The article ‘Amandla in Conversation with Gloria’ from the September
2016 issue illustrates the revitalised ways in which Teen Vogue interacts
with contemporary politics and social issues. The title page (below)
shows a smiling Amandla Stenberg wearing a blue silk shirt with a darker
blue sweater-vest, matched with a turquoise silk skirt. The androgynous
styling is compatible with the ideology of the magazine as she navigates
gender stereotypes through pairing a conventionally masculine sweater-
vest with a traditionally feminine skirt. Mazzarella and Pecora (2007,
p.110) detail the ways in which women’s magazines convey messages
espousing “normative femininity, heteronormativity and a range of other
hegemonic ideals to which women should aspire”. The styling of Amandla,
alongside her rejection of gender binaries in the interview, demonstrate
the ways in which Teen Vogue exhibit the progression from the restrictive
representations endorsed by traditional women’s magazines.
Moskowitz (1996, p.91) argues that historically, women’s magazines did
not advocate feminist solutions or have feminist intentions, but instead
contributed to a “discourse of discontent”. Within the sub-heading and
throughout the article, there is an overt semantic field of war: “Feminist
forces”, “unite to plot” and “new guards of feminism”. The author’s
symbolic use of the semantic field further illustrates the evolution of
women’s magazines as instead
of expressing ‘discontent’, she
presents women as willing to
fight the patriarchy in order to
gain equality.
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The article’s discussion of race
points towards Teen Vogue’s
advanced exploration of politics
and activism. Gloria states
“If you and I were at a press
conference, they would ask me
about feminism, not you”. Her
emotive statement is reinforced
by the photograph of Gloria and
Dorothy Pitman; the top photo of
three in the centre of the page
(right). Kress and Van Leuuwen
argue that the centre zone of