as Duca critically assesses the impact he has had on the country. In the
fifth paragraph, the anaphoric repetition of the pronoun ‘he’ emphasises
how much Trump has lied to the country, depersonalising him in order
to elevate her offence. Duca goes on to asyndetically list the times he
has lied to the country, which speeds up the pace of the article, whilst
sarcastically inserting her criminalising truths in parenthesis. This
establishes an almost relentless criticism that wasn’t evident in the print
editions. The critical op-ed is supported by the ‘Trending Now’, ‘Related’
and ‘Read More’ sections, which entice the reader to read other articles
about Trump and his administration. Welteroth states that Teen Vogue
consider themselves “an outlet that addresses the issues that matter
most to our audience,” (Roberts, 2018); that the online version suggests
other related articles further illuminates how they are acting as educators.
The article directly addresses the reader more than in the print editions:
“Trump is not going to stop playing with the burner until America
realises that the temperature is too high. It’s on every single one of
us to stop pretending it’s always been so hot in here”.
The metaphor not only implies that the state of the country has declined,
it also places a lot of responsibility on the individual reader and herself
to make a difference. This chimes with the print edition’s use of terms
like “us” and “we” to create a sense of community within the magazine,
however, here Duca uses it to create an imagined American community of
activists. She additionally provides a list of the things “you can and should
be doing” to help the situation. This “intensely personal” (Duncombe,
2008, p.26) tone reflects earlier underground magazines and zines,
which Mazzarella & Pecora (2007, p.114) describe as spaces where
“girls enact their social change and political agendas”. This comparison
with zines shows the extent to which Teen Vogue has evolved in order to
better represent the individual woman.
In conclusion, the analysis of these articles demonstrates the ways in
which Teen Vogue has departed from traditional conceptions of women’s
magazines to more accurately represent contemporary girls’ lives. In
particular, they highlight the ways in which women are concerned with
politics, charity and social activism whilst being interested in fashion
and makeup, dismantling myths around the feminine that women’s
magazines have traditionally perpetuated.
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