The subject of Bridget March’s article ‘Get on your dancing shoes’ focuses on the new range of footwear at Evans, a well known women’s clothes store. This indicates that the article is aimed at young, female readers. Whereas ‘Fable 3 Gets Serious!’ a short article on Nuts magazine’s website reports on the release of a new video game, indicating that this is aimed at young men. Furthermore Kerrang’s article ‘Bullet For My Valentine bassist leaves north American tour’ shows that this is aimed at rock music fans. All these articles are categorised as news, however the difference in target audience means that what is presented as valuable information is very different. The article aimed at women shows that as women our priorities should be what we look like, whereas the male article shows that gaming and leisure are most important to men. The piece from Kerrang shows that music fans are most concerned with updates on tours and their favourite bands.
The tone of ‘Get on your dancing shoes’ is eager and energetic, as for the use of exclamation marks and short sentences. By creating this tone the writer encourages the readers to feel as eager as her, this develops a sense of likeness between the two, and implies that all women connecting with this article are excited by shoes. Similarly in ‘Fable 3 Gets Serious!’ questions such as ‘You excited?’ are used to create a sense of anticipation among the men reading this article, showing that there is a shared enthusiasm for this new game.
However, in ‘Bullet for my valentine bassist leaves north American tour’ the tone is more matter fact through the use of quotes from the band manger, showing that the information is being taken more seriously. This shows that among the readers there is a shared concern for the band member.
The language used in the female article is conversational as if the writer is a friend. This comes from the use of colloquialisms such as ‘cute’ and ‘sexy’, which are words that relate to femininity, therefore relating to the female audience. Furthermore the writer also uses alliteration ‘strappy sandals’ and ‘lacy leggings’ that again create feminine and sensual images in the mind. Therefore this encourages the readers to feel as if they have a shared confidence and attractiveness.
Likewise, the language employed in the male article is also light hearted and conversational. Slang phrases are frequently used such as ‘cool’ and ‘sexes it up’ which brings the article to the level of the readers, making them feel comfortable as if they are chatting in the pub. Abbreviations like ‘slo mo’ are used to make the reader feel as if they are an insider, as they understand the jargon they feel included in the gaming culture. However unlike the female article, this piece uses the phrase ‘one of the funniest and deepest games a man is likely to play this year’ to directly address the audience. This creates two effects, it makes the game seem exclusive as it’s just for men again encouraging the readers feel like they are a part of something unique; and it develops a joint anticipation among the readers as they imagine it to be better than any other game they have previously played or heard about.
Surprisingly the article for rock fans doesn’t use much slang and colloquialisms, but it does shorten names, instead of Jason James, they call him Jay James. This is to create a sense that the audience know the artist personally. Furthermore, this language is very different from the previous two as instead of addressing the audience as if in conversation, the audience is addressed in a more formal manner, as important information is being given. This shows the article to be aimed at people that take music seriously.
The pictures and additional media that accompany the articles are also specifically targeted at their audiences. The picture attached to ‘get on your dancing shoes’ features four pairs of slender female legs, two wearing tights and two baring their legs. This image encourages the readers to visit evans and buy their shoes, as the shoes are the main focus, so it appears as if the shoes are what makes these women’s legs so attractive. As the language and tone etc of the article hints that women want to be alluring and good-looking, this image helps to imply how they can achieve this.
To add, the article on the game for men is centred round a video trailer. This is more emotive for the audience than simply a still image or photo of the front cover, as it allows them to see the game in action. Furthermore this leads them to imagining themselves playing the game, which encourages them to want it even more.
Lastly the photo used in the music article is a posed photograph of the band, most likely a well recognised one from a recent photo shoot. This is so the audience can see exactly who the band are that are being discussed. Additionally it could also evoke some sympathy as the image shows the full band, so readers might look at it and imagine how the band would look without Jason James.
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