One of my close friends is an avid journal lover. Everywhere we go, he brings his thick journal with him, jotting down thoughts, making lists of places we visit, and collecting receipts, photobooth strips, and literally anything else that could be considered a physical memento.
Over the weekend, we decided to have a “physical media day,” where we visited a photobooth museum, a gift shop with sticker books, a magazine stand, a bookstore, and an analog media store. I like to joke that he’s being performative by bringing his journal everywhere, but jokes aside, it’s nice to see someone care so much about physical media of any kind, especially in an increasingly digitized world.
Over the years, physical media as a whole has started to fade away as technology has become more involved in our everyday lives. Concert and movie tickets are no longer always physical, streaming services have made the need for DVDs and CDs practically non-existent, and most of our memories are documented on our phones.
It makes sense — the digitization of everything is incredibly convenient. For $12.99, Spotify Premium gives me access to any song in the world instead of requiring me to pay $20 for a single album on vinyl. Having all of our pictures in one place makes organization and documentation so much easier. Magazine and newspaper subscriptions are increasingly available online, saving space, money, and paper.
It’s not that the digitization of everything is evil, but there needs to be a way to embrace it without completely erasing physical media. Growing up I remember looking at scrapbooks and photo albums documenting my childhood, as well as my parents’ lives. I hate the idea of my family in the future only being able to view my younger years through a phone screen.
Physical media is not only a great way to preserve memories and keepsakes for future generations, but it also gives you greater control and ownership over the media you consume. There has already been a rise in record collecting among Gen Z, which will hopefully contribute to renewed appreciation for physical media.
Additionally, physical media is the perfect form of self expression. The books on your shelf and the records on your walls all say something about you. We need to bring back cutting out pictures of our favorite things and celebrities out of magazines and pasting them on our walls.
Although I’m not as committed as my journal-loving friend, I am committed to doing my part in bringing back physical media. My walls are covered in photobooth strips of my friends, I have a small but growing record collection, I routinely make photo albums as birthday gifts for my friends, and my overflowing bookshelf and book collection are sources of great pride for me.
So, if you have the chance, try collecting more physical media if you have the means to do so. Pick up a secondhand book instead of downloading it onto your iPad. Buy the vinyl or CD of your favorite album. Cover your walls in photos and posters of things you love. Your future self will thank you.