NME Case Study

A CASE STUDY

BACKGROUND DETAILSIt was first published on the 7th

March,1952.It focused on new British groups that

were emerging at the time. The Beatles and Rolling Stones were seen on

the front cover of NME magazine frequently.Towards the end of the 1960s there was a

rise of the psychedelia genre and the popularity of British groups continued to grow.

The magazine was doing very well as it was selling as many as 200,000 issues per week.

BACKGROUND DETAILSThe name of the magazines ‘NME’

is an acronym of the original name of the magazine ‘New Musical Express’.

It usually promotes new Indie Rock music/artists.

Since its first issue release in 1952, it has grown to become one of the UK's biggest magazine sellers.

NME TODAYFrom the 21st March 1998, the magazine

stopped printing on newsprint, and now has shifted to tabloid size with full, glossy, colour covers.

It is distributed weekly.Each issue costs £2.50.NME sponsors a yearly tour around the

UK for up-and-coming bands.NME also has its own website, awards

show, radio station and had a TV channel which recently closed down in 2012.

TARGET AUDIENCE17 - 30 years old.69% male, 31% female.Those with an interest into new music and

artists and/or people in a band. They would most likely be interested in festivals and concerts.

Are modern, young and enjoy films and technology. They are enthusiastic about new entertainment.

They are dedicated to the magazine as it has in-depth knowledge on music, films and technology.

CONTENTSThe content inside NME magazine

usually includes articles and news on famous Indie Rock artists, album reviews with information on festivals and gigs.

Some artists that feature frequently in NME are: Arctic Monkeys, Paramore, The Horrors, HAIM and My Chemical Romance.

STYLE NME associated itself with the Indie Rock genre and

the iconography that surrounds it, e.g. electric or acoustic guitars, dark, edgy looking make up, etc.

NME magazine contains many images to make it more appealing to the target audience but it is mostly text-heavy.

It has a lot of uppercase text in a large, bold, distressed font.

The colour scheme of the magazine is red, white, black and yellow as they are shown frequently on NME issues. This could be in relation to the male and female readership.

NME favours articles over interviews and this is because the audience are more interested in the music and are prepared to invest time listening to music.

The colour scheme of Black, White and Red features strongly on the cover.

The Indie Rock music genre is presented using the names of famous Indie Rock artists.

The front cover is mainly text-heavy and contains many sell-lines.

NME has articles that use a similar colour scheme (black, red and white) and have both images and text to make it appeal more to the target audience. They usually have images of the artists or shots of them performing.

MODE OF ADDRESSThe mode of address relates to the target

audience by using informal, friendly and casual words that they would use.

The tone of the magazine references that the readership would be a fan of Indie Rock music and uses the mode of address to establish this.

The language used suggests that the target audience are ‘modern’ and would understand the Indie Rock music genre and this would appeal to them.

Indie Rock terminology is used to relate to the target audience as they are fans of the Indie Rock genre.

Friendly mode of address used to make a good relationship between the readership and the magazine.

They use informal and casual words to appeal to the target audience.

MODE OF ADDRESS

Examples of mode of address:‘From the rubble to the Ritz’‘Why Britain’s gone silly for the

lords of the indie dance floor’‘Inside their insane new album’‘Guns, God and 4 million albums

sold’‘20 years on... The legend and

the legacy of nevermind’

OWNERSHIPNME is owned by IPC Media who produce over

60 media brands.They print other magazines such as Marie Claire,

Now and InStyle magazine.IPC Media distributes a number of magazines

that are aimed at audiences who are interested in modern music, recent events and fashion.

They reach all of the UK with their magazines and over 28 million users with their website

IPC Media have a radio station and TV channel that promote music as well.

They have multiple platforms that they use to reach their audiences.