E-252 Print Magazine Analysis

Your analysis of a popular magazine may not provide answers to all of the questions below, but
considering each question will lead you in the right direction. You may open this document and
type your answers directly after each question. Make your responses visually distinct by using the
highlight tool, CAPS, bold, italics, or a different colored font. Save your document and post it in
the Drop Box on I-Learn.

Genre. This information is closely connected to target audience (below).
What type of magazine is this? Mark which one applies, or write in the category:
o News
o Sports
o Outdoor
o Education
o Political
o Creative Writing

o Craft
o Home/Family
o Business
o Technology
o Music
o Entertainment
o Other: ___Culture_____
Target Audience. (Answering the questions below will help you identify the target
audience.)
o What are the demographics? How old are they?
Under 18 18-25 25-32 x 32-40 40-55 55-65 65+
o Gender? Predominately male Predominately female Both genders X
o How much money do they have?
Under $15, 000 X $15-30,000 $30-45,000 $45-60,000 $60,000+
o How do they see themselves, or how do they want to be seen by others? (Are
they professionals? Adventurous? In step with the times?) How do you
know? Give at least two examples, either from an article or from an
advertisement: It tries to cultivate a rising Hispanic audience and caters in
English and Spanish. They have certain articles that are completely in English
and then others which are in Spanishbut also, there are a few that are in
both. In the articles that they write they deal with pop culture on the rise, and
challenge politics, but it is all from the perspective of the less heard. It has
really great writing. They are not averse to publish something of literary
significance and then spout off on some political event in the same issue. It
most definitely is seeking to capture an audience from 25 and up. I have
noticed that the marketing on the site is actually for music and plants. Im not
quite sure what that means.

o What do they know? How educated are they? How can you tell?
High School Diploma Associates BachelorsX MastersX Doctorate The
writing is not simple stuff. It is deep and complex.
o What is their attitude towards life? __The attitude for the magazine on one
hand is fight against the machines! and on the other inform yourselves,
become the faces of our future._
o Do they have definite political leanings? (Predominantly Democrat?
Republican? Independent?) Give at least one example:
_There seems to be a democrat feel. It is this whole liberal feeling thing. Here
is an excerpt: In the present volume, dedicated to addictions, we approach a
problem somewhat related to this subject. Indeed, before the question, What
does the soul want? James Hillman responds, Fictions that cure. They
constantly raise their voice to make themselves noticed and free.
o What issues and activities interest them most? List at least three:
(1) _______Politics___________ (2) _____Humanities___________
(3)_________Culture____
o Are they learning new skills or do they already know a great deal about the
magazines main topic? As I read through the issues, it seems as though they
are getting better writers to contribute all of the time.
Advertising. Look at the magazines advertising.
Who will buy the products and services advertised in this magazine? Men or women
or both? _Its food products that I think women would buy, but then there is music
that both would. _There isnt a ton of advertisement, though._
If the magazine is nonprofit (with a .org URL), to what other organizations or sites is
it linked? ___________________not applicable________ ___________________________________
In what activities or products is the audience most interested? (List at least two.)
_______________Art___________ ____Culture______________________
Types of Articles. Look at the types of articles published.
What type of person would be interested in these articles? Describe them:
Young people are the majority of readers, but there seems to be a following that
goes late into the 30s. Its about finding yourself and getting that self out.
How much does the reader know? Are articles for novices? or experts?
Honestly, I think it varies. It isnt so clear-cut. Some are simpler than others. They
have their messages. They are trying to speak out against injustices, but also
highlighting the beautiful. For the most part, one would need to be more of an
expert.
What do articles emphasize?
o The latest and hottest?
o The tried and true? X
o The practical?
Writing Style. Look at the writing style used in the articles. To answer the
following questions read at least two articles from beginning to end. List the
authors/titles/dates here:
Article 1:___Tedi Lopez Mills/Killing Time/quarterly issue 14________________
Article 2: __Tim Kelly/ Two Poems/ quarterly issue 14_______________________________
What do readers have to know to understand these articles? __Readers must have
one thing onlyexperience. The more experience they have the easier it will be to
connect with the experiences of others. __________________
Do they have to know a specialized vocabulary? If yes, what kind? Give at least two
examples from articles:
Their language is just like anyone elses. I mean, obviously its professional, but its
on a deeper cultural level.
(1)___________Not Applicable_________________
(2) ______Not Applicable________________________________________

