I have used reviews from shopping websites and from costumer blogs etc instead of official/published pages.
This is because I could unfortunately not find an official magazine reviews.
Due to the cult audience of diabetic magazines it was harder to find reviews for these. As a result some of the magazines contain less information/text.
Mari Claire
(4.4/5)
“It’s a great magazine for the modern woman.
Marie Claire has been around for 15 years and in its time has won 27 awards, including best designed consumer magazine of the year award in 2003, best beauty pages in 1991 and best international magazine brand in 1994.
Every few months you will find a free gift with the magazine, most recently these have been a set of different sized makeup bags and a tote bag which i have found extremely useful.
The magazine boasts a huge range of celebrity covers, every month there’s a celeb on the front.
The magazines are mostly for makeup and skincare products, and for the latest lines from fashion houses such as Dior and Gucci.
About a third of the magazine pages are taken up by adverts, but that's where they get most of their funding from.
Quite frequently you get free samples of products attached to their adverts, such as sachets of shampoo or skin cream, so that you can try them out before you rush off to buy them; they’re great for saving for your holidays because they take up no space at all and can’t leak.
You can subscribe via a form inside every issue of the magazine, or online, but if you subscribe using a code inside the magazine on the subscription advert then you'll be able to take advantage of special offers such as discounted rates and free gifts.
(www.shopping.com/reviews)
Cosmopolitan
(3.6/5)
Pros:Good value, easy to use, great design.
Cons:Ads towards the end
I have been buying Cosmopolitan regularly for about 3 years now.
The magazine, at first glance, looks thick and full of articles, covering a wide range of subjects.
Unfortunately, when actually reading the magazine, every other page is an advert. I know that magazines have to make money by using adverts, but considering that we pay almost £2.50 for each copy, I don't see the need for ALL the ads.
The articles in Cosmo are interesting, useful, well laid out, and easy to read.
A lot of them do seem to be aimed at 30 something women who don't have enough sex though, with tips to do this, and how to do that.
Cosmo is a good magazine if you want to buy a magazine to kill time with, or want some good fashion tips, but I wouldn't recommend buying it for a serious read.
(www.shopping.com/reviews)
Teen Vogue
(4.4/5)
Teen Vogue has high fashion editorials and articles, also including articles about people who work in fashion and are in the fashion industry.
I think the general purpose of the magazine (if you include its website and its recently published Teen Vogue Handbook) is to direct you the right way if you're looking to break into the fashion industry, as I am.
The editorials have nothing under about $200, which is ridiculous. This is a teen magazine, people, and 15 year old girls cannot afford $300 blouses and $250 shoes.
The reason I buy this magazine is to read it and use it for what I call "inspiration." Meaning, I search everywhere for the items I particularly like in cheaper shops or eBay. Otherwise, I take the general "vibe" of the outfits presented and apply it to my seasonal purchases.
For me, it is a magazine to be bought for a fun read, a link into what's "in" in the industry right now, etc.
(www.reviewcentre.com)
Seventeen
(3.3/5)
Seventeen is a popular magazine just for teenage girls. It covers the topics that interest teens - fashion, beauty, celebrity interviews.
The magazine visits a college campus and highlights the hangouts and fashion scene. The magazine also lists some information of each college. It's a fun way to introduce teens to college life. I’d like to see more serious content on these colleges.
I didn't care for Guru's "Mally Rally" piece on celebrity make-up artists. The makeup is over done; teens will look clownish if they imitate the looks. But I do like the prices on the makeup.
I like the Answer Boy & Girl who answer behaviour questions about the opposite sex. Readers aren't told who they are. Are they one person or two? Are they teens? Readers don't know but the answers are helpful and right on the mark. The less serious two-page Trama Rama rates teens' most embarrassing moments. Girls age 13-15 send in their stories. They are very humorous to read and help teens to put their own mishaps into perspective.
