How Zoom University Changed My Viewing Habits

Posted on April 15, 2020 by mahrligmc

My viewing habits have drastically changed within the past month in quarantine. Whereas before I would hardly watch any form of media during the week, due to the access to Addlestone library that kept me on task, focused and deathly afraid if I picked up my phone my friend would throw it across the room. I would usually utilize youtube throughout the week for educational purposes- such as how to get that perfect crease in my Air Force dress blues that have been thrown in the bottom of my closet a month before. I would save my movie/ TV show/ and youtube video watching for the weekend, usually watching a movie every Friday and Saturday night. Recently, I have just gotten exposed to Disney movies on Disney+ as I never watched them growing up so I have been watching things like Monsters University and Ratatouille. If I was particularly busy that week I would use this time to watch the films for this class as I enjoyed them just as much as other films I would have been watching.

After COVID-19 hit and I was forced to the confines of my mother’s house, I have noticed a huge change in my viewing habits. I no longer watch any movies outside of this class- particularly because of how much school work I have and spend all night doing. My viewing habits are now a reflection of what my brother and mom want to watch and guilt me into watching. We usually watch one episode of either Survivor or 90 Day Fiance/ 90 Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days every other day. I do love these shows but I would typically not watch them if I were in my own apartment due to not having cable, and rather wanting to utilize my time more productively. Although my media intake has not increased that much through tv and movies I have become seemingly addicted to Tik Tok- a platform similar to vine where you can watch one minute long videos that usually have sound or music dubbed behind them. I believe my mind has convinced me these short videos don’t take up too much time of my day like a movie or Youtube would, but it is easy to lose track of time and if you add up all the short breaks I use and watch videos, I probably spend 2 hours a day on there.

My Streaming Habits

Posted on April 13, 2020 by salyersaa

Before COVID-19 I consumed around an average of 4 hours of media daily. I normally watch a specific show on Netflix or Hulu or I watch Youtube videos from the Youtubers that I am subscribed to. If I don’t have a lot of time to watch like when I go home in between classes for lunch then I will watch Youtube because I can watch more than just one video. Then I watch Hulu or Netflix whenever I am done with homework, home from work, and need to relax. Whatever I watch is for the purpose of entertainment and to just relax while I watch it. Since COVID-19 hit my streaming time has increased tremendously, I still watch Youtube, Netflix, and Hulu, but now I watch shows or videos as I am doing my school work which can at times be distracting. I also have more free time to watch shows because I work for the College of Charleston as a peer tutor and as part of the front desk staff at the Center for Student learning, where I normally sit and wait for students who need help but I am not allowed to watch things, but now I still work but I work online so I can watch shows while I work.

The internet is an amazing thing during this time because even though we are not allowed to physically be together, we can still be together. During this time of quarantining my best friend and I watched one of the newest Netflix originals that everyone was raving about “Love is Blind,” we were able to watch it together through a browser extension called Netflix Party. Netflix Party allows the people that are watching it to watch it at the same exact time and there is a chat feature. I have also used Zoom to talk to my classes and my friends so that we can feel like we are together even when we are not.

Cable’s Comeback?

Posted on April 12, 2020 by crippenta

So over the past week, I’ve been overly conscious of my digital habits in order to accurately write this blog post. I personally did not like the way I was feeling or my mindset a few months ago and since then have given up Instagram for fear that could be the cause. I check my facebook a few times a week now in absence of Instagram, but mainly just to see the most recent and ridiculous post my grandma shared. I’ve noticed tons of new “Facebook challenges” that have been created to keep people entertained. For instance, one called on followers to post a landscape photo they had taken with no caption so that although everyone is stuck at home, we could all open our Facebook apps and be transported to beautiful places all over the world. I found it somewhat comforting.

I’ve also watched at least an hour of the news daily in light of recent global events. My new morning routine consists of waking up and immediately turning it on while I make my coffee. I used to occasionally watch while doing homework in the mornings before but now I pay very close attention and watch with intention. While I believe it is important to remain calm and avoid hysteria, I also know that to remain informed gives one a clearer perspective and can keep one safer in the long run. I also hope that this situation will redirect the way in which news distribution has begun to tilt recently. In the midst of a pandemic I would hope that misinformation and bias could be reversed for the sake of the nation’s viewers during this time.

I also previously primarily streamed TV or films that I would watch, I haven’t watched cable TV in probably two years. Because both of my parents and siblings are now forced to work and learn from home as well, our wifi has been very slow and trying to stream is futile so we’ve gotten back into the Direct TV swing of things. It’s crazy to now be sitting on the couch and the commercial break comes on and the next 5 ads are all COVID-19 oriented. It reinforces how real this entire situation is.

The Impact of Entertainment

Posted on April 12, 2020 by Mollie Bowman

While I did watch a lot of movies and TV shows before COVID-19 hit, my habits have definitely changed these past few weeks. When I was still at school, I would sometimes watch a film or an episode of a show before bed on a school night and always watch something on the weekends. Now at home, I do try to do as much school work as I was doing when actually at school, but my screen time has unsurprisingly increased. I have not been watching many TV shows – I watched Tiger King with my family and just started Euphoria – but I have been watching a lot of movies. I made a watchlist full of movies that I have been meaning to watch for a long time that I have slowly been working my way through. Some movies I have watched from it are Come and See, Memories of Murder, and The Passion of Joan of Arc. For me, having a watchlist gives me something to do, as well as creating a goal for myself to watch all these movies. It makes me feel as if I’m accomplishing something while I’m basically stuck in my home. I have also been rewatching some of my favorite movies, like Little Miss Sunshine, It, Napoleon Dynamite, and The Great Dictator. I believe that rewatching these films that mean a lot to me gives a form of comfort and stability in a time where everything seems off balance.

