The Golden Trident

By Jax McKinnon

The world of entertainment has been rapidly accelerating into an age of short-form media, made to continuously activate the consumer’s dopamine receptors for little gratification. TikTok has taken the place of movies, and copy-and-paste pop songs have stolen the spots of albums. Media is being marketed towards the uninvested consumer, encouraging a never-ending spiral of dissipation. The job of entertainers has been reduced from displays of talent and intellect to whoever can crack the algorithm first. The consequences of this atrophy are devastating and can be blamed for a plethora of problems. The erasure of physical media from our day-to-day lives, while seemingly harmless, is building barriers to the movies and music we have come to love so dearly.

Streaming platforms offer an easy way to access an abundance of films and TV shows all at once. While accessible, these streaming services have become increasingly more exclusive, turning into an expensive alternative to cable TV. Netflix now has ads unless you upgrade your payment plan, as do Prime Video, Peacock, Hulu, and many more. Even with an expensive recurring charge, an individual cannot seem to escape the constant advertising being fed to us. These streaming platforms don’t even have a consistent basis of media. Many movies on Netflix aren’t on Hulu, but are on Disney+, etc. This creates a need for even more subscriptions on multiple different services because of the scarcity of inventory, all while watching advertisements. 

Streaming services have even been cracking down on the distribution of account information, allowing only one person to be signed into an account at a time- unless, of course, you upgrade your payment plan. While the mandatory spending is a barrier in and of itself, the real problem lies in the erasure of media within these platforms. When a movie or TV show is contracted to a streaming service, it is signed on for a specific amount of time. Once that time is up, the media is either contracted to a new service or simply disappears.

Think of the movies or TV shows you watched as a child that seem elusive and unheard of now. Well, they may very well be gone- essentially erased from the public mind as a result of electronic distribution. The problem with this medium of media is that the core goal is to make money rather than share art. A movie made by an independent director doesn’t have as much influence on a streaming service as a Warner Bros. movie would. Once uncontracted, an independent movie director may have to accept defeat, as their movie lives only in an archive, or is lost on a hard drive somewhere. A platform has little to gain monetarily by keeping this movie on their platform, so it is simply removed. 

A relevant example is the cancellation of multiple TV series on Netflix during COVID-19, to add “The Hype House.” Under great scrutiny, Netflix ultimately cancelled the preceding seasons, or completely removed, many well-received TV shows such as “I Am Not Okay With This,” “The Society,” “The End of the F***ing World,” and “Atypical,” among others. 

The main problem with the swift cancellation and erasure of this media was that they were replaced with a shallow, one-dimensional reality TV show following eight social media influencers, most of whose income was from TikTok. Fans were furious and even started a petition, gaining over 50,000 signatures, to remove the show from Netflix. According to Inklings News, fans noticed a “frequent cancellation of LGBTQ+ led shows,” including many of the series named above. 

Netflix’s erasure of talented and highly crafted media for a one-dimensional reality TV show is a direct reflection of the way we are allowing media to be orchestrated, favoring shallow, lucrative series over media with meaning and representation behind them. The only way to guarantee our favorite movies and TV shows will be permanently accessible is to own them in a physical format. 

The quick takeover by pay-to-use streaming platforms brings up other concerns, such as the exploitation of artists and poor pay systems. According to Printify, “Spotify pays artists an estimated $0.003 to $0.005 per stream,” depending on factors like the listener’s country, the listener’s pay tier, and agreements between the artist and streaming platform. This means a song needs to have 228 streams for the artist to earn a single dollar. Furthermore, songs need to have at least 1,000 streams for the artist to even begin making money. Even the highest-ranked platform in terms of artist pay isn’t much of a step up. According to Sugo Music Group, the streaming platform that pays artists the most is TIDAL, paying artists $0.01284 per stream. As artists become fed up with being underpaid, many may leave, leaving listeners to either pay for yet another streaming platform or stop listening to their favorite songs. 

CDs and vinyl records are not only a more direct way for artists to earn money, but they are simply more fun. The tangibility and creativity of a new CD or vinyl, with the art of the liner notes, and the decoration of each item, is much more exciting than opening a link to listen to a song. An individual’s listening experience is infinitely enhanced by media in its physical form. The existence of physical media allows it to be better recognized as something with sentimental value and importance, often for a much lower price than a recurring payment plan. 

Buying physical media is simultaneously a great way to support local businesses and artists. Record shops are a great way to grow one’s network and meet people who like the same artists and music as you. Many record store employees are passionate about their job and are incredibly knowledgeable about the music in their store. They can provide great recommendations and introduce you to new artists and genres. Going to record stores is a great pastime and gives you instant gratification without the mundane eyestrain of a phone screen. The search for records and CDs in a store is a great way to immerse yourself in the world of music and art, surrounded by people who share the same passion. Not only is it fun to visit record stores, but they often contain information about upcoming local shows and bands to further initiate you into your local music scene. 

Having your favorite movies and music in a tangible form is crucial to the preservation of media. It’s a gratifying way to engage in your interests and easily share them with others while paying an artist directly. CDs, Vinyls, and DVDs all allow an individual to guarantee the conservation of their favorite media, preserving the art of large and small artists alike. By going out into the world to engage in your interests, you will find a whole community of like-minded individuals ready to share and learn from each other. Buying from a local record store is infinitely better than supporting controversial and exploitative streaming platforms. Physical media welcomes people into the social world of their interests, introducing them to new people and genres, all while effectively avoiding the trap of monthly payments.