TikTok’s short-lived blackout over the weekend of January 18 and 19 caused needless panic among users, disrupting small businesses and threatening to bar Americans from the app’s content. If President Trump’s last-minute extension to save the platform he wanted to ban during his first term has taught me anything, it’s that I’ve been right to collect physical media. It’s imperative that others do the same going into the next four years.
Since Donald Trump’s return to the Oval Office, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and Meta platforms Facebook and Instagram have raised major censorship and propaganda concerns among users. It’s no secret that Twitter has devolved into a lobbyist platform following its X rebrand under billionaire Elon Musk’s ownership. But TikTok and Meta have begun to follow suit, with tech heads agreeing to work with Trump and taking front-row seats at the inauguration. Subsequently, politicized terms and phrases—including “Hitler,” “Nazi Germany,” “fascism,” “abortion,” and “Democrats”—have been heavily censored across these popular social media apps, with some politicians being shadow-banned. This has hindered the spread of accurate, unbiased news and information.
Perhaps even more concerning is the removal of the Constitution from the White House website and the apparent shutdown of reproductiverights.gov on January 20, 2025, the night of Trump’s inauguration, as reported by CBS News. Launched by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2022, the latter served as part of a public awareness campaign, providing information and resources regarding abortion and reproductive health care, including a Know-Your-Rights fact sheet and details about Mifepristone—which, used in a regimen with misoprostol, is commonly known as a medication abortion and has been approved and deemed safe and effective to use by the FDA.
The site remains offline, and the Constitution has not been restored on whitehouse.gov. (Note: reproductiverights.gov and reproductiverights.org are different websites. The former cannot be reached as of January 23, 2025, and the latter remains a valuable healthcare resource.)
Amid now-routine book bans in schools and public libraries, archivists and average netizens have been sharing their concerns about the possibility that we could see the removal of accessible and factual information from online sources under the Trump administration. These concerns are now backed with ample proof.
Today, we largely rely on and operate within a digital world that hinges on internet access and is increasingly controlled by the state, something Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has sounded the alarm on across TikTok and Instagram. This places each of us in a precarious position to have access to either everything we need or less than, a decision that lies in the hands of our leaders. Preserving and sharing information and material resources is an essential act of community that can help to soften the blow of fascism to our most vulnerable, but, by unfortunate coincidence which may very well be by design, physical media has started on the road to obsolescence. So, what can we do?
Collect and archive
The film 28 Days Later—a post-apocalyptic zombie flick—is infamously out of print, not streaming, and notoriously difficult to come by, with DVD copies selling for hundreds of dollars. Not just in the case of Cillian Murphy’s breakout film but as a general rule, however, you shouldn’t waste your money. Most public libraries and secondhand stores offer a wide range of movies, as well as books, video games, and various audio formats. This is where to get your hands on affordable physical media.
If you’re able, you can opt to buy what you’re looking for brand-new or invest in an external hard drive if you plan to download PDF copies of books and other documents. However, this isn’t the most accessible method if you don’t have much to spend, and digital resources can be altered or removed. In many states, you can still get a library card (or eCard for registered digital resources) for free. That said, it’s best to lean back on good old-fashioned note-taking when you check something out from your local library and either purchase or make hard copies of what you can. The Public Domain Review and Library of Congress are great resources to find and download free public domain works—just use your discernment.
Secondhand shopping options will depend on your area. If all you’ve got is a Goodwill, it’s worth checking out every once in a while, even if it’s not ideal. (Between you and me, that’s where I found my copy of 28 Days Later for just $1.98.) Though there aren’t too many locations across the U.S. yet, Out of the Closet is a great LGBTQIA+ friendly thrift store chain, with some stores offering free HIV testing and AHF Pharmacy services paid for with store proceeds.
Some stores don’t offer much in the way of movies, but most have a small area dedicated to books and CDs. Whether I’m shopping at a chain or hole-in-the-wall thrift store, I like to keep an eye out for anything that has been banned, as well as works written by prominent revolutionaries, reference sets, and textbooks. Prices will vary, but you’ll typically be looking at less than $5 for a book, CD, or DVD. Beware of vintage or antique shops, though—prices will always reflect rarity.
Finally, what ties it all together is community. Share what you have and what you learn, especially with those who might not have ready access to libraries or secondhand stores. Keep a mutual archive; log movies you’ve watched, books you’ve read, current events, and key details. In the best-case scenario, you won’t need it. Worst case, you’ll have it.
Published: Jan 24, 2025 10:25 am