The Downfall of Disney Channel
It happened Friday the 7th of November.
I was babysitting the girl a couple doors down, watching some show called “Liv and Maddie”. As I sat through this “comedy” show, I went back to the time I still watched Disney Channel, and loved shows like Kim Possible.
Then my revelation came: the Disney Channel has really gone down the drain.
Now, it’s not like Disney was always good. Since the channel launched in 1983, the channel had some dark moments, like 1996 when ratings began to drop thanks to the release of the Nickelodeon channel.
However, for the early part of my life, the Disney Channel was always consistent, a good place to turn to when playing in the sandbox just had no appeal.
Remember “That’s So Raven”, “Wizards of Waverly Place”, and “Suite Life of Zack and Cody”? I sure do. I loved that stuff.
How about “High School Musical” or “Hannah Montana”? Even now, I can recite the lyrics to “Nobody’s Perfect” and get very nostalgic.
But kids these days, they don’t have good shows like this. Every show seems to be made up of the same formula with little to no variation.
Even cute, old tv shows like the “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” are relegated to the Disney Jr. channel.
And maybe it’s just the inner parent in me, but I feel like the moral lessons subtly taught in these tv shows are not ones worth teaching to children.
Before, when teenage characters on a show did something bad or wrong, they most certainly got into trouble. I vividly remember Louis Stevens from “Even Stevens” getting in trouble with his parents and teachers.
The characters today, though always seem to get away with the trouble they cause. There are no consequences, and the parents look like dummies who can’t get their act together.
Additionally, there is a sassy attitude present in EVERY SINGLE CHILD. It gets very annoying very quickly, and takes away from what little plot there is. Do children have no consideration for respect?
All in all, it is fair to conclude Disney Channel has lost its golden touch.
But, hey, that’s just my two cents.
Cori Snook • Dec 7, 2015 at 9:40 pm
It blows my mind to remember the days when That So Raven and Hannah Montana were the top chart Disney Channel shows; to be honest, it makes me feel extremely old. Those were times of classic comedy and silly plot lines. Now looking at my little cousins who watch these TV shows I haven’t even heard the names of on Disney Channel, it becomes apparent that the network has gone down the drain and that aspect of our childhood is gone.
Isabelle lake • Dec 7, 2015 at 9:35 pm
Great article Paige! I miss the old Disney shows too! ?
Emily Croteau • Dec 7, 2015 at 9:08 pm
I agree! Only if it was still airing the classics then maybe it would still be popular!
Matt Garfi • Dec 7, 2015 at 8:19 pm
Paige you are so right! I used too love watching Suite Life of Zack and Cody, the new shows just can’t compair.
Alana White • Dec 7, 2015 at 8:09 pm
Hannah Montana and Wizards of Waverly place were hands down the best Disney Channel shows.
Emma B • Dec 7, 2015 at 7:59 pm
I used to love that’s so raven and the wizards of waverly place!!! Disney Chanel has really really changed and it’s sad because the shows used to teach actual life lessons!!!! You had a great article and it was really well written!!
Aili Hoyt • Dec 7, 2015 at 4:41 pm
Too bad Disney is going downhill. Hopefully they will realize this soon.
Deanna Santos • Dec 7, 2015 at 3:07 pm
Great article Paige! I miss the old Disney channel when they just taught us to be ourselves.
Jackie larivee • Dec 7, 2015 at 11:42 am
I miss the old Disney so much! I like the classics like Snow White ( I think she was the first Disney princess ) I also loved Hannah Montana too ( before Miley went crazy of course, lol) nice job Paige!
Alex Wilson • Dec 6, 2015 at 11:30 pm
Sadly, the Disney Channel has been afraid to take a risk. Their shows all follow the same type of format. Hopefully moving on they might take a risk and put out a show that’s original and has a unique story line. Great article, had me all nostalgic for awhile!
Ian Eichel • Dec 6, 2015 at 10:18 pm
This article is extremely well written Paige! I’m very curious to know if younger children enjoy the Disney Channel as much as we did. I also want to see what Disney is going to do about this crisis because some of the new shows are just terrible.
Colleen J • Dec 6, 2015 at 10:01 pm
Paige, I absolutely love this article and could not agree more with you! The lessons on the shows now have no substance , and are definitely not something i would want my child to learn from ! I certainly agree that the shows we watched as kids were much better , and they taught me life lessons i still carry with me to this day ! Great job on this article.
