Parents

Antonia Weld, Michaela’s mother

The person I interviewed was my mum Antonia Weld. She spent her
teens in Lancashire near a village called Chipping, however she was
only there in the holidays as she went to a boarding school in
Mayfield. She lived in an old mill house together with her mum, dad
and brother, she also has two older stepsisters, but they didn't live
with her. She had 3 aunts, one from her mum's side and two on her
dad's side. She also had one uncle, but she never saw him since him
and her dad didn't have a great relationship. 3 of her grandparents
died before she was my age and the other grandmother she didn't
see that much since her mum and her didn't have a great
relationship either. The one historical fact
she can remember was the Falkland's war in 1982.
When she was a teenager the main mass media where: the
radio, the tv and the newspaper. There were also a lot of magazines,
for example vogue. The magazine that she read as a teenager was
Jackie. In that time there weren't any mobile phones, so you could
only use landlines. Most of the popular tv and radio channels are
the same as now, but there were only three channels. For example,
you had Radio 1 and the BBC. The media she mostly used as
teenager was the tv as entertainment which she mostly watched
about once a day and mostly watched tv with friends. She also read
some magazines, but she can't remember how much they cost.

Miranda van Zuijlen – van Delft, Ruben’s mother

My mother is called Miranda van Zuijlen and is 47
years old. She lived with 5 people in her house. She
had a father, mother, two little sisters and herself.
Her father worked full-time, and her mother later
worked parttime. Her father’s family consisted of 6
people and her mother’s family consisted of 4
people. She lived in a normal sized house, where she
had enough space. Next to that, her family didn’t
struggle with money, so she didn’t have to work to
pay the bills. One major event that interested her
the most was the fall of the Berlin wall (1989). The
reason that it interested her, was because of the
happiness on the people’s faces. When she heard about it, she was happy for the people
that they could finally see their family again.
The media that existed when she was a teenager were newspapers, magazines, television,
radio’s, cinema’s, telephones and later the computer came. The things she used were
already in colour, the phone however was still wired, and the television was analogue.
Although they already had a lot of different media, the newspapers, television and the radio
were still the most popular. For example, on the television they had different channels,
called ‘Nederland 1, 2 & 3’ and ‘RTL 4’. And on the radio, they had ‘Veronica’. She herself
used the television, radio and the telephone. She used them mostly for entertainment, but
they were important for her. She used them every day, for around 4 hours (she used the
radio for during homework). She mostly shared them between the family members, but the
radio she had for herself. The prices in that time were paid by her parents, but somethings
she bought herself. For example, a cinema ticket was around 7 “gulden” (the currency they
used in that time), and she worked herself for a Hifi-stereo. One thing that she remembers
was the coming of the computer, because then she could type and print stuff for school
more easily.

Roger Goossens, Marijn’s father

My dad is Roger Goossens and is 48 years old. He lived in a family of
three, his dad, his mom and he himself. The family of his dad (my
grandpa) consisted of seven people, the five children and his parents.
The family of his mom (my grandma) consisted of six children
containing herself and her parents. The household of my dad
consisted of three people plus their dog. He lived together with his
parents in a village in the east on the Netherlands called Oosterbeek
close to Arnhem. A historical event that happened when my dad was
a teenager was the Netherlands winning the European championship
football in 1988. He remembers the Netherlands winning the
European championship in 1988 because this was the first time the
Netherlands winning a big international trophy. He says it was one of
the biggest parties he has ever experienced. In the time of my dad's
puberty, you had different types of media. You had newspapers,
magazines, radio and limited television. There was no internet yet.
But there were for instance already coloured pictures in newspapers and the tv also had
colour. Some of the most used media where the television and newspapers which were read
way more than nowadays. Some popular newspapers where the Telegraaf and the
Volkskrant. Some radio stations where Radio 1 up to 5. Some tv channels were Nederland 1
and 2, and some German channels. My dad used Radio and television around 2 hours per
day. He mostly used newspapers alone and the radio and television where shared. My dad
used to pay 1 gilder for the newspapers and the cinema was around 12 “gulden”, which was
an old type of money in the Netherlands. Some development of media was that the radio
and television got commercials. This created more Dutch television shows for example.

