Reasearch Task Two: Independent Music Magazines

 Independent magazines are magazines that do not receive funding from large businesses or corporations so they, therefore, have creative freedom to explore and promote niche topics without interference. Due to this, independent magazines tend to have an alternative view of the world and their niche theme to what a mainstream magazine would most likely have. This can be seen in The Wire and RnR which are two of music magazines published in the UK and the both focus on music genres outside of the mainstream genres. The Wire explores global alternative, underground and experimental music that "wages war on the mundane and mediocre" whereas RnR covers an eclectic range from mainstream to rock, folk and blues. 

Both magazines are similar in their ideologies of promoting music that would ordinary be overlooked because of the prominence of the mainstream music industry but they target different audiences and readers: whereas The Wire targets music enthusiasts under 25, 70% of readers of RnR are aged 35-65. This emphasises the range of music that independent music magazines can feature individually because, in the mainstream magazine industry, there would be barriers depending on which artists are trending. 

Compared to mainstream magazines, independent music magazines have a much lower circulation rate: Bauer (who has the highest circulation figures) circulated 126.08 million in 2020. However, The Wire's monthly circultaion ranges from 7,000 to 20,000 and RnR circulates more than 25,000 per issue which is signifcantly lower than Bauer's figures. These figures would affect the rates at which The Wire and RnR could charge for advertising in their magazines: in The Wire it ranges from £100 to £1600 and RnR £150 to £800. 

Overall, music magazines have been one of the types of magazines that have been hit hardest during the Covid-19 lockdown which has led to numerous other music magazines having to shut down or go to extreme measures like asking readers for donations. The Wire and RnR are independent magazines that survived this hard time for magazines so their conventions and uses of content and media language clearly resonates with their audiences to keep their sales high enough to get through the lockdown and print crisis.