The Influence of Advertisers on Media Content of Lifestyle Magazines

The aim of this thesis is to find out whether advertisers can influence the content of lifestyle media. The first part of this work deals with the theory of media economics, the market of printed magazines and the various influences on the media; followed by a definition of the ethical and legal framework for advertising. It also includes a description of selected media, an overview of their market position and the degree of financial dependence on advertising. Two lifestyle magazines, namely Cosmopolitan, representing women's magazines, and ForMen, as a men-oriented magazine, were selected for analysis. The second part of the thesis deals with the definition of the methodological framework and the description of the research method used, i.e. quantitative content analysis. Three different phenomena are explored using six research sub-questions, namely the ratio of advertising and editorial content, the degree of linking advertising with editorial materials (brand reciprocity), and finally the use of advertorials, their labelling and distinguishability from other content. The third section of the work elaborates on research results. The thesis concludes that while certain dependence and influences can be traced, not all possible manifestations of the relationship between publishers and advertisers..