Grandparents

Gerrie de Vries-Visser, Eva's grandma

This interview is about my grandma, Gerrie de Vries-Visser.
And she is 75 years old, born in 1946 just after WW2. She
lived in the village of Hemelum, Friesland, Netherlands. She
was a teenager in the late 50s, begin 60s. In the time of
flower power (everything is love). It was a time of rebuilding,
after the war. A time of change. Also social. Because more
things were possible. Basically you grew up in the first years
after the Second World War, sober, but she had a nice
family. Change came in the sixties, when more things were
possible in the field of education and/or study. I went to
domestic science school and then I followed a seamstress
training. There you design and make clothes for yourself or
others. She was 15 years old when they got a television at
home. Before that they only
had the radio, with music by, among others, Elvis Presley,
Cliff Richard, Anneke Grünloh, and once a month
there was a film. She also went to dance class when she
was 16. She told me that that was a bit of freedom,
because not everyone was allowed to do that in the
village. On Sunday mornings she occasionally went to a
church service and in the afternoon she went for a walk
and chat with her friends.
She grew up in a middle- class family. Her father was a
butcher. Together with mother and four sisters. She
was the middle one. So in total she lived with 7 others in a
house next to her father's butcher shop, they also had a
servant, that was her cousin. I was also a domestic help in my parents' family and a help in
the butcher's shop.
They had one house phone, a radio, and a pick-up with lp's, a black-white tv, there was a
music magazine called "Muziek express" and one called "Muziek parade". She had a radio
channel called "radio Veronica" that still exists today. Although they had a phone, it was
more used by calling customers from the butcher than they used it themselves. She didn't
have her own devices, only the radio was on the whole day.
Heleen Vooijs, Michael's grandmother
My grandmother is called Heleen and is 66 years old. She was born in 1955 and she lived in
a small fishing town called Katwijk. At the time the Netherlands had barely recovered from
the second world war. She lived with five people in a house and only her father worked.
Because in her youth only men worked. Beside the people there were some animals too.
They had a pig and when it was big enough her father would bring it to the butcher for
meat. And he would then buy a new pig and repeated it.
In her time there were no mobile phones and social media, instead they would use the radio
or newspaper. Every day, the family would sit together to listen to what the news was that
day. My grandmother can still remember that every day at 1 o'clock they had to be silent so
that her father could listen to the radio and hear what the prices of the vegetables were.
Although they would use the radio the most, there was also a newspaper that they read. My
grandmother would use the media mainly for informative purposes. And it was not very
important to her when she was a teenager. A newspaper was not cheap. And so the people
would share a newspaper or spread the news by gossiping and talking. Even a ticket to the
movie would cost 7 gulden. One major invention that impacted the media she can
remember was the arrival of the colour-tv. And nowadays the coloured tv has fully replaced
the newspaper and even the radio that barely 60 years ago was the main contact to the
outer world for many families.
1 This is what Katwijk used to look like 2 This is how Katwijk looks now

