First published in 1886, Cosmopolitan is an American-central fashion and entertainment magazine. In 1972, Cosmopolitan's first UK edition was published, with 350,000 copies sold out by lunchtime. Now with sixty-four worldwide editions of Cosmopolitan, with the magazine being published in thirty-five different languages, alongside the distribution to one hundred different countries, it is the largest-selling young woman's magazine in the world. Cosmopolitan is published by New York City-based Hearst Corporation, who are also the publishers of other well known fashion magazines such as ELLE and Harper's Bazaar. They are also known for their productions of Men's Health and Women's Health. For an audience of female young adults, Cosmopolitan targets the mainstreamers from the 4Cs.
In the front cover including actress Zendaya, it is clear that Cosmopolitan values the idea of femininity above all else. Zendaya is adorned in a dark pink, coupled with a lighter pink background, and even though she is an awkward pose, is still represented as perfect. Many of the taglines are directly addressing the reader, with the top left tagline highlighting 'You Deserve Better' as to install confidence into the reader. The quote from Zendaya garners audience attention and is used as marketing as Cosmopolitan readers will want to follow her advice as she is seen as one of the acting world's "IT" girls. There are no dull colours, making the magazine both eccentric and eye-catching; there is less of a serious aroma to the magazine, as compared to something like Vogue or ELLE, making Cosmopolitan seem more reader-friendly and less intimidating.
The Cosmopolitan website hones in on the entertainment aspect of the magazine, consistently updating with celebrity drama, trending life hacks, and social media posts. However, the most stand-out part of the website is the entire section dedicated to the popular streaming service Netflix. There is no genre of television depicted and offers a broad variety of suggestions for the viewer/reader, there is one main topic on the website with four (or more) articles going into greater depth about that prevailing topic. Even the advertisements on the Cosmopolitan website are centred around beauty products and life hacks, noticeably on every page of the website or featuring in every article, showing just how popular the Cosmopolitan brand is.
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