The media is an important part of all lives. You’d be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t watched a movie, listened to a song, or read a WBN article in the recent past. However, while media isn’t going anywhere, the ways people consume it are constantly changing. 

For a long time, movie theaters and television channels were the only way to watch movies and series, and the radio was the best way to catch your favorite artist’s most recent release. Then everyone moved on to DVDs and CDs.

In the past decade or so, streaming services like Netflix and Spotify have taken over as the most popular way to consume media. But are they the best? Charts and bar graphs would certainly lead you to believe so, but the answer may not be so one-sided.

Mr. Katz, the theatre director at Wilsonville High, grew up in the ‘70s and ‘80s. He says, “When I was a kid, going to the movies was special, because nothing good was on TV. The shows were cheesy, and if there were movies, they’d be shrunken down and cut up.”

In recent years, he’s used streaming mainly, despite owning a small physical media collection. While he enjoys the convenience of streaming services, he is afraid for the future of filmmaking. “The studios keep trying to turn shows into movies and movies into shows because everything’s on streaming.”

Everett Martin, a typical high school freshman, also primarily streams music. He also uses the radio frequently when he’s in the car. While he enjoys the convenience of Apple Music, he also enjoys the unpredictability of radio, as when good songs come on the radio, they feel more special.

He believes that “Streaming is good for musicians, as they’re able to get their music out there better.” While streaming services do allow artists to put out music much more easily, they also need to have lots of streamers if they want to make a living.

Approximately 83% of Americans used streaming services in 2025. Ten years prior, only 52% did. Streaming’s extreme popularity growth can be attributed to many things, including its convenience, ease of use, and perceived value. The COVID lockdown was another factor, as people weren’t able to buy or rent physical media. (https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/07/01/83-of-us-adults-use-streaming-services-far-fewer-subscribe-to-cable-or-satellite-tv/)

While streaming remains widely used, recently, there have been multiple drawbacks to the system. Most of the services have added ads to “low tiers,” encouraging users to pay more for ad-free viewings. Additionally, the surplus of different services forces consumers to pay for multiple services to get everything they want.

Media consumption will likely continue to evolve for a long time. The streaming age has made it extremely easy to access media of all types, but there will always be alternatives. While no method is perfect, they are all important in their own way.