'Bojo' in the headline...

Relevant media contexts

This is a vague phrase that gives you a lot of scope to talk about what you want to talk about! Here are some examples of contextual information you could include:

• The use of stereotypes, and why newspapers use them
• Bias and manipulation of the audience
• The fact that both newspapers target an older right wing audience
• The difference in representations depending on a left-wing or right-wing target audience
• The issues with presenting a political bias to an audience
• Ownership: both newspapers are owned by Murdoch's News International!
• Many audiences have moved to online media to access news. The readership of print newspapers tend to be middle-aged and older

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Audience

2 - Explain how the newspaper industry targets audiences. Make reference to a print edition of The Daily Mirror to support your points

[15 marks, 15 minutes]

Audience and industry questions are short and sweet

...in Component one b, anyway. The examiner is only expecting you to spend a mark a minute on this one, so be as blunt and straightforward as possible here.

Audience theory can really help you here

The radio industry

 This post covers the radio industry in its entirety. But it is not complete! It is based on notes from two classes, and covers some areas in way more detail than other areas. Your notes will cover everything not included here.

Listening to the radio can be an ambient or passive experience

Audiences may listen to meet their needs in a variety of different ways. However, after surveying the class, it seems that many of you listen to radio (including podcasts and digital streaming radio) in a variety of ways that can considered to be passive. The most popular way for you lot to listen to radio seems to be 'in the car' This is interesting as many media forms are crafted to be payed attention to. So radio meets their needs of it's audience in different ways!

Radio still has a significant reach 

Many (including me, tbqh) are rather surprised to see that radio not only exists, but it maintains a broad level of popularity. Radio still has reach, and it still targets a number of both niche and mainstream audiences. 

Defining radio is difficult

Technically, radio would refer to broadcast radio, broadcast over radio waves to a national, international or local audience. Digital radio or DAB uses digital technology to broadcast live radio. A radio show that is pre-recorded and then digitally distributed is referred to as a podcast. Clearly, these are all very different things (especially when many podcasts have a video version!). However, for the sake of this unit, we will be referring to all these media as 'radio'. It's a bit like calling Netflix or BBC iPlayer 'TV' when it REALY REALLY ISN'T.

Broadcasting is communicating to a huge or mass audience. Narrowcasting is communicating to a niche audience

Radio can target absolutely huge audiences (for example BBC Radio One, a station that is close as it is possible to being 'for everyone'), and absolutely tiny audiences (for example the podcast Game Study Study Buddies, a podcast that specialised in under/graduate level discussion of academic books that study videogames, mainly targeting people who study videogames at degree level)

Examples of radio stations and their output

• Heart FM
• Kiss
• KISSTORY
• Capital
• In game radio in the GTA series (!!!)
• 80’s 90’s themed radio stations (audience nostalgia?)
• Talk radio, talking rather than music
• Podcasts - pre-recorded radio shows, often made on a specific topic 
  
  

A few key terms

Since only industry and/or audience questions can come up for the radio industry, you don't need to be too hardcore about textual analysis. However, please make sure you know what all these words/concepts/names refer to!

• Lexis
• Modes of address
• Digital convergence 
• Broadcast
• Narrowcast
• Codes
• Sound (diegetic, lack of music)
• Distribution (digital)
• Audience
• Target audience
• Intertextuality 
• Ideology
• Narrative construction
• Atmos (or lack thereof!)
• Reception
• Preferred reading
  
  

How does radio as a specific medium meet the needs of its audiences?

Here's a few examples/ideas

• Escapism - the idea that our life is deeply flawed and that radio provides an alternative to this. One explanation for why listening to the radio in the car is so popular is that driving is VERY BORING
• Information - we can LEARN THINGS from listening to radio, for example what songs are popular, about different genres of music, and about different ideas, beliefs and cultures (depending on the show/station!)
• Ability to target niche audiences - because of it's comparatively low cost of production, radio shows can be way more niche than other forms of media. A good example is the New Music show on BBC Radio 3, which focusses on noise music, Avant guard and modern classical music, that frankly appeals to a tiny portion of people who listen to the station. This is simply not possible to do on television, as the cost of filming things and then editing video footage causes costs to skyrocket.
• Commercial and promotional reasons - commercial radio stations exist to meet the needs of their PRODUCERS as well as their audiences, as they must make money through advertising
• Spreading beliefs and ideology - spreading positive messages and values can benefit society! Radio can also be used as a tool to present straightforward or even manipulative ideologies, for example 'the perfect song is about three minutes long and goes verse chorus verse chorus'.
  
