Vibe Contents Page Analysis

Contents Page 1/3

The contents page of the November 08 issue of Vibe magazine follows many of the conventions of the music magazine genre. The title of the piece is positioned at the top of the page; however, originality has been created by the way the word ‘contents’ has been broken up into different sections therefore appearing more compact as it takes up only a limited section of the page. The title is established as so because it is the largest font on the page, and is in bold sans serif therefore implying importance. To the right of this, slightly to the right is ‘1/3’ indicating that the contents listings are spread over three pages. This is quite important as the different contents pages are separated with numerous pages of advertisements.
The image on the page is of the same subject used on the front cover. This creates consistency throughout the publication because the reader can connect the front page to the contents of the magazine. This image is a mid shot, therefore showing much more of the subject. The professional and political theme has been carried on through the colour scheme on this page. Although it is not the same as the front cover, it is black, grey and white, which mirrors he colours used as a mark of the American recession, which many of the target readership should be able to relate to. The background of the page is white, which creates a dramatic contrast between the black font and the rest of the page. The page also has a grey ‘V’ in the background, the signature identification of the magazine. This ‘V’ is obscured by the image of Barack Obama, whose attire matches the colour scheme of the page, with his grey tie, white shirt and black suit. Obama is smiling in this image, therefore creating an inviting atmosphere. The image has been place slightly off centre on the page to allow space for the contents listings.
On this contents page, the listings have been divided into sections, features and fashion, and the titles of these sections are in a different typeface. A serif font has been used, which is much softer than the sans serif font used on the rest of the page. The page numbers are in bold black font and the titles of the features are in bold grey font. This allows them to become points of reference so that the reader doesn’t need to read the entire listings to find what they are looking for.

Contents Page 2/3

The second contents page of this issue is similar to the first. The title of the page, contents, is in the same broken format as it was on the first contents page; however, on this occasion it is smaller and positioned at the top left of the page. This shows progression from the first contents page. The image used on this page slightly obscures the contents title, which is a convention of music magazines. This contents page is similar to the first contents page in terms of colour scheme, however this page seems slightly darker as the image is in grey scale rather than full colour, which makes the image colder and more striking. Yet again the image is positioned in order to allow space for the contents listings. The image is of a well-known American basketball player, and further emphasises Vibe’s values of including sport in their publication.
The contents listing are of the same layout as the previous contents page, however in this page there appears to be some divisional lines, which separate different topics. This may be to indicate that although the subjects are under the same main title, they are not related in any way.

Contents Page 3/3

The third and final contents page is of a slightly different layout to the previous two contents pages. The first thing that is apparent is that the page has been split horizontally across the page, roughly to the ratio of 3:1. The top of the page, which is the bigger section, is the final section of the contents page and the smaller section is information on the magazine website and its features.
The next difference that stands out is the use of image. In the contents pages previous the main image has been either cropped so that they background is edited out or made the image the background itself. On this page however, the image is it’s own entity and stands alone from the contents listings. This image is in the style of an old photograph and reflects the family values that this publication holds. The image is of a woman and a young girl and the positioning of the subjects indicates the type of warmth that is associated with the love a mother gives to her child. At the same time, the magazines principles on fashion are also reflected because in the top right hand corner of the image is a list of the model’s attire. Therefore, depending on the audience’s connotation of the image, this page could be either family or fashion orientated.
To the left of the image is the repeated ‘contents’ title, in the same format as the other pages and is the same reduced size as on the second page.
The bottom quarter of the contents page is surrounded by a very bold border, made up of 5 think lines. One of the lines is broken to allow space for some information about blogging on the magazine site. By doing this, they have made the design more interesting and been able to add information without cluttering the page. The title of this section, Vibe.com, has been placed on a vertical axis, making more space of the rest of the text. It is in the biggest font in this section and is followed by a colon, suggesting to the reader that all the following information is about this site. The most important arts of the text are in bold red font and are followed by a colon and more information on the topic.
On each of the contents pages there is a small paragraph stating whom the photographer and the stylist was for the photograph. This placed either as close to or on the photograph. It is the smallest text on the page and is meant to take up minimal space.