1 A radio use by Heleen

Betty Laan, Marijn’s grandmother
My grandmother is Betty Laan and is 78 years old. My
grandmother’s family consisted of 12 people, her parents and 10
children. She lived on a farm with her family and had one dog and
multiple cats. In her mom’s family there were 6 children and
parents and in her dad’s 12 children and the parents. My
grandmother lived close to a city in the Netherlands called Gouda in
the more middle part of the Netherlands. A historical event that
she remembered was that in 1953 the dikes of the Netherlands
broke, and a large part of the country was flooded. This event
impressed here because everybody that could work would be sent
to repair the dikes.
The media changed a lot since her childhood. In her time the media
was mostly used for informational news and about trading. In the
time period my grandma was our age, you had the cell phone on
the wall, you had newspaper and radio and my grandma’s family
was the first in their town to get a television. These did not have
any colour of course. In here time the news on tv and the kid shows were most popular, and
the newspapers where mostly read by old people. Some radio stations back then were afro
and KRO. Some newspapers were the Volkskrant and the Prul for example. My grandma
mostly used the cell phone hanging on the wall or the radio daily because the tv would only
be turned on if their parents said it was allowed. She mostly used these media because for
relaxing and knowing what was happening in the world. She read the newspaper every day
and the radio were on most of the day to. The tv was only on in the evening and in the
weekends. The costs of the media these days did not really mind because you just needed it.
The development was not as big as now a days, but of course new models got invented now
and then.

Diddy van Zuijlen, Ruben’s Grandmother

My grandmother is called Diddy van Zuijlen and
she is 76 years old. Her family consisted of 7
people, 2 parents and 5 children. Her father had
his own company where she had to help
sometimes. Because he had a well-running
company, they didn’t struggle with money, but
her father was still careful with his money. This
was because he came from a family where they
were with 14 people, where there were 2
parents and 12 children. Her mother was with
10 people in a family, 2 parents and 8 children.
One historical event she remembers is “3
oktober” because she always went to Leiden to watch the parades and to have fun.
The media which were available were newspapers, magazines, radio’s, books, movies and
later on televisions. Some characteristics that she remembers of the media is that the
movies were in black and white and that the phones were hanging on the wall. The most
popular one in her time was the radio, because it was one of the most accessible ones.
Some of the channels on the radio were “Nederland 1, 2 & 3”. The media she used the most
were books, because she loved to read. She used them mostly for entertainment and the
books were important for her. She read books every day, she went to the cinema ones every
year, and she used the television every day too. She used the media for about 2 – 3 hours
per day. She had to share her books with her sisters and the television and the radio with
the family. She doesn’t remember what the costs were, but the major breakthrough for her
was the television. That is because that way she didn’t only have to hear, but could also
watch the news.

Us
Michaela Hekkelman
I'm Michaela and I am 14 years old. I live in Voorschoten, next to Leiden. I live here with my
mother, my father, my two sisters and my dog. I have had 3 uncles from my father's side,
but one of them died before the Corona pandemic. From my mother's side I have 1 uncle
and 2 aunts, but they all either live in England or in Australia, so I don’t see them as much.
The one historical event is obvious: the Corona pandemic.
I think we have very similar media in the Netherlands as in India. So, for me, I mostly use my
iPhone for social media like Instagram and WhatsApp. Other media that are popular are
TikTok and Snapchat, some people also have subscriptions to magazines, but not me. The
popular TV shows are: NPO1,2 and 3 and RTL4. However, I mostly watch BBC1 and 2, which
are English channels. The radio station I listen to the most is called Skyradio. I mostly use all
these media for entertainment and if I want some information, I just look it up online. I use
my iPhone quite a lot and that is just on my own, me and my family also watch a lot of
television, but that is only in the evenings. Like I said before, I don’t have any subscriptions,
so I don’t know how much they cost. The price for tickets in the cinema depends on where
you go, so if you go to a bigger and better cinema, but the price is usually around 9 euros.
There weren't many big changes in the media, but the were some small ones like new
iPhones and TikTok.

