On my lazy Saturday morning with a cup of warm cider in hand, I flipped through an old copy of my favorite magazine, Seventeen. At first I did not connect this to the writing assignment at hand. But as I flipped on through the girly teen stories about makeup tips, boy advice, and "how to make a fashion statement at your next party", I realized the majority of the magazine was advertisements, rather than articles. I counted 87 advertisement pages out of a total of 169. This is about 51% of the total pages in the magazine.
Right of the bat, when the magazine is opened there are seven pages of advertisements of various makeup and clothing companies. After literally counting the advertisements of this edition of Seventeen, I do believe the goal of the magazine is to make money through advertising for other companies.
As consumers, we like to think that our entertainers are producing simply to entertain us. However, I do not think this is the case. Flipping through a magazine, half of the pages were telling me to buy some product I most likely do not need, rather than properly entertaining me. We live in a society of consumers. Everyone always wants something they cannot have. This comes from the constant bombarding of companies telling us we need a "special" mascara, that is somehow different and better than the five others that we have.
At first, the goal of magazines was to entertain readers. However, as the opportunity arose to make themselves a way for advertisers to reach a specific group of people, they capitalized. For example, a perfect way for Dillard's to advertise their line of prom dresses for the spring season, was through Seventeen, where a large amount of high school girls were searching for tips on what they should wear.
Of course, Seventeen does in fact effectively entertain readers. This makes money as well. It keeps readers subscribing once a year. If the actual magazine was not entertaining, the company would not have a platform for any advertisement. Because so many people do enjoy the magazine, Pantene will pay to have two pages advertising a new and improved conditioner right next to an article about how to "minimize split ends". As consumers we need to realize that magazines, as well as other mediums of entertainment are nothing more than companies trying to make money. The goal is no longer just to keep the reader coming back for more, but to also keep other companies paying to advertise their product.
Kendall, let's look at your last paragraph. There are some really good and not-so-good parts of this paragraph. First, you start by acknowledging that magazines are, in fact, entertaining. This is important not to forget. The magazine's entertainment value is essential for attracting sponsors. Ultimately, you wisely conclude that magazines, and the entertainment industry in general, are for-profit agencies. Their sole priority is making money.
ReplyDeleteWhat you do not explore in this paragraph, and I think you should have, is this idea about Pantene advertising right next to the article about "split ends." What do you think about this? You acknowledge that the entertainment media, first and foremost, needs to attract its audience by entertaining it. However, you also identify that the entertainer, in your case Seventeen Magazine, cleverly juxtaposes a Pantene ad and a story about "split ends." Do you think this is a coincidence, and if not, how do you think this decision was made? I have no proof for this, but I wonder the extent to which the corporate advertisers involve themselves in the creative decisions that entertainers (magazines) make. It seems that if they are funding the entertainment source, that they would retain some right to influence the way the entertainment is presented. You do not take this into account.