Physical Media

The Rise of Physical Media
by Lauren Valadez

Over the last couple of years, physical media has made a return in our society. Ever since the creation and advancement of phones and apps, physical objects like polaroid/digital cameras, CD players, and vinyl players have certainly seen a decline in use. However, over the last couple of years they have started to become quite popular again.

One piece of physical media that has made a strong comeback is the digital camera. Recently, I have seen more and more people pulling out a 2000s looking digital camera to take pictures. I participated in this trend myself and bought a small Kodak digital camera last summer and was even gifted a vinyl record player not too long ago. Both of which I have enjoyed greatly.

It’s interesting to see how these objects, ones that are not as necessary, are becoming popular once again. Instead of completely discarding these objects and choosing to never use them again, society is now placing more value to these items because they are considered “vintage” and cool. Because of this they are gaining popularity in almost every way. For example, contemporary artists are now choosing to release their albums on vinyl as more people, like myself, own a record player and are building a record collection. Even simple things like physical books are gaining popularity as well. Thanks to Tiktok and people recommending books online, young people are reading more physical books.

It seems that “vintage” physical media is bringing joy and nostalgia to people who have likely never experienced when these items were in their prime. There is a charm in a tangible piece of media that you feel you have full ownership of. Using record players, digital cameras, and reading physical books are an experience that many young people do not often experience. As technology advances, maybe other items like cassette players and Walkmans will earn their own place in the spotlight.

Photo of cassette tape and Vinyl by Giovanni Palma and photo of table full of cameras by Sebastián Vargas from pexels.com

Lauren Valadez has joined this community as a columnist. She is originally from El Monte, California, but she recently moved to Central New York to attend Syracuse University. She is currently a sophomore studying anthropology.