The Gentlewomen - audience and industry Flashcards
(37 cards)
What are the different types of magazines in terms of ownership structure? What type of magazine is the gentlewomen
mainstream: owned by conglomerates and focused on profits
independents: owned by small groups/individuals and focuses on people’s stories and creativity
Gentlewomen is an independent magazine
Who owns the gentlewomen?
It’s independently published and distributed by Dutch publishers Gert Jonkers and Jop van Bennekom
When was the gentlewomen launched?
2010
Where is the magazine based?
London based - associated with trendy Soho
How many times a year is the magazine published?
twice a year
How can Hesmondhalgh and cultural industries theory be applied to the gentlewomen?
Risk:
- There is a higher level of risk from the gentlewomen magazine because they target a niche audience and have a narrower audience reach by excluding men from target audience
Risk averse:
- However, biannual distribution ensures a higher cover price covers costs of production and a high quality product, also containing star power.
- Given they are independent, they have more control over content, allowing for creativity which fulfils the needs of a niche audience
- they target an affluent audience with more disposable income - they may even join the gentlewomen club
What’s the cover price of the gentlewomen?
10 pounds (used to be 8)
What are the revenue streams of the magazine?
Cover price
Subscriptions of the magazine
Brand partnerships - sponsors
Events
Advertising
Social media content - for example Instagram
How many copies do they sell on average per edition?
100,000
Who is the gentlewomen’s sister publication and what’s the significance of this?
Fantastic man magazine - this increases audience appeal and reach, reducing risk
How are magazines regulated?
Both the gentlewomen and GQ are under jurisdiction of IPSO
Why is IPSO not as powerful as OFCOM?
- they are less powerful in terms of regulation before publication and primarily deal with complaints after publication
-there are no age restrictions on Magazines in the UK - except pornographic ones
What can IPSO do if a company fails to meet the editor’s code of practice?
impose a fine of up to 1 million
Which type of regulation as according to Livingstone and Lunt may be more appropriate for the gentlewomen?
Consumer based regulation, focusing on consumer choice. This is likely to be because the audience is slightly older (given the career-based content) and so less vulnerable and the magazine is sophisticated so unlikely to publish anything inappropriate anyway with the main aim to be inspiring women
How does Curan and Seaton apply to the magazine?
They argue that media has become more concentrated, appealing to the mass audiences, limiting creativity and representation.
However the gentlewomen is an independent magazine and so doesn’t have to benefit any commercial interests/profits. They pride themselves in creativity, shown by subversion of magazine conventions and look to champion minorities, including women and black people. They therefore subvert their theory (although the gentlewomen is ultimately still based on the drive for profit).
What are the marketing appeals of the magazine based on?
- The ethical movement veil in an age of consumerism
- Championing of minorities
- Feminist empowerment and authenticity
- Focus on print - response to ‘internet fatigue
What is the gentlewomen’s internet presence like?
- The website has a minimalist approach consistent with the magazine, showing convergence, but seeks to invite consumers to subscribe to a regular newsletter and gives information on ‘club get-togethers’.
- In essence, it gives enough to the readers to make them interested but little enough that they still feel a need to buy the magazine to known more info.
- It also features collaborations with renowned individuals, providing synergy as it promotes stars and the magazine; it gives the magazine acclaim by promoting these stars.
- Finally, it has a shop selling merchandise, tickets to events, subscriptions and individual magazine copies
What % of their readers are in the UK?
51%
What’s the tagline of the magazine?
‘a fabulous magazine for modern women of style and purpose’
What’s been happening to the print magazine industry in recent years?
It has struggled with the move online with print in long term decline and digital sales not making up for this
Which magazines have struggled most in print sale decline and which have stayed more resilient?
Men’s and music magazines (89% and 90% decline between 2017 and 2021) have been hard hit by visual platforms like Instagram while news and current affairs magazines have stayed more resilient - these accounted for 60% of magazine subscriptions in 2021. Women’s magazines have only fallen in that time by 45%
What has happened to sales revenue in the magazine industry as a whole since 2012?
In 2012, magazine revenue was £880m, but in 2023, it was only £205m. In the same time, digital revenue had only increased by £100m
What has happened to the number of magazines circulated in the UK since 2000?
In 2000, 1.6bn were circulated. By 2021, this was down to 565m (with a clear drop during the pandemic)
What % of consumers say they think magazines are trustworthy?
91%
