Further magazine research

I have researched further information on particular music magazines and their publishers.

Q

  Q is a very popular music magazine which is published monthly and is the UK's number one actively-purchased magazine. It celebrates everything that is 'rock and roll' and features music that is mainly rock (and pop). Since its release in 1986, it has created an international reputation from its quality among fans, musicians and the music industry. It has been celebrated for its exclusives (e.g. Glastonbury), album reviews, production value, and sense of humour. 

It features artists from U2 to Adele, so it can appeal to a wide audience. It showcases upcoming musicians and identifies what is coming next. Q's influence (it has an influence score of 73%) can make a band's career if given a positive review.

 Q's message has been spread in many types of media such as its official website, interactive iPad edition, Q radio, live events and what is considered a popular occasion in the music industry - the worldwide famous Q awards.

It it published by Bauer Media Group and its current editor is Andrew Harrison.

These statistics show that the average Q reader is male and that the predominant age range is 15-24. If I were to create a similar music magazine to Q, I would make sure that the magazine is suitable and appealing for both genders so that the gender ratio would be balanced. As this may be a reason why magazines are decling in sales as they don't appeal as much to females as they do to males (although some girls may already like the current design of the magazine, so I would only make small changes to ensure the balance between genders).



NME

NME (The National Music Express) is a weekly magazine which is respected widely across the world. It showcases music of the rock/indie/alternative genre. It is a very unique multi-platform media proposition, it reaches 1.1 million music fans each week through its website (NME.com), NME video, NME radio, and its live events and its famous awards. Every week it gives its readers the most authoritative coverage of the very best in new music, including award-winning features, the latest releases, live reviews, the definitive guide to the best new bands in its Radar section, as well as a regular look back through the magazine's 60 year heritage.

 NME's logo has been used since 1978, it is quite iconic as it is an easily recognisable logo.

It is published by IPC media and its current editor is Mike Willaims.

These statistics show that, like Q, NME is mainly read by a male audience of the age range 15-34 with a median age of 24. So again, if I were to make a magazine similar to NME I would again ensure there is a balanced gender ratio to ensure it is appealing to both genders.

Top of the Pops

I have researched further into another pop magazine, as no media packs/information on We Love Pop was available

 Top of the Pops is a magazine which is published monthly by BBC Magazines. It is a supplementary for the TV show Tops of the Pops, despite the shows cancellation the magazine is still in publication. Top of the Pops was originally marketed as the missing link between Smash Hits (another pop magazine) and NME. It is aimed at teenagers and young people who have an interest in pop music and features well-known pop artists. Its main and most popular features include chart information, star gossip, fashion and beauty advice, quizzes, song lyrics and posters.

Its current editor is Peter Hart.

These statistics show that Tops of Pops has a huge amount of female readers of the age range 11-15. This may be due to what type of articles Top of the Pops feature and who is featured in them (e.g. One Direction who has a predominately female fanbase) would appeal more to teenage girls. So if I were to make a pop magazine such as Top of the Pops I would have to consider what sort of articles I would feature and who would be on the cover of the magazine. Also I would have to aim it as young teenage audience.