How is the set music magazine studied across the framework, and how does it target its audience?
Component 02 Section A: the set music magazine (MOJO), studied for media language (the conventions of a magazine cover and contents), representation, industries (the publisher, funding by sales and advertising) and audiences (a specialist, knowledgeable target reader).
An OCR GCSE Media Studies guide to the Component 02 music magazine set product, MOJO: the conventions of a magazine cover, how it constructs meaning and represents music culture, its publisher and funding, and its specialist target reader.
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
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What this dot point is asking
Component 02 Section A studies a set music magazine, MOJO. This dot point covers the media language of a magazine (the conventions of a cover and contents), the representation of music culture, the industries dimension (the publisher, funding by sales and advertising), and the audiences dimension (a specialist, knowledgeable target reader). The magazine is the clearest example of a specialist product targeting a precise audience. Always confirm the current set music magazine with OCR for your series.
The conventions of a magazine
The media language task is to read the conventions as meaning-making: the masthead's style connotes the brand's identity (authority, heritage); the cover star targets a specific reader; the cover lines and tone signal the kind of read on offer. A specialist music magazine constructs an identity of expertise and passion for music.
Representation and identity
The magazine represents music, artists and music culture.
- The choice of cover star and featured artists represents a particular kind of music and culture.
- The tone and content (in-depth features, heritage) construct a representation of music as something to be taken seriously by a knowledgeable fan.
- These choices carry values about what music matters and who the reader is.
Industries and audiences
The industries dimension covers the publisher and funding.
- The magazine is published by a company that owns the title (and often other media).
- It is funded by a mix of sales (cover price) and advertising (adverts targeted at its readers), so it must attract enough readers and advertisers to be viable.
The audiences dimension is the clearest in the course.
- The target reader is specialist and knowledgeable, often an older music fan (defined by demographics such as age and class, and psychographics such as a passion for music and a valuing of heritage and authenticity).
- Every choice (cover star, features, tone) is made to appeal to that reader.
Examples in context
How this is examined
Component 02 Section A asks media language, representation, industries and audiences questions on the set music magazine, with audience targeting heavily examined. The reliable move is to name a convention, read its meaning, define the target reader using both categorisations, and link the conventions to the reader and the magazine's identity.
Try this
Q1. Explain the conventions of a magazine cover. [3 marks]
- What the marker wants. A masthead, a central image (cover star), cover lines, a colour scheme, and a barcode and price, arranged to construct the magazine's identity and attract its reader (AO1).
Q2. Explain how the music magazine set product targets its audience. [6 marks]
- Cue. Define the specialist reader (demographics and psychographics), then analyse how the cover star, tone and features appeal to that reader (AO1 and AO2).
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of OCR exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
OCR J200/02 20226 marksExplain how the conventions of a magazine cover are used to create meaning in the music magazine set product. Refer to one example. (Component 02 Section A, AO1 and AO2.)Show worked answer →
A Component 02 media language question on the set music magazine (AO1 and AO2). Markers reward conventions named and linked to meaning and audience.
Method: identify the conventions of a magazine cover (masthead, central image, cover lines, colour scheme, barcode and price) and analyse them in the set product. The masthead's established style connotes authority and heritage; the choice of cover star targets the specialist reader; cover lines promising in-depth features signal a serious read.
Six marks reward conventions identified in the set product and linked to the meaning they create and the target reader, rather than a generic description of magazine covers.
OCR J200/02 20234 marksExplain how the music magazine set product is funded. (Component 02, media industries, AO1.)Show worked answer →
A short Component 02 industries question (mostly AO1) on funding. Markers want the funding model identified and briefly explained.
Method: explain that a magazine like the set product is funded by a mix of sales (cover price, copies sold) and advertising (adverts within the magazine targeted at its readers). The publisher owns the title and other media, and the funding model means the magazine must attract enough readers and advertisers to be viable.
Four marks reward the mixed funding model (sales plus advertising) identified and briefly explained, ideally linked to the specialist audience that makes the title attractive to relevant advertisers. The common slip is naming only one source of funding.
Related dot points
- Component 02 Section A: the set pair of music videos, studied for media language (performance and narrative conventions, editing to the beat, star image), representation (gender, identity), and how they construct meaning and an artist's image for the audience.
An OCR GCSE Media Studies guide to the Component 02 set music videos: the conventions of the music video form, how they construct meaning and a star image, the representation of gender and identity, and how the pair is compared.
- Component 02 Section A: the set radio product (BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge), studied for media language (audio codes, the conventions of music radio), industries (public service broadcasting, the BBC's remit and funding) and audiences (who it targets and how it reaches them).
An OCR GCSE Media Studies guide to the Component 02 radio set product, BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge: the conventions of music radio, the BBC as a public service broadcaster, and how the product targets and reaches its audience.
- Media language: how the codes and conventions of media products (technical, visual, audio and written codes, and the conventions of form and genre) communicate meaning, and how producers select and combine them to construct a preferred reading for the audience.
How OCR GCSE Media Studies expects you to use codes and conventions in the media language framework: the difference between codes and conventions, the main types of code, and how producers combine them to construct meaning and position the audience.
- Media audiences: how producers identify, categorise and target audiences (by demographics such as age, gender and social class, and by psychographics such as lifestyle and values), and how products are constructed to appeal to and reach a target audience.
An OCR GCSE Media Studies guide to targeting and categorising audiences in the framework: demographics and psychographics, how producers identify a target audience, and how products are constructed to appeal to and reach that audience.
- Media industries: who owns media companies (including conglomerates and concentrated ownership), how products are funded (advertising, subscription, licence fee, public funding), and how ownership and funding models shape the products that are made and who they serve.
An OCR GCSE Media Studies guide to ownership and funding in the media industries framework: conglomerates and concentrated ownership, the main funding models (advertising, subscription, licence fee, public funding), and how they shape the products made.
Sources & how we know this
- OCR GCSE Media Studies (J200) specification — OCR (2023)