Unit 1 Fact Sheet Rhys Thomas-Berry

Contents Page Analysis

Column layout
Contents title

Section heading

Multiple images

Layout of articles

Issue information
Contents title
The contents title is conventionally always at the top of the page and is the largest
text on the page. It is used to indicate the purpose of what is on certain pages to the
audience so they can get an idea of what they would like to read first. It also has
bolder text to stand out more on the page.
In BBC Top Gear magazine, the contents title is located within the middle of the
page where it is in a smaller text than what is above it as it highlights the word
October to show the date when this issue of Top Gear was released. The image on
the backdrop being a road signifies to the audience the genre of the magazine which
is repetition from the front cover. It is located at the top so that it is easily visible for
the audience and the audience can easily find the content that they are most
interested in. This is unconventional as the contents title is in a smaller font to almost
everything else on the page, it is also unconventional as it is not located at the top of
the page which it normally would be.

Image of front cover

The image on the front cover is usually repeated on the contents page but not very
big. They do this to reinforce to the audience that the magazine is completely about
what it is stated to be about.

In BBC Top Gear, there is no use of this as there is no images on the contents page
at all. There is use of this from other magazines within the same genre who are rivals
with Top Gear. In their contents page they include all the things Top Gear include but
add the image of the front cover. This reinforces the idea of the audience being able
to gain a clear idea of what they will be reading about and that the magazine is
completely what it is stated to be about.

Issue information
The issue information is usually smaller than the ‘contents’ but usually positioned
near it. It usually includes the issue number, month, year etc. It highlights the
information needed to know about the overall issue
The issue information within BBC Top Gear is located in the middle of the page as it
shows when the magazine is released, it is located in the middle so that it gains the
attention of the audience as it is not located with any of the other text so the
audience becomes more intrigued by this. It is located in the middle of the page
where it says in a large, bold font the word ‘October’ which was the release date of
this issue.

Multiple Images
Multiple images are usually used to illustrate the article on the page. Usually they are
positioned together and will be interesting with a relevance of mise en scene that
signifies the genre of magazine to the audience.
In BBC Top Gear, the images are all over the contents page as there is an image of
a road in a desert setting and on the page over from that with additional content
there is multiple images of newly released cars and it contains information about
those vehicles and leads the audience to that page to learn more about it. The
reason why multiple images are used is because it gains the attention of the
audience and intrigues them to find out more about the vehicles used within the
images. The reason Top Gear do this is because they are using images which
appeal to the audience instead of just having writing which may not be an effective
way of gaining the audience’s attention, this is more enjoyable for the audience to
read through. They do this so the audience can also gain a visual idea of what
content will happen rather than just constantly reading

Page number and captions on images

Page numbers and captions on images are usually used to link them to an article
and used to make it clear to the audience where the content is as some fans may be
more interested in motorbikes and some to cars so it highlights exactly where that
content is so it is more beneficial to the audience.
BBC Top Gear use page numbers and captions on images on all pages and on the
contents page as it is made visible at the bottom of the page where it tells us the
page number, release date and more and where there are images, they always write
a small caption above to make evident to the audience what it may be referring too
to give them a clearer idea. This is made obvious on the contents page mostly as
above most of the images there is additional information for the audience to read
through and gain more of a sense and idea about the content before the continue to
read. On the bottom of the page there will be a page number so that the audience
can locate the content they desire.

Column Layout
The column layout is used to create a formal structure and order to allow the
audience to use and navigate around the page easily, conventionally there is three
columns to a page and all structured within the same manner. The column layout in
this issue of Top Gear is relatively towards the top of the page where the titles and
information is laid out in the form of a column. They use this to gain audience
attention by not using the same font and layout throughout the whole thing. It also
helps to create a larger amount of space so that the audience can benefit from
having a better idea of where more content is and can read information about the
content on that page.

Repetition of masthead
The repetition of the masthead is the largest piece of text on this page and is usually
near the ‘contents’ title. It is the largest text as on the front cover the masthead is
always the largest so it is being repeated within the contents page too.
The repetition of the masthead is used at the very top of the contents page where
the main logo for Top Gear that is used on the front cover has been repeated, this is
used to gain the attention of the audience and to make sure that the contents page
looks good and intriguing to the audience. The use of the repetition is located in the
top right of the page where it says BBC Top Gear in a puff like shape. This is used to
not completely draw the audience’s attention away from the content but to let them
know that the masthead logo is there.

Page number and additional information

The page number and additional information is usually always at the bottom of the
page and smaller in the outer corners, it sometimes has issue information or maybe
a masthead or could be both.
The page number and additional information for Top Gear is usually used at the
bottom of the page so that it does not gain the complete attention of the audience but
it is made noticeable to them, they don’t want it to gain the full attention of the
audience so that they can focus on the more important text on the page. The more
important text is the content and where it is being located. The page numbers being
visible is extremely important as this is how the audience can find the page of what
content they would like to read and see but the page numbers being small doesn’t
completely remove their attention from the main content.

Layout of articles
The layout of articles is the page numbers first followed by the actual article and the
title is in a bigger font, capital letters or different colour to the main body text and
gives more information of the article in a simpler font to the rest.
The layout of articles used in Top Gear is in the mid-section of the contents page
and used in different sized text, different font as this adds more interest for the
audience so the entire thing isn’t boring and the viewers can enjoy the magazine.
They are located in a column format so that the audience can easily see each
individual see each individual piece of content. It is laid out this specific way so that it
is appealing to the audience and the use of including the page numbers, details
about the content itself, the title and font intrigues the audience.

Section headings
Section heading is the text used to separate the actual article into sections and helps
create order for consumers and is usually linked to the regular and feature content of
that magazine. They are used to separate content into sections, into different type of
media and content. Section headings make the content within the magazine more
easily readable as it is grouped.
The section heading used in Top Gear orders the regular and feature content into
different sections so the audience can gain a clear idea of where the usual content
will be and where the new stuff will also be. This gains their attention as they will
know where everything is and where they can enjoy most throughout the magazine.
The feature content usually is larger or slightly spaced out from the regular content
as it is specific to this issue and most likely won’t pop up again and the regular
content will still be made obvious but they focus on highlighting the feature content.

House style
The house style is the main colour, style, font and theme of the magazine itself.
Depending on what magazine it is, the house style will be different.
The house style for BBC Top Gun is mainly the colours black, white and whatever
colour is related to each specific piece of content as on most of the front covers the
main colour is blue so they always link it into the magazine and white and black is
used for the text so the audience can see and read it more clearly. The reason that
the house style becomes so important is because it gains the audience attention
much easier than the content does as they instantly become intrigued by the mix of
fonts, text size and colours.