  

The BBC: key facts

• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is the national broadcaster of the United Kingdom, based at Broadcasting House in London
• The BBC is primarily funded through the TV licence, which must legally be paid by UK citizens who watch live broadcasts on BBC and some some other channels. 
• The TV licencing model is rare, and mainly used in the UK and a few other European countries
• BBC radio is therefore funded by the TV licence, meaning that BBC radio is subsidised by licence payers 

• Radio one - Mainstream music focused, for a younger to early middle aged audience
• Radio two - extremely broad range of music focused shows
• Radio three - classical music with some weird stuff, 
• Radio four - talk focus, targeting an older middle aged audience
• Radio five - sport chat
• Radio six - Alternative music 
  
  

Key episode: 'home'

Key terminology

Stereotypical

Gender performativity

Reception theory 

Demographic - a group of people/audience

Hegemony

Lexis

Intertextuality 

Modes of address

Ideology

Semiotics (proairetic, hermenutic) 

Genre

Power and profit 

Representation

Feminist theory

Fandom

Cultivation theory - where a media product reinforces / grows an ideology over time

How does LNWH appeal to a niche audience?

• Use of stereotypical topics of conversation, including reference to cooking, housework, family and parental stuff…
• Cultivates a stereotypical ideology?
• Discussion of crafting - sowing, knitting, jewelry etc conforms to a stereotypical representation of women 
• The lexis of the presenters is gossipy and detailed. Discussion of how these issues affect women, with men very rarely referred to in this episode. A highly atypical and specific mode of address
• In a patriarchal society, the views and preferences of men are valued over the views of women. Therefore a show like LNWH is potentially rare because of institutional reasons. Many shows and media products target men as a default, for example MOTD or pretty much any sports broadcast. Therefore LNWH allows the BBC to pursue plurality 
• Listening contexts - a passive listening experience. Many audiences will listen to Listen to LNWH while cooking, working, housework, driving. This episode can fit around a flexible lifestyle, and provides the audience with escapism.
• A sense of purpose, and even social interaction
• Intertextual reference to Game Of Thrones - “winter is coming”, appeals to a potentially mainstream audience, but also adopts a quirky mode of address for the target audience
• Discussion of crafting dolls of famous historical cricketers also reinforces this quirky and irreverent (not serious) tone
• Discussion of Scandanavian culture reinforces a stereotype held about Scandinavian people: that they are happy, chilled and live comfy lifestyles. It is focused on the concept of ‘hygge’, a Danish word that broadly translates as ‘comfy’ 
• Discussion of how cooking connects women, a delightful and relatable image
• Discussion of taking pictures of food to upload to Instagram “look how gorgeous”, presents a relatable mode of address to the target audience, potentially fulfilling their needs 
• Reference to Etsy, an arts and crafts website that would appeal to a younger middle aged female target audience
• Discussion of feminism and the role of feminism in society. A soft feminism/moderate feminist ideological perspective 
• Preferred reading: agree with the broadly liberal, soft, yet unproblematic discussion of feminism
• Negotiated reading: “the world is on fire” acknowledges that there are many significant issues in society, while these women discuss topics such as knitting. Is this 
• Needs fulfilled include entertainment, company, parasocial relationships, fandom, escapism… 
  
  

Is LNWH patronising or progressive in its mode of address?

• The argument can be made that the Home episode only explores culture in a superficial manner, and arguably presents a simplified version of the world to its target audience 
• Arguably, the concept of ‘hygge’ is not particularly important, and the discussion only scratches the surface of this argument 
• Does this discussion actually challenge an educated, middle aged female target audience?
• Discussions of social media and digital technology do show some technological progress
• Complete lack of argument and a superficial discussion with does not feature any disagreement arguable does not challenge the target audience 
• A criticism that could be made about LNWH is that the topic of conversation is superficial, and not intellectual challenging. Therefore, an oppositional reading to the Home episode is that it does not further challenge it’s audience, and even reinforces stereotypical perspectives through it’s coverage of stereotypical themes.
• However, LNWH DOES make reference to other cultures, politics and other issues. Therefore, LNWH presents a complicated mode of address for it’s target audience to negotiate, with a range of complex gender identities
  
  

Key episode: Vaginas/Pockets

• An oppositional response to this episode may be formed around the (incorrect) assumption that women should essentially be ignorant of their own bodies, sexuality, and should be ‘ladylike’ 
• The nature of the discussion is mature, adult and matter of fact. 
• The dominant ideological perspective is to normalise discussion about women’s bodies in an inclusive way. Topics extend beyond beyond vaginas, to discuss menopause, periods and other related issues.
• While the conversation is inviting, it is not completely inclusive. Not everybody has a vagina, and it could be argued that some female audiences, eg some trans women may feel excluded by this discussion. However the vagina discussion is short and to the point, and quickly deviates to the less controversial and perhaps less exclusionary topic of pockets
• The episode purports to dealing with controversial issues but then practices  form of self censorship by almost immediately changing the conversation to talking about pockets instead !
• However, the conversation about pockets is heavily politicised. The panellists discuss the hegemonically dictated differences between men’s clothes and women’s clothes, and why this is. Pocket’s on women’s clothes create a ‘bulky form’, which is hegemonically undesirable. From a feminist perspective, this is to conform to the male gaze
• Mode of address is casual and friendly. While these topics are important, especially to the target audience, the presenters broadly admit through their playful mode of address that they are a niche concern
• Metaphor of the “self cleaning oven” could be self objectification? 
• Lack of sex education in schools means that LNWH. So does this episode simply fulfil a need? Or does it simply just tick a box?
  
