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Genre

To effectively pick what type of magazine we want to design, we must first understand what genre (a key media concept) is.

Genre is a way of categorisation often done through a media text's style or form by studying certain rudimentary characteristics also known as paradigms, often grouped under theme, structure and iconography.

The significance of genre lays with it being able to distinguish between an array of media texts, creating a niche for each genre, helping the audience choose what they want to consume and cueing the producers to quench that demand.

For audiences it not only helps them navigate and pick what they deem appropriate from a sea of media products arranged by their selling points but helps establish familiarity and gives the audience something to relate to or possibly idolise. It also creates this sense of gratification when audience's expectations about a certain genre are met. Andwhen these expectations aren't met it pleasantly surprises the audiences. People who also enjoy the same genres often band together to form a community in person or on Internet forums.

Genre aids producers as it helps them market their products more specifically and sharply. It also standardises the production of these media texts making them comparatively cheaper and helps allow the creators to take creative liberties.

However, the concept of genre is also deeply criticised. Theorists believe the Hypothermic Needle theory stands null, the audience is predominantly made of opinionated individuals who look for media products best suited for them on a personal level rather than passive consumption. While it is agreed upon that there can be brilliant reworkings or inversion within a genre, people believe eventually texts become predictable and redundant (especially due to repetitive tropes). Some even believe that media texts can not be categorised due to the large overlaps in genres themselves.

I, however, think through time paradigms evolve and are subject to change. A genre is defined and then redefined which allows the target audience to have many different and varying products even within a genre

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