Steven Noyes • Dec 6, 2015 at 9:49 pm
The new Disney channel is not what the old one was. It has, like you said, lost its golden touch, and it seems as though the shows that are on now make them lose viewers instead of gain them. All in all this was a very well written article in my opinion.
Makenna Comeau • Dec 6, 2015 at 6:18 pm
I totally agree with you Paige! It is a bummer that this generation of children will not be able to learn the same lessons that Disney Channel once taught…hopefully they can try to get their act together before it’s too late.
Molly Drescher • Dec 6, 2015 at 6:00 pm
This was a great article! I completely agree, too! I wish the shows like Hannah Montana, That’s so Raven, and Wizards of Waverly Place were still on and were replayed because they would be better than the repetitive shows that are on today.
Duncan Weaver • Dec 6, 2015 at 11:21 am
Great article Paige! I agree with you completely, and it is so sad to see kid’s channels that we grew up with take a turn for the worst.
Noah Roche • Dec 5, 2015 at 8:07 pm
I miss all of the old shows and it disappoints me to see all of these corny predictable shows they have on now. The quality of the channel has gone down so much and I wish they would bring back some of the classics.
Morgan Zanardi • Dec 5, 2015 at 2:54 pm
I completely agree with you!! I strongly dislike the “new” Disney Channel. When we were younger the shows that were on had some meaning and some sort of lesson. These shows that are on now are not nearly as good as the ones that we use to watch. That So Raven was my show along with Hannah Montana, but happy they started the throwback Disney shows at night now!
Courtney Fitzgerald • Dec 4, 2015 at 1:54 pm
I completely agree with this article. Disney has definitely changed from when we were younger. I wonder what this generation of kids will say about what they watched on Disney Channel when they are our age.
Sophie Vicedomine • Dec 3, 2015 at 1:28 pm
So sad to see one of my favorite channels as a kid go so downhill. So much for original ideas on children’s networks, in my opinion the writers just aren’t producing quality stuff anymore. Just bring back Wizards of Waverly Place and call it a day.
Maxx Robinson • Dec 2, 2015 at 8:28 pm
It’s sad to see the quality of these shows go downhill so quickly. Channels like the Disney Channel and Nick have been spiraling out of control for years now (we don’t speak of modern SpongeBob), so it is disappointing to see beloved favorites replaced by awful, uninspired forms of “entertainment.”
Kristin Sullivan • Dec 2, 2015 at 7:23 pm
I totally agree Paige! Not only do the kids on these shows get away with too much but they also dress and act in a very promiscuous manner! It seems as though the good characters in these shows, the ones who children these days are meant to idolize are acting like the typical evil ‘mean girl’ characters we all hated.
Sterling Seymour • Dec 2, 2015 at 6:42 pm
Hi Paige, this was a very interesting article! I completely agree with all these comments saying that the Disney Channel has really changed. I never want my little sisters to watch these shows anymore because of how terrible the kids act! Like you said, they do get away with everything, and tend to be quite greedy, and ungrateful. It would be terrible if kids grew up and thought this this was the right way to act!
Alyssa Demeule • Dec 2, 2015 at 6:31 pm
Great article Paige! I agree with you one-hundred percent, as new shows come out on Disney Channel they seem to be getting increasingly worse. What I wonder is if the children of this generation enjoy these new shows or not.
Sarah Tripp • Dec 2, 2015 at 4:35 pm
Great article! I agree in the current low quality of the Disney Channel. I remember the days of the old shows and movies like “Hannah Montana” and “High School Musical”. It does seem as if these new shows are getting completely redundant and repetitive, as all television seems to be getting nowadays. Additionally, the lack of value is alarming. Thanks for getting this message out there!
Marisa Labadini • Dec 2, 2015 at 1:43 pm
I was thinking the same thing when my sister was watching Disney channel the other day. They also have that awful spin off of Girl Meets World, like nothing compares to the classic Boy Meets World.
Grace Madden • Dec 2, 2015 at 1:04 pm
I agree, I loved the old Disney, and i definitely can tell that kids nowadays are much more rude/annoying.
Amanda smith • Dec 2, 2015 at 12:50 pm
Really good article!