I think Seventeen is one of the better teen magazines. But, I don't recommend Seventeen because of its over - emphasis on materialism. There is too much importance placed on looks to get and keep a guy. Instead of building up the self-esteem of girls the magazine seems to say unless you wear this expensive item, you won't feel good about yourself.
(www.shopping.com/reviews)
Diabetes Health
Diabetes Health tries hardest to be interesting and leading edge. Sometimes, like the city where it was originally published, San Francisco
The magazine tries to avoid outright quack cures, but is much more receptive to alternative treatments than its competitors are.
(www.mendosa.com/magazines.htm)
Diabetes Health is an essential resource for anyone living with diabetes.
Each monthly issue contains expert advice, cutting-edge research, unbiased product reviews, mouth-watering low-carb and low-fat recipes -- plus special support for the newly diagnosed and new treatment options for everyone.
(www.magazine-agent.com/diabetes-health/magazine)
Diabetes Forecast
Overall rating: 4/5
Ad relevance: 3/5
Content quality: 4/5
Design quality: 3/5
Photo quality: 3/5
“Well written.”
“I would like the fonts to be bigger”
“I like the Diabetes Forecast magazine because it is informative and easy reading.”
(www.magazines.com/product/diabetes-forecast#info)
Diabetes Living
Overall rating: 4.5/5
Ad relevance: 3.5/5
Content quality: 5/5
Design quality: 4.5/5
Photo quality: 5/5
“I'd like to see more recipes in Diabetic Living magazine aimed at singles or couples. The information in this magazine is A1. I would like to see a discounted source for the magazine because $19.97 is a bit high when I am used to $4.69 yearly subscriptions to other popular magazines. All in all, a great value and I am going to purchase.”
“The issue I looked at in the waiting room was great.”
“It gives Many ways to accept your condition.”
“I spotted Diabetic Living magazine in my doctor's office and became very interested in all it had to offer. I have been fighting my diagnosis for several years now but I finally have to admit that I need to be more aware of my health and be more careful in what I eat and to get more exercise.”
(www.magazines.com/product/diabetic-living)
Balance
Balance is a lively and entertaining full-colour lifestyle magazine, giving you all the latest news and research on diabetes.
There are celebrity interviews, recipes, competitions, and regular free supplements on hot topics.
(www.uniquemagazines.co.uk/magazine-subscriptions-344724/subscribe-to-balance-magazine-subscription)
Audience Theories
In teen/young adult magazines, a theory that can be applied is moral panic. In this situation the audience is bombarded with images of the ideal body, the ideal shape, by the media. In response woman and girls around the world face problems such as low self-esteem, poor body image, and even conditions as serious as bulimia and anorexia as a result of this. People worry that the media is to blame for these dramatic health risk and must change, and many campaigns have been set up to fight this cause.
Also related to this is the hypodermic injection theory, where the idea that woman and girls need to conform to the perfect body to feel accepted and good about themselves has been injected into the passive audience reading these magazines. Many argue that this is not the case as audiences are not passive, however many vulnerable audiences are. These include young girls, much like many teenagers reading the magazines, and self conscious females, who may also be a large part of these magazine audiences.
The hypodermic injection theory can also be applied to the advertisement in both the diabetic and the teen/young adult magazines. In both, advertisement pages take up a huge part of the magazine; audiences flicking through the pages will subconsciously take in all these advertisements, and perhaps even consciously be interested by them and by the product being sold.
Diabetic Population
Diabetic magazines often sell worldwide thanks to the internet. People now subscribe online, having the magazine downloaded to their computer each week, or viewing it on an exclusive website. Of course the magazines are also posted to peoples homes if they choose.
In the UK alone there are currently over 2 million diabetics, and in America
Many diabetics subscribe to magazines, though very few younger diabetics subscribe to truly helpful diabetic magazines. (This can be seen in the average age of the diabetic magazines shown earlier, or in the questionnaire example.)
By aiming my magazine at a younger female target audience, basing it on popular teen/women magazines, the magazine could be very successful at not only bringing across vital information, but producing large circulation numbers.
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