Bauer Media Group Research

Bauer Media group is a global media company which is a parent company to brands such as Grazia,
Empire and Absolute Radio. They are incredibly fast-growing, being in the top 10 most profitable media
companies in the Uk according to the article: Biggest media companies in the UK: Top 50 by revenue
(pressgazette.co.uk) On their website some of their most recent articles state they have been reaching
record figures, particularly in their radio stations. Last year on their audial media brands, they claim a
record reach of 22.4 million listeners.

Some examples of the achievements they have made in the last quarter:

Whilst Bauer Media Audio UK is an impressive feat alone, they have also achieved great success in the
magazine industry. One in every three magazines sold in the UK are published by Bauer Media, which
equates to around 120 million magazines sold in 2021. Source: Bauer Media UK’s Audited Circulation
Figures - Bauer Media
As the brief for the Coursework was a film magazine, I looked at Bauer’s ‘Empire’. It has monthly
circulation figures of 74,947, making it one of the biggest film magazines in the UK. It has also seen
digital growth of 28.1% YOY.

Above is an excerpt on their website of an overview of Empire.

Empire also has a lot of influence, being able to interview celebrities like Tom Cruise and be on set with
Quentin Tarantino.
Empire’s audience is not specific to age unlike the brief we received with a target audience of 16-25 age,
so the content they choose to cover is more general. They do share a similarity in that they are both for
media-literate audiences interested in film.

An example of Empire’s disregard for

age: younger audiences would
typically not recognize Reservoir Dogs
unless they were interested in film
already and are media-literate. Empire
is a magazine for film lovers and
enthusiasts. Another point of note
about this particular cover is that
although the film has many celebrities
in it (such as Harvey Keitel and Steve
Buscemi), none of their faces are too
visible; Empire doesn’t have to rely on
big names for people to buy their
magazine. The craft of film and the
quality content they themselves
produce is enough. Any film lover
would recognize the iconic shot from
the film in an instant; they don’t have
to rely on celebrities, and when they do
(for example the Chadwick Boseman
cover they did in November 2020) it is
out of a genuine interest in their latest
project, not any soft news or gossip on
their personal life. Through this,
Empire establishes itself as a quality
magazine.
Since the cover of the magazine is not on any new film, Empire grabs the consumer through the powerful
colour scheme. The crimson colour that is featured connotes power, strength and passion as colour
psychology states. This strong colour grabs the consumer.
Empire’s accessibility is also clearly shown they have the cast and crew reuniting to tell the ‘real story’
behind the film.
Another thing prevalent in Empire’s covers is that the Masthead changes colours to match the film they
are featuring. Red is used most often, in part due to it being a strong colour and being used in a lot of
films, but by looking at the masthead on the website, red is the actual colour of it when uninfluenced by
the film.

In this front cover of Empire released

in December 2014, the film featured is
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part
1. Empire stays loyal to the film in its
representation of the protagonist;
Katniss Everdeen as a headstrong
leader, prepared to fight as seen in her
stance, serious expression, holding of
her signature weapon and direct eye
contact with the camera, defying
regular stereotypes of women in a
male-dominated industry. This also
gets across the dystopian aspect of the
film, rebelliously staring at the reader,
almost asking them if they will stand
with her in this war-torn environment.
The mise-en-scene of the background,
featuring fire and rubble, presumably
as the result of a bomb, indicates the
severity and drama. It also features
easter eggs, which may go unnoticed
by the average consumer passing by,
further exemplifying Empire’s focus on
media-literate film lovers. An example
of this is the mural in the background-
this semiotic is the symbol of the
rebellion within the franchise. Unlike
in the other cover, you can clearly see the celebrities on show like Jennifer Lawrence (of which the
Hunger Games franchise made her a household name) and Clint Eastwood, one of the most famous
directors in Hollywood.
Red is again used in the Masthead, both for the strong colour psychology behind it and how it grabs the
consumer, but it also looks visually pleasing amongst the accents of red in the picture, as seen in the
sporadic spots of fire.
The font used in the cover story of ‘The Hunger Games’ reflects the tone and story of the film itself,
creating atmosphere and adding to the mise-en-scene. It is textured, like it has been worn away and
corroded. The mise-en-scene of the cover accurately reflects the film, which in turn accurately represents
Empire magazine as a whole: loyal to film.

Notes on representation in Empire Magazine:

Since Empire stays loyal and accurate to the depictions in the films they are covering, it is limited in the
amount of spin they can put on their content. Their media-literate audience will notice if something is
amiss and inaccurate. For example, the issue where they cover Reservoir Dogs is not very diverse, all the
people on the front cover are white men featuring no people of colour or women, groups which are more
commonly stereotyped and less in power. This is not really Empire’s fault; practically all of the characters
in the film are white men and the representation is more down to Tarantino.
Empire’s representations reflect the industry in general, but on occasion feature individuals on the cover,
where they are free to portray them as they please.
In this cover, a remembrance of
Chadwick Boseman, they portray him as
an individual as opposed to the last
film/project he was in. It defies negative
stereotypes about people of colour,
instead treating Boseman fairly and out
of respect, labelling him as a ’king’- a
reference to his most iconic role in
Black Panther. The tone of this cover is
somber as seen by the strong blue
lighting (representing both stability and
knowledge but also sadness and
melancholy) coming in from the right
side and the serious expression on his
face.

The website for Empire Magazine

largely reflects the magazine and
promotes it heavily. Magazines
typically produce more profit than
websites and so in order to view the
magazine digitally you must subscribe.
It uses advertising to make money and
offer free content such as reviews.
A pop up often comes up when you
open a new page, offering 10% off the yearly subscription if you sign up for email.