Coming home every day after school to sit on the couch and watch endless hours of Disney Channel shows, such as Hannah Montana, Wizards of Waverly Place or Suite Life of Zack and Cody, was one of the best parts of my childhood. Turning on one episode after the other, audiences never had to worry about the quality of the episode measuring up to the last one because all of them were amazing.

Shows and movies that were played on Disney Channel always had a motivation of teaching kids important life lessons while making them laugh. However, nowadays Disney Channel just isn’t what it used to be. All of our favorite childhood actors and actresses are grown up, so the Disney stars are either people we don’t know or don’t like. The values that every show used to be based upon have definitely shifted to some not-so-apparent ideals that are harder to find.

Wizards of Waverly Place is an original Disney show with evident values. This show followed the life of a family of wizards, but while you watched it was impossible to miss the importance and value of family. Another old Disney show, Hannah Montana, taught us how important it is to be honest and true to one’s self.

On the other hand, today’s Disney Channel shows don’t stress the importance of these lessons quite as much. They are filled with fake jokes and situations that are hard for kids to relate to. For example, some shows that air on Disney today include Bizaardvark and Bunk’d which are cheesy and unrelatable. The original Disney shows were able to tackle real life problems while still making it entertaining to watch. Today, shows do not have the same effect, as they are more concerned with small issues that don’t really mean anything.

“Disney Channel used to be a huge part of my life because I loved all the shows. They were really entertaining, funny, and actually had good acting. Today, Disney’s shows just seem cheesy and a little boring,” claimed junior Campbell Fair.

As a kid I used to dream about one day drawing the Disney Channel logo like all the famous stars used to when a new show was starting. “Hi, I’m Reagan. And you’re watching Disney Channel,” would be the way the fantasy would go.

I thought this was so amazing because all the stars had the magical sticks with the sparkles and the glow. However, a few years ago they decided to get rid of this momentous tradition. Kids today don’t get to experience sitting in front of their mirrors for hours practicing for the day that they might be able to do this same thing on T.V. like all their favorite stars.

Statistics show that in the year 2011, there were over 2,500,000 viewers watching Disney Channel. However, in the year 2017 to present day, there are only about 1,000,000 people who continue to watch Disney. So, if my arguments don’t convince you that Disney Channel has gotten worse, let those numbers speak for themselves.

“When I got home from school when I was a kid, I would seriously watch hours of Disney Channel because all the shows were really funny,” said sophomore Jack Pearne. “I have tried to watch some of their new shows, but I can barely make it through because of how cheesy they are.”

I get that it is hard for Disney to compete with all its iconic shows and movies, especially High School Musical, but kids today will just not have the same childhood experience. The least they could do is rerun all the old shows so kids could catch a glimpse of the amazing, original channel.

Disney Channel used to be so awesome, and it was honestly one of the best parts of my childhood. Kids today won’t get the chance to say that because Disney has forgotten their basic morals and light-hearted humor that made kids smile.