I agree that Disney Channel is not the same anymore. Sometimes I watch the shows with my little brother and I think that they are not teaching them good lessons, Disney channel should deffinetly play their old shows too.
Erica Sofia • Dec 2, 2015 at 11:03 am
I agree that most of the shows are horrible, but there is one good show called, “Girl Meets World” made as a homage to, “Boy Meets World” which was a show with an awesome moral every show.
Nicole Stolarski • Dec 2, 2015 at 11:01 am
I totally agree! I used to love watching all of the old shows and now it’s completely different. Sometimes my younger brother has it on and the shows didn’t seem as interesting or entertaining.
Meghan Gallagher • Dec 1, 2015 at 5:58 pm
Great article Paige! I agree 100% that Disney Channel has gone down the tubes. I miss all of the great shows that used to be on all the time. I would watch them constantly when I was younger. All of the shows on now are pointless and will never be as good as they used to be.
Madison Carney • Dec 1, 2015 at 4:47 pm
Hey Paige, I completely agree. Disney channel used to be not only funny and entertaining, but it also taught lessons. Like there are punishments for your actions. Now children are taking after these new shows that are terrible and teach them bad behaviors. I wish there were reruns of the old shows and movies we watched. See you tomorrow
Feni Patel • Dec 1, 2015 at 4:09 pm
I agree with you that Disney is not the same as it once was. There were many good lessons I had learned when I was little, however, today, the shows seem to lack important values.
Erica Burton • Dec 1, 2015 at 4:03 pm
Awesome article! I miss the old Disney channel too! So sad what has happened to it! High School Musical was the best! Also Lizzie McGuire. This article made me very nostalgic but I love it!
Jacob Deziel • Dec 1, 2015 at 2:52 pm
I agree! This chanel is nothing like what it used to be. My younger brothers watch these types of shows and every show seems to have the same concept.
Jacob Deziel • Dec 1, 2015 at 2:34 pm
Great article! I also do agree. Whenever my little brothers tune into the disney channel, I notice that the channel just isn’t the same anymore.
Jimmy Cleary • Dec 1, 2015 at 1:55 pm
Disney channel was pretty good back in the day, but I agree that it’s not that great nowadays
Natasha • Dec 1, 2015 at 9:55 am
Hey Paige! i totally agree! Great article!! Disney Channel doesn’t have the same themes and lessons it use to have when i was a kid. They should Reruns of Boy Meets World and That’s So Raven.
Andrew Klosowski • Dec 1, 2015 at 8:49 am
I completely agree. The Disney channel used to be full of great shows and from the shows you are describing it sounds like the channel has become something to laugh at not with.
Elizabeth Inger • Nov 30, 2015 at 9:24 pm
I agree, Disney is definitely not the way it once was. The shows don’t have a positive message like they used to, and the episodes are boring and redundant. I miss the good old days of Lilo and Stitch, Lizzie McGuire, Hannah Montana, among many others. Shows like I Didn’t Do It encourage a lack of personal responsibility and those poor values are not helpful in trying to teach young children about manners and respect. I wish they would rerun the old shows! Very well written Paige!
Taylor W • Nov 30, 2015 at 8:34 pm
Wow! You did a great job writing this article! I totally agree with every word of it. Disney Channel has certainly changed a lot over the years, and not in the best of ways.
Jesse Feeney • Nov 30, 2015 at 5:58 pm
I agree that the Disney Channel has gone down hill. I think the Tv shows that air now on Disney Channel have no point to them. When I have to babysit the kids always want to rent a movie. When I was younger Disney was the only thing that I would watch. They need to come up with better tv show ideas and story lines.
Mackenzie Salt • Nov 30, 2015 at 4:56 pm
Those were some good shows! I loved Wizards of Waverly Place!
Demetrios Thornton • Nov 30, 2015 at 4:52 pm
I miss the good Disney 🙁 Good Article!!
Jessica Kuznicki • Nov 30, 2015 at 3:23 pm
Great article Paige! I miss the old Disney Channel too. But it gets worse than “Liv and Maddie” if you can believe it. Disney’s new “Descendants” movie is horrible. It stars the main actress from “Liv and Maddie” and is about the children of classic Disney villains. They are also promoting a song called “Rotten to the Core” which doesn’t have very good morals either. My sister and I only saw part of it before we to shut off the T.V. in disgust.