Introduction
The Cosmopolitan magazine is a widely recognized journal that showcases social topics in pictorial and descriptive forms. The magazine has about 64 global editions, each written in a different language to cater to a diverse target audience (Vicente, 2022). In addition to this Cosmopolitan, Maxim magazine has gained prowess in illustrating issues that affect men through featuring singers, actors, and models. These two magazines are essential as they help families and individuals resolve their concerns. While the two magazines are crucial sources of information, it would be important to analytically evaluate the gender and racial norms outlined, how its audience compares with the featured characters and the stipulated expectations regarding sexuality.
Discussion
Cosmopolitan and Maxim magazines offer crucial information based on gender since they focus on women and men, respectively. The headlines for the two magazines display different values and interests, emphasizing the different target audiences (Vicente, 2022). The cover of the most recent issue of Cosmopolitan features a bright, colorful design with a headline announcing “Crazy Sexy Summer!” (Vicente, 2022). The magazine focuses on topics related to fashion and beauty, with stories about the latest trends, celebrity gossip, and advice about dating and relationships.
For gender and race norms, one of the most common themes in women’s and men’s magazines is the idea of beauty standards. In women’s magazines, the headlines and images all focus on beauty and achieving a certain level of attractiveness. The cover models are often slim and young, with long hair and a toned body. They also often have light skin and can be seen wearing makeup and fashionable clothes. This representation reflects that being attractive and fashionable is important for women and that having light skin and a slim body is desirable (Vicente, 2022). The cover features an image of a model in a bright swimsuit, emphasizing the magazine’s focus on the physical appearance of its readers.
In contrast, the cover of the most recent issue of Maxim features a more subdued design and the headline “The Best Summer Ever!” The magazine’s topics include politics and culture, as well as fashion, but the emphasis is more on the lifestyle of its readers. The headlines and images in this men’s magazine also focus on beauty and masculinity (Denham, 2022). The cover models are often muscular and strong, with chiseled features and toned bodies. They also often have light skin and can be seen wearing trendy clothes and accessories. This reflects the idea that being masculine and fashionable is important for men and that having light skin and a muscular body is desirable.
Cosmopolitan’s content is focused on topics of interest to young women, such as relationships, beauty, and fashion. The magazine features stories about celebrities and advice columns about relationships and sex. On the other hand, Maxim’s content is focused on topics of interest to older men, such as career advice, technology, and culture. The magazine features articles about politics, business, and lifestyle trends (Vicente, 2022). The headlines of the two magazines also reveal their different editorial approaches. Cosmopolitan’s headlines are often upbeat and attention-grabbing, with words like “sexy” and “crazy.” Moreover, the recent issues of both Cosmopolitan and Maxim demonstrate the different target audiences of the two magazines. The headlines and content of the two publications reveal their different editorial approaches and values, emphasizing their different readerships.
There is a noticeable difference when comparing the target audience to the people on the covers and inside. The target audience of the women’s magazine is typically younger women, while the target audience of the men’s magazine is typically older men. It is reflected in the types of models featured on the covers and the pages of magazines. Women’s magazines often feature younger women with light skin and slim bodies, while men’s magazines often feature older men with light skin and muscular bodies. The target audience of both Cosmopolitan and Maxim differ from the people featured in the magazine.
The covers of both magazines feature models that conform to traditional definitions of beauty and physical attractiveness. On the cover of Cosmopolitan, the model is a young, slim woman with light skin and long blonde hair. On the cover of Maxim, the model is a young, slim man with light skin, short brown hair, and a clean-shaven face. The images inside the magazines also feature models that conform to traditional beauty standards and physical attractiveness (Floyd, 2018). The images in Cosmopolitan often feature young women in revealing clothing, while the images in Maxim often feature young men in stylish suits and ties. However, the target audiences of the two magazines differ from those featured in the magazine.
The headlines of both Cosmopolitan and Maxim reveal several gender and race roles and expectations. The cover of the most recent issue of Cosmopolitan features a bright, colorful design with a headline announcing “Crazy Sexy Summer!” As indicated above. The magazine focuses on topics related to fashion and beauty, with stories about the latest trends, celebrity gossip, and advice about dating and relationships. The cover also features an image of a model in a bright swimsuit, emphasizing the magazine’s focus on the physical appearance of its readers (Vicente, 2022). In contrast, the cover of the most recent issue of Maxim features a more subdued design and the headline “The Best Summer Ever!” The magazine’s topics include politics and culture, as well as fashion, but the emphasis is more on the lifestyle of its readers. Both magazines expect to be more interesting to the target audience for their sales to be high and have a big audience.
The images and expectations of sexuality also differ based on the magazine. In women’s magazines, the images and expectations often focus on being attractive and fashionable and being in a relationship (Vicente, 2022). The headlines and images often focus on finding the perfect partner and how to be attractive and desirable to others. In men’s magazines, the images and expectations often focus on being masculine, strong, and controlling in a relationship. In women’s magazines, the headlines and images often focus on finding the perfect partner and how to be powerful and assertive in a relationship.
Overall, both women’s magazines and men’s magazines reflect the gender and race norms that are present in our society. The headlines and images all focus on beauty and achieving a certain level of attractiveness (Denham, 2022). The target audience is also different, with the women’s magazine targeting younger women and the men’s magazine targeting older men. Finally, the images and expectations of sexuality also differ, with women’s magazines focusing on being attractive and fashionable and men’s magazines focusing on being masculine and strong.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the recent issues of both Cosmopolitan and Maxim demonstrate the different target audiences of the two magazines. The covers, content, and language of the two magazines emphasize the traditional definitions of beauty and physical attractiveness and reflect their respective target audiences’ different interests and lifestyles. The headlines of the two magazines also reveal their different editorial approaches and several gender and race roles and expectations (Gomez Vicente, 2020). The images in the magazines feature models that conform to traditional standards of beauty and physical attractiveness. Still, the magazine’s content reflects their respective target audiences’ different interests and lifestyles. Overall, the recent issues of both Cosmopolitan and Maxim demonstrate their respective target audiences’ different values and interests.
References
Denham, B. E. (2022). Media representations as a form of stacking: Male and female athletes featured on men’s magazine covers, 1980–2019. Communication & Sport, 10(1), 30-51.
Floyd, P. S. (2018). An Analysis of Serious Journalism in Popular Women’s Magazines. Regent University.
Gomez Vicente, L. (2020). “How to be happy” according to Cosmopolitan: The metaphors of happiness at the service of positive psychology and neoliberalism ideology. ELAD-SILDA. Études de Linguistique et d’Analyse des Discours–Studies in Linguistics and Discourse Analysis, 8(5).
Vicente, L. G. (2022) “How to be happy” according to Cosmopolitan: The metaphors of happiness at the service of positive psychology and neoliberalism ideology. Communication & Games, 2(9).