Emotive and Colloquial Language in Magazines.

Emotive and colloquial language. 

‘2010 Buyer’s guide SKATEboarding.’-

I think the target audience for this magazine is people interested in skateboarding and purchasing skate boards and equipment.

Some colloquial language I have found is on the contents page. Rather than just saying what each page contains, it’s written in a way, almost as if the person is talking to you. For example ‘Can you wear a size twelve shoe and still skate a seven and a half inch board? Well who better to look to for the answers than the pros themselves?’ The fact that it’s in question form automatically makes it sound more personal and friendly, also the shortened word ‘pros’ is something that many skaters would refer to professionals as, so it’s as if you’re talking to a friend.

 

An example of emotive language could be ‘skateboarders are being criticized, harassed and arrested; when in actual fact they are promoting a healthy lifestyle…’ which would catch the attention of most readers because the magazine is aimed at skaters who would agree with the second part of the quote and be against the first part because they’re biased.

Also the word ‘harassed’ is very strong, and is bound to provoke a reaction from people especially if they feel strongly about skateboarding. This could possibly gain them readers because if it’s something people feel strongly they’ll more than likely keep buying issues to keep updated on things they’re passionate about.

They also use many skateboard terms such as ‘deck’, ‘trucks’ and many other words related to types of boards and skateboarding equipment. This is a positive to some people, such as people familiar with skateboarding. However for people who aren't familiar with such terms could be put off buying the magazine because they could possibly be threatened by the language used.

Magazines use colloquial language because they’re trying to create an informal relationship with their audience. They do this because it’s important for the magazine to create such relationships because they need to secure a continuous demand for their magazine to ensure they gain a considerable profit.

Preliminary Task - Contents Pages Annotated.

Questionnaire Answered.

1.      78% of those asked answered ‘yes’

2.      27% answered more about students, 33% said  more about teachers, 40% said more about extra-curricular activities.

3.     85% of students asked said monthly, 15% said weekly.

4.     100% of people answered 0-49p

5.     25% said students, 75% said student and teachers.

6.     73% of people said yes, 27% said no

7.     People answered:

‘ I would like the magazine to include some book reviews’

And

‘I think it would be good to include some creative aspects to the magazine’

8.      89% of people said A* Express, 13% said School Rocks

Some suggestions made: School Rules! And Dream School.

9.     Some suggestions were:

‘yeah I think the colours should all match and be bright but not too eye catching’

And

‘maybe grey, purple and black’

10.                        72% said yes, 28% no.

Overall, I can tell that generally, see from my results that people do like the idea of having a school magazine, preferably issued monthly and would also like it to include creative, interactive aspects too.

Also I can tell that many students would be willing to pay for the magazine and are actually interested in having one, and also are keen on the idea of having both students and teachers on the front cover, so the magazine could likely be directed to both teachers and pupils with relevant information for everyone.