  

Woman’s Hour: contextual information

Please note, we are studying Late Night Woman's Hour. However, having some contextual information about the show it cam from would clearly help!

Started immediately after the end of world war 2. Historical context: many women actually found more freedom during WW2, and then suddenly had this freedom, for example job opportunities taken away. Potentially the show took advantage of the new found taste for freedom, and may have given contemporary audiences a sense of guidance and purpose after losing this freedom. Early in it’s run, Woman’s Hour focused on a series of stereotypical stories including ‘how to cook whale meat’ and ‘how to hang your husband’s suit’. Stories like this reinforce hegemonic norms and values, with huge assumptions about the marital life of the target audience. Therefore from the very start, Woman’s hour could be argued to target a singular and straightforward.

BBC Radio 4 

Appeals exclusively to a middle class and older target audience. It does so with a broad yet highly targeted set of programmes, for example Woman's Hour, LNWH and Just One Thing with Michael Moseley. Shows like this meet the needs of a specific audience, and help the BBC to fulfil it’s remit. Ho9wever, other offerings such as BBC 3 are available to working class audiences. This approach is called plurality.

The BBC Sounds web portal

Simple and easy to access. The use of attractive thumbnails allow even users not familiar with digital technology to select an appropriate show. The thumbnails use clear and even stereotypical representations to make clear to the target audience what they are getting. The lexis of ‘relax’ or ‘dance’ makes clear to a range of audiences the exact topics that they are about to engage with. A highly visual mode of address. The use of images of presenters provides a highly personal mode of address, and audiences may form attachments to their favourite presenters. Bright and colourful, positive and optimistic. 

The ability to select podcasted shows, to subscribe, download and listen back at the users own convenience is an excellent example of David Gauntlet's pick and mix theory. BBC therefore empowers it’s audience to be active in their listening. 

1 - Football Daily - discussion of recent football matches, interviews with players and managers. Provides audiences with an insight in to football, providing the gratification of information. 

2 - The Sound Of Gaming - allows audiences the opportunity to listen to game soundtracks, and promotes the appreciation of game soundtracks. Episodes are grouped by theme, eg cities, comedy etc that provides audiences an interesting mode of address

3 - KSI vs Logan Paul - one-off podcast interviewing online influencers, and discussing their boxing match. Fans of these online celebrity can therefore interact with them in new ways. Furthermore, it allows the BBC to target a younger audience that they would not otherwise be able to target

Ultimately, the BBC tales a pluralistic approach to meeting the needs of a diverse audience

Woman magazine: front cover analysis 2023 edition

This post combines two classes responses, so there's going to be repetition! However, please remember the repetition is revision! So get stuck in!

The generic conventions of the magazine, AKA: what makes magazines different from every other form of media?

• Masthead/name of the magazine, often in a bold and inviting font 
• Magazines are specific to one topic or subject 
• Lack of a conventional  narrative 
• A collection of varied information within a certain topic
• A big emphasis on high quality imagery 
• A glossy monthly can cost around £6 or even much higher
• Infrequent frequency. Magazines may be monthly, weekly, fortnight nightly, or biannual
• A business model based on subscription, where subscribers will often get significant discounts
• Audience varies wildly 
• Often more based on images as opposed to text 
• Many different genres, often appealing to very specific audiences 
• Often printed on high quality and/or glossy 
• Non-disposable media
• More freedom in production
• No set tone
• Wildly different audiences 
• Significantly higher price, that varies wildly 
• More infrequent frequency 
  
  

Quick theory revision: semiotics

• Proairetic code: anything which suggests that something is going to happen (action code)
• Symbolic code: anything which has a deeper meaning
• Hermeneutic code: anything which asks a question, creates a mystery, or suspense
• Referential code: anything which refers to something else, also known as intertextuality 

Woman Magazine: a few things to know

• Target audience: working class, middle aged, British women
• Publication date August 1964 sixty years ago!
• Genre: women’s lifestyle. Articles on housework, cleaning, housewife stuff, entertainment, makeup, dating (‘courting’), lifestyle tips
• A UK women’s lifestyle magazine. Topics covered in women’s lifestyle magazines include makeup, beauty, clothes, fashion, perfume, cooking, cleaning, gossip etc

Initial conclusion

• Conclusion: Woman Magazine presents a simple and straightforward and sexist message to its working class female target audience
  

Flicking through the magazine

Who is the VERY SPECIFIC target audience for this magazine? How do you know?

