How do audiences respond to Cosmopolitan? Discuss with a partner before clicking on the eyes to reveal the suggested response.

Entertainment - Uses & gratifications model – Link to cultural context – modern day obsession with celebrity lives. Cover line “We went to fame rehab and you’ll never guess who was there” encourages the audience to wonder and feel the need to find out.

Diversion - Uses & gratifications model – Audiences use the text as escapism. We read about the latest fashion, beauty fixes and celebrity lives as a way to escape our own lives.

Audience pleasure – Identifying enigmas and attempting to answer them. Provocative language can be used to allure the audience. Effective use of double entendre can also entice the reader.

Reception theory – An atypical cover model is still considered to be attractive, as anchored by “Hot damn!” The producer’s intended/preferred meaning is fully understood and accepted by many.
A negotiated position from some audience members might be to acknowledge the star’s unconventional look and believe that stereotypical representations of attractiveness aren’t important.

Audiences may consider/question their own attitudes when reading some of the articles.