Attitude Flashcards
(22 cards)
Target audience
Gay males
Affluent
ABC1 demographic
Reformers and aspirers
Aged 25-55
Who publishes Attitude
Stream Publishing Ltd
Website
‘Teasers’ for magazine content so not all full articles
Stand alone content only available online gives exclusivity
Clickbait ads
Representations of groups usually marginalised of misrepresented
Men still objectified
Representation of the LGBT community
Articles focus on topics such as grooming and fashion, heavy focus on physical apperance perpetuates gay stereotype
Idea that they are discriminated against is reinforced by articles concerning violent attacks
Community is normalised through articles such as ‘find you dream house’ indicating they may be looking to start a family
How are the gay community offered escapism?
Website seen as a utopia where there is no discrimination
Creates sense of community and acceptance
How are gay men stereotyped
Stereotypically attractive men shown in articles, physical appearance reinforced
Stereotypes of gay men liking pop music and musical theatre
Gay men portrayed as bulnerable referring to ‘coming out’ narrative
Article on gay rugby team focuses on bodies rather than the sport
Website homepage
Articles similar to that of a tabloid
Adverts for brands that may be of interest to an LGBT audience
Links to social media however audiences are unable to comment under articles, typical convention of magazine websites
Considered niche due to gay male audience
Masthead
Sans-serif
All lower case
Modern and informal
Colour pallette
Bright colours
Lots of white space
Clean layout
Topic colours with stories underneath
Rainbow banner colours representing LGBT audience
Layout of website
Newest stories at the top creating immediacy
Stories categorised by topic
All shaped the same creating clean and consistent layout
Easy to navigate
Professional look
Features on the website
Navigation bar
Search box
Picture slideshows
Hyperlinks
Videos
Links to social mMedia (convergence)
Mediance and ideology
Most stories specifically linked to homosexuality
Gay culture
Left wing, liberal ideology
Binary oppositions
Positive stories about homosexuality have colour images compared to negative stories having black and white
Binary opposition of light and dark
Representation of gay men (positive)
Reports on serious issues of gay people such as homophobia and dsicrimination as well as how to handle it
Being gay is normalised
Entertainment section showcases LGBT genre of film, music, TV etc
Does Attitude stereotype gay men?
Stereotypes of masculinity seen in the ‘boys’ section
Obsession over male celebrities
Topics such as ‘theatre’ stereotype gay men
Emphasis on camp music such as Eurovision
Representation of race
Previously accused of being ethnocentric
Article on changing rainbow flag at Manchester Pride to include black and brown stripes to highlight the difficulties of coming out for ethnic minorities
Non-Western countries not as accepting are portrayed as ‘other’
Representation of age
Minimal representation of older men other than Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart in ‘entertainment’ articles
Perhaps reinforcing target audience of 25-55 year olds
Stream Publishing Ltd
Independent publishing company with small number of staff known for producing corporate magazines
Owned by gay man Darren Styles
Also publish Dutch gay lifestyle magazine Winq
Curran and Seaton- Power and media
Subverts theory
Stream is not a conglomerate and because of this there is more variety and creativity in Attitude
Represnted through diverese pattern of ownership; most of Attitude’s editorial staff are part of the LGBT community
Hesmondhalgh- Cultural industries
Horizontally integrated via purchasing Winq but not conglomerate-owned
Website is used as a merketing tool to maximise audience
Takes risk by niche genre and alternative nature
Stuart Hall- Reception theory
Preferred reading- Attitude is entertaining and informative, likely undertaken by gay men who are the target audience
Negotiated reading- Maybe from an older gay man or ethnic minority who agree with the overall ideology but find some of the content not as entertaining
Oppositional reading- From homophobic people who do not agree with the ideologies or lifestyles presented
Clay Shirky- End of Audience theory
The only way that audiences can interact is with the ‘Got a Story?’ link so is more like a traditional magazine and audiences are more passive
Links to social media encourage an active audience and a ‘prosumer’ role