Copy a paragraph from an online article and paste it into Word. In the Review
feature, do a spell check and then enable Readability. What is the reading grade
level? ___The reading grade level is
12.0_______________________________________________________
Are intended readers well educated, or are articles written on a fairly simple level?
Copy and paste 25-50-word direct quotations from each article to illustrate the
writing style from two different articles:
Article 1:_____ In the previous issue we took on the myths resembling the vast
constructions of the spirit that are the foundation of culture. In the present volume,
dedicated to addictions, we approach a problem somewhat related to this subject.
Indeed, before the question, What does the soul want? James Hillman responds,
Fictions that cure.________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Article 2: ________ But as his stay on the mountain is drawn out, Castorp sees his
pleasure fade away: smoking becomes more laborious to him; it leaves a bad taste in his
mouth. And this obligatory abstinence is the sign that hes come down with the spirit of
the disease itself, that hes now a member of its sect: exhausted and nauseated, I
threw the cigar as far away as
possible.________________________________________________________________
______________
I dont think that the writing is for everyone. It has an intended audiencethe abstract
minded, and the creative mind.
________________________________________________________________________________________________
What is the relationship between writer and reader? How are readers treated by
writersas close friends?X Fellow professionals?X Novices?
I think that the writing is always colloquial. That isnt to say its informal, but it
often uses middle diction.
Do writers assume any shared values or attitudes in their readers? If yes, what are
they? _They are sharing life experiences that they hope can connect with another
life experience, especially with cultures.__________________
How is that reflected in their writing? ______________The writing isnt telling me
anything, it is either an informative rant, or a reflection of a day gone by.
What does the style and tone and level of diction of the writing tell us about the
target audience? _It tells me that this is for those who want to be enlightened and
taken to the next level of their intellect._______________________________
Audience: Who will read what I write? Describe the audience for your
newsletter. Include specifics of age, gender, demographics,
education, economic status, and interests.
The audience is the latino community, predominantly on the east coast
because many there are Dominican. I am trying to reach people that have
some estranged relationship. I am not simply speaking to Hispanics. I do
reach out to them because of my use of Spanish and otherwise. I dont
demean them. It is my culture too. I just bring about many of our
similarities and interests.
Purpose: Why should they read what I write? Is your purpose to
educate teachers, recruit members, inform customers?
They should read what I write because it is about hope. It is about
acceptance. It is about taking the good out of the bad and enjoying it. It
isnt easy to deal with my subject matter (which I wrote specifically for
this class and assignment). It is hard to even consider it. But the purpose
is to identify that struggle and eliminate the walls it creates.
Message: What do I have to say to them?
The whole true story The Good Liar is with regard to the sad truth that
not all kids grow up with parents. When both dont raise a child, there
are always questions and frustrations. This is part of the reason it was so
important to write about this. I get it. This is for them.
Style and tone: How can I best communicate?
I have used middle diction to reach as many persons as I can.
Admittedly, I have taken my culture and have used it to reach more
Hispanics. This works more for me because the magazine targets
hispano-americans.

The Good Liar


Its a strange feeling to look at a man you never had the pleasure meeting and know him
perfectly. The sentiment is doubled when that man has a title that hes never championed, only to
finally share it with me for five dayspreserved in vinegar. Te amo, Papi. I love you, Son.
He looks over at my little brother, Dale un abrazo y un beso a tu hermano mayor. Franchetty,
my younger brother, another dear stranger, with familiar eyesmy eyesholds me for a
moment. His long arms pressing down were like the sealing of an important letter in an unsealed
envelopea message written to me. It settled wrong that in my own country, with my own
people, amongst mi propria familia, my own family, I felt foreign. I loved them. More than any
young man in my circumstance should havemy brother because it was out of his thirteen year
old hands and my father because he was a pathetic man, with a good heart.
For five days I sat with him, drinking batidas de lechosa, fresa, y pia. Some of my
favorite drinks I had while breathing in the sea salt air. While we drank my father lied his lies.
Lies he told himself, regularly, believing. But, for the sake of the music in the air, I let him lie to
me, and then danced to them, so that I could feel the soul and rhythm of the Dominican. The one
I never became. Con Dios adelante, mi hijo, With God willing, my son. His honest, good-
willed lieswith God willing. Hed ask me about my life, the one he helped create but didnt
help raise. He would tell me he wanted to be there, but it didnt work out, that he was deported
and that he and my mother couldnt figure it out. I could only remember the truth: when he was
deported, I was eleven. And that infidelity business would be a tough one for any woman to
figure out. The thing is, I wanted to believe every one of his pathetic excuses. He had fooled
himself, and his earnestness would make it difficult for anyone to not want to believe. I pitied
him.
Still, every night he would bring traditional food for my wife to try. He had given us his
room, made me breakfast and stopped wherever I liked, as often as I liked. He did everything so
willingly. There was no question whether he loved me or not. I could feel it. I had just never felt
it before. He was trying to return as my father and make up for lost time.
So, when time came I didnt call him a liar, out of love. I wanted to tell him for every
year my mother worked from eight to ten. I wanted to tell him for everyday I ever met a kid with
a dad and how it made me feel. Not wanted.
I imagined my father would defend himself a littlelie someand then hed quiet down
until he fell silent. He didnt have a great relationship with his own father. He had been raised
like me. He never used his fathers surname, he used Fernandez, his maiden namedocumented
and all. Same as my brother, Franchy. Same as me. Franchy used Castillo; I used Ruiz. His laugh
was ours as was his fatherless anger and genuine heart. I could see the good in my estranged
father, like I saw it in Franchy and in myself. The only difference had been that I learned to take
pride in my tainted name. My origin. My struggles. My family. I wore them around my neck like
the Catholics wore theirs. I allowed for his name to be attached to my mothersto give his
hope.
On the plane, I thought about that hug and what message my brother mightve left me. I
imagined the words he meant to say. Something like, I havent known you, always, but I have
loved you always. Papi isnt a bad man, just stupid. Love him. It is the same as loving me, and
our people, and our land. Love him. It will change our family. Love him. Looking out the
window of the plane, I think about my people here, and my people in Bostonhandicapped by
no-father syndrome. The wind blows on the palm trees that dance back and forth, the music still
in the air. I think of my brothers quiet message. I whisper back: Franchy, I do. I love that small
pathetic man. He is a good liar. I will hug and kiss him on his neck when he falls. I will let the
prodigal father return.