The Big Issue

Spec says:
Magazines: Big Issue
- language and representation, include considerations social, cultural and political contexts that influences language and how that influences construction
- must study two front covers should demonstrate representations that are alternative to mainstream

Key Terms

• circulation - number of copies magazine sells
• readership - not just who buys magazine but total number of people likely to read it.
• mass audience - readership on a very large scale
• niche audience - narrow group of readers with particular interest
• subscription - pay for set number of copies of magazine in advance at lower price receive by post
• masthead - title of magazine
• plug - text that "plugs" a feature that will appear inside the magazine 
• puff - story given prominence of cover
• cover star - "star" feature on cover
• Anchorage text - text that anchors main image and gives it context/meaning
• Blanner - text that runs across lower section of cover
• skyline -  text that runs across top of cover

Advertising 

income for magazine comes from sales and advertising, average advertising = 70% income

small circulation = more dependence on advertising 

The Big Issue 

Circulation - While the magazine is a for-profit social business that runs on advertising, sponsorship and circulation revenue, The Big Issue Foundation acts as a charity for the magazine’s vendors and is financed independently of the magazine. This means that the revenue and circulation of the magazine has no bearing on its impact.

About 100,000 copies of The Big Issue are sold every week, there are 2000 big issue vendors in Britain. Vendors buy magazine for £1.25 and sell them for £2.50

• Most widely circulated street newspaper
• hybrid genre (entertainment and social business)
• sold over 200 million copies
• primary objective

Media Language- intertextuality, camera, layout,mise en scene, CLAMPS

magazine language - images, graphics, layout, content, colour, title, logo, words, font, price and barcode

media representation - DRCAGE, social, cultural, politial

How to analyse magazine:

people - what kind of people on front cover?

pictures - what of? show what genre?

colour/font/masthead- what colours/font? what's suggested?

words - what words? effet?

addressing reader directly

free gifts

Institutional factors and marketing

first published in 1991. Is a Hybrid genre magazine , entertainment and social business, but has come under critisim for its "flashy style" as a street newspaper and as being overly commercial. John Bird and Gordon Roddick founded magazine to offer those who are or at risk of homelessness a legitimate income. Its an independent publication to offer a public service and to try and improve a social problem.

Johns own background was pivotal to launching the big issue - he was homeless at 5 in an orphanage from 7 - 10 went to prison and went back to prison in his late 20's. It needed and received a £25,000 start up capital . At its peak it sole 300,000  copies (2001) but it declined over the decades. 85%vendors male and are 18 - 46 year.

Compared to any genre magazine has low production values, compared to other street magazines high production values. Its sustained by advertising revenue. Cover often flamboyant revealing a high level of cultural and political awareness, but the cover is the main point of sale.

Target Audience:

Target group is ABC1, socially aware professionals, 25-45. The middle class are also targeted, particually with consumers who may feel guilty. The Big Issue stereotype reads The Guardian which is liberal/left wing, it has no specific gender skew and a strong multicultural presence.

audience Appeal:

element of emotional fufillment - helping the homeless. The reader is made to feel independent by the sometimes controversial approach the magazine has, against dominant mainstream culture.

genre

as a hybrid magazine entertainment conventions include tv, film,book,theatre,music,the arts reviews. The front cover almost always entertainment frequent celeb uses to anchor a narrative. Social business as sometimes runs "serious stories"

representations:

divise range of representation - but key focus on minority groups. Itc has a male dominated narrative. representations of art and culture are preffered to mainstream entertainment which would stereotypically attract an older audience.