Appealing to British middle-aged housewives. A housewife is a stereotypical assumption of a woman that stays at home, and looks after children and completes other tasks such as cleaning. The target audience for this magazine is working class women, and we can understand this from the aspirational mode of address of the front cover. Focus on working in the kitchen, looking after children and basic beauty and makeup advice would all appeal to a working class aspirational audience. 

What stereotypical representations can you find?

Double page spread dedicated to beauty and makeup clearly reinforce beauty standards. This reinforces the idea of the male gaze, and suggests that this magazine was produced to meet the needs of a patriarchal society, and reinforces patriarchal hegemony. Lexis ‘these are things girls worry about’: the use of the word ‘girl’ reinforces an assumption that even adult women are ‘young’, niave and irresponsible, and implies women need easy and simple instruction

Who is not represented or is underrepresented in this magazine?

Very few men are represented, and there are absolutely no people of colour

What message is the producer of this magazine presenting to its audience?

To construct a hegemonic representation of women to outline and to reinforce the expectations that women face in society

Why might a woman in 1964 actually read this magazine?

Relatable content? The watercooler effect?

Are you bored of me yet?

Woman magazine front cover initial analysis

• The magazine’s masthead is large, bold, and in the style of calligraphy, with cursive, joined up writing. Appears to be handwritten
• The MES of the handwritten masthead has symbolic connotations of a personal style, which provides an inclusive mode of address for it’s target audience. This reinforces the stereotypical assumption than women are soft and gentle creatures, who must be protected
• The purple background has symbolic connotations of stereotypical femininity. It is bright, and has a high impact mode of address on it’s target audience, that allows the magazine to be competitive. Additionally the purple is highly contemporary, and would be popular in 1964.
• The cover line ‘seven star improvements for your kitchen’ gives a quantity to the wonderful things that the audience will find in this magazine. This provides the audience with the illusion of value and quality. Technical term: sell line
• The lexis “Are You An A-Level Beauty?” functions an hermeneutic code to the audience, and directly asks the audience whether or not they are beautiful. The term ‘A-level beauty’ implies there is a specific grade and ranking to beauty, a hierarchy of beauty that the audience must be engaged with. The term “A-level” also reinforces the hegemonic expectation that to be beautiful is to be very young.
• Complete lack of representation of WoC on the front cover, or indeed in the entire magazine. This reinforces and constructs the ideological perspective that WoC are either not important, or not hegemonically beautiful. 
• George Gerbner: symbolic annihilation: where a group of people is completely omitted from a media product, in a sense constructing a world where they don’t exist. By not including black people in Woman, it situates white people at the top of a hierarchy
• The model is heavily airbrushed. Elements that have been airbrushed include her wrinkles, her teeth, and the whites of her eyes. This model has been selected because she is hegemonically attractive. However, some lines have been retained to make this lifestyle relatable and achievable to the target audience. This reinforces the hegemonic norm that younger women are more attractive.
• Woman magazine works by making the target audience dissatisfied with her own life. It sells a better world, of being younger, more organised, and with a better home
• Makeup reflects a natural look, where it is visible, but not ‘over the tope’ . The model’s lipstick is a nude colour, which again is highly subtle. This allows the magazine to target a target audience of mothers and housewives, and an older and more conservative audience 
• The model is pulling a forced smile, which makes the model look uncomfortable and even nervous. She looks more like a mannequin than a woman, and slightly unreal. This highly staged set up constructs an idealised representation of women, where being slightly scared and uncomfortable was a normal thing. This reinforces patriarchal hegemony 
• While ‘lingerie’ has subtle sexual connotations, the magazine is strangely sexless.
• The magazine arguably moulds women into being a perfect patriarchal hegemonic standard. Beautiful, ‘sexy’, nervous, and a good cook, everything arguably reminds the audience of a world where men are in charge 
• The masthead, simply ‘Woman’ infers that this magazine is what all women need. It’s simplicity emphasises it’s importance, and it further infers that it will contain information appropriate to you
• The typeface is quirky and contemporary, and serif. It is italicised and resembles handwriting. Fun, informal, and personal
• The purple background has regal connotations, connotations of wealth and royalty . This therefore has aspirational symbolism, and heavily implies the contents of the magazine are life changing
• Purple is also highly feminine, and suggestive of a female target audience
• The model's makeup is glamorous, and glamorises the role of the housewife. Additionally the makeup is subtle and natural, and suggests a natural beauty that the target audience should aspire to