I still watch most of these before bed, but much more frequently than I was at school. Sometimes I’ll watch three movies in one day just because I have the time to. I do try to keep a somewhat normal schedule (like doing my schoolwork at the times I would normally be doing them), so that is why most of the films I watch are at night. However, once classes end I know that my schedule will basically fall apart. I watch these across many platforms: Netflix, Hulu, Kanopy, my own copies of the films, and more. As of right now I believe that film, and all forms of entertainment, are keeping people sane as they are quarantined and that many people are starting to understand just how much film and TV can impact their lives. Personally, I have enjoyed exposing myself to new films, but I also love being able to find comfort in my old favorites.

Corona News

Posted on April 12, 2020 by bushdm

Prior to the Coronavirus, I would rarely watch the news. I would watch it from time to time, and I would still be aware of current events happening in America and around the world, however, I didn’t really have all that much time to just watch the news. Now that we are all being greatly affected by the Coronavirus, I find myself watching the news way more often. I have more time to watch it, and being a science major, I find it quite interesting. Being home and not at college, the news is almost always on my T.V. Not only major news stations such as CNN and FOX, but also small networks like local news. I myself notice reading news about the Coronavirus at all times of the day. Prior to the Coronavirus, the majority of internet use was used by my generation, but since the Coronavirus, every age group uses it. The internet is our source to answer. It allows us to get answers, know what is currently happening, and keep in touch with friends and loved ones. We rely on the internet greatly, without it we would have a challenge to function as a society. The internet has been able to help us work smarter and faster at defeating the “invisible enemy” we all fear. The news is also more of a topic, as the Coronavirus isn’t the only issue talked about in the news. Other issues are getting talked about, and heard more of due to everyone paying more attention.

Throwbacks! Not Just for Thursdays but also for Quarantines!

Posted on April 11, 2020 by garlandba

My media viewing habits have definitely increases since being COVID-19 hit. When I was living on campus before COVID-19 hit, the majority of my media viewing happened during the evening and more on the weekends because those were the times of the day where I had more free time. However, now that COVID-19 has hit and I am at home I have been viewing media more during the day. I’ve tried not to be online too much, but there is only so many time a person can walk around their neighborhood. I have been on Instagram and Twitter more than I normally would be during the day and I am watching Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Instant Video more than before. I have noticed that, with the exception of Tiger King on Netflix, I have been re-watching shows that I have already finished such as Downton Abbey on Amazon Prime Instant Video, Call the Midwife, and old Disney movies on Netflix. I’ve also been re-watching old shows that I first watched when I was younger like Victorious and the good Teen Titans. I think that one possible explanation for theses trends that I’ve noticed in my viewing habits is that it takes a lot for me to start and get invested in a new movie and series, so by re-watching shows and movies I’ve already watched, I don’t expend and waste any energy, if I don’t like the series or movie, on a new series or movie. Another explanation for this trend could be that I relate these movies and TV shows to a time when I knew what was going on in terms of school and had some control. This may be a response to how for some of my classes, now that we are doing online learning, I do not know what is going on or what is going to happen in terms of a final exam for one of my classes. Since I spend much of my energy working on classwork and trying to figure out what I have due for certain classes, it is more appealing to me to watch something that I have already watched and can sort of shut my brain off when I watch it.

Elevated screen time… not so bad?

Posted on April 11, 2020 by Bailey

An Instagram post from National Geographic as an example of the type of media I consume regularly.

Changes in my own media consumption do not vary significantly from those of others; certainly my use has increased. I have found myself scrolling through Instagram (see above), watching funny pet videos on Pinterest, and viewing independent short films on YouTube much more often than before the quarantine. When I wake up, take breaks from schoolwork, and before I go to sleep, I will pop on these sites for about 10 to 30 minutes. My film and TV consumption has also increased. I have finished three television seasons on Netflix and watched about five movies in the past four weeks alone. Though I maintain as regular a schedule as possible (ie. I ‘go to class’ or do classwork and research at the times I would pre-quarantine, and I maintain my regular exercise, meditation and meal routines), I still have an extra hour or two at the end of the day that I typically would not have before the pandemic. My hypothesis for this phenomenon is that the extra bits of time I used to bike and walk to class and to chat with students, professors and other friends on campus would together amount to those two hours I find free at the end of every quarantine day.

Sometimes I fill portions of those time slots with non-screen activities like playing or listening to music, writing or reading. But for the most part, I am behind a screen for a large chunk of those two hours, chatting with friends and family, on social media or watching movies and television. From these observations, I can reasonably conclude that screen time is an easy fall back for filling my free time. It is accessible, diverse in content and emotionally stimulating. Of course, one’s initial reaction to increased screen time is to scold oneself. But I have found that it’s not all that bad. I have discovered and become up to date with work by current and upcoming filmmakers. I have learned more about the second Queen Elizabeth’s life than I ever would have had I not finished two seasons of The Crown. I have even had more than one fits of belly-laughter from watching cats falling (safely) off kitchen counters on Pinterest. Yes, biking, walking and interacting with humans is certainly a preferred use of my time, but I cannot say than an extra few hours of screen time every day or so has been a complete waste of time.

Transnational German Cinema

Spring 2020

Tag Archives: COVID-19