Michael van Hilten

I am Michael and I am 14 years old. I live in Rijnsburg,
it’s close to Leiden. I live in a terraced house. I live there
with my father, my mother and my older sister. My
mother has two younger sisters, both of them have
children, my father has two older sisters and one older
brother. The big historical event I experienced is
corona. It impressed me, because it is a horrible event
that impacts all of the world.
There are many types of media nowadays. There are obviously newspapers and television,
but now there is also social media, which is very new. And it is also the most popular. I
mostly use social media, but sometimes I also watch the news and listen to the radio. I
mostly use media for entertainment, although I watch the news for information. The use of
media is very important to me, because it's a big part of my daily life. I use the media a lot. I
think at least a few hours. I use the media almost always alone. I pay nothing to very little
for the media, if something does cost money, then my parents pay for it most of the times.
The changes in the media I can remember are almost always about social media. But apart
from that I can't remember much else that has changed.

Marijn Goossens
I am Marijn Goossens and I am 14 years old. I live in a village called Oegstgeest, which is
surrounded by the town called Leiden. I live together with my parents, my two younger
brothers and an added family member. My dad’s family consisted of him and his parents.
My mom’s family consisted of two parents, two girls and one boy. I would say a historical
event that happened is the corona virus. This worldwide pandemic is not something that
happens a lot.
The role has not changed in an enormous amount. One big change is that communication
through media was very important again since the pandemic, because you could not see
everybody, so you called each other or messaged each other. Now a days, there are a lot of
different media. You have the tv, cellphone, smartphone, newspapers, radio, and computers
and apple watches and so on. The televisions get bigger every day. The smartphones are
improved a lot and there are a lot of different radio stations. I think that nowadays
smartphones and laptops are very popular. Although tv is also still very popular, carrying a
phone, smartwatches and ear pods with you, makes people be lazier. Some popular tv
channels are Nickelodeon, the journal or other channels. Some radio channels are Radio
538, 100 % NL or Qmusic. I mostly use my smartphone, laptop and sometimes the tv. Mostly
because of entertainment school or communication. The media was very important because
of the worldwide pandemic because you could not really have contact with a lot of people,
so you used the media. I spend a lot of hours on my smartphone and computer, and I would
watch tv like 2-3 times a week. I would not really pay anything for using these media
because my parents paid it for me, but for the cinema and new video games, I paid a decent
amount of money. The development of media was mainly just a lot of different smartphones
and tv’s being made and sailed.

Eva de Bruin
I am Eva and I am 14 years old. I live in the town Oegstgeest, which is next to Leiden. My
parents are divorced, so I live in two houses. With my mother I live in a terraced house,
together with her and my stepfather. At my dad’s I live in a semidetached house, together
with him, my stepmother and my two little brothers. I have two uncles on my mother’s side,
one uncle on my father’s side, one aunt on my stepfather’s side and one aunt on my
stepmother’s side. The historical event I chose is of course the Corona pandemic. Not only
because of its size, but also because the things happening when I was just born or a bit later,
I cannot even remember.
The media has had some changes in the years, for example iPhones are very popular now
and have almost become sort of a need in society. Also, better headphones and computers
have been developed. Next to electronics there is an enormous number of magazines and
newspapers you can buy. I have a subscription on some comics and I also read the
magazines my mom buys, and sometimes the newspapers. The price of these depend on
how big they are, but my subscriptions are cheaper than when you buy the magazines loose
in the store. I do still listen to a lot of radio, for example Skyradio or Radio 538, but most of
the times I use the music on my phone, for example Apple Music or Spotify. Social media
has also become a part of my life, for example Instagram and WhatsApp. But I of course also
go to the cinema if it’s open. Mostly, the tickets cost around 10 euros, but it defers on
where you go. Subscriptions on the tv also cost something, but it again depends on what
kind of subscription you have. But the ones I have, for example Netflix, Prime and Disney+
are about the same price a month. Of course, there are also videogames. The ones I play, I
buy in the store and not online. Just like I don’t buy anything that is not real, so for example
you have a game on your phone, and you pay for attributes in there, but if you delete the
game you don’t get the money back, so I don’t do that. Altogether, I think that the media
has changed for the good and the bad, but I believe development is always progress.

Ruben van Zuijlen

I am Ruben and I am 14 years old. I live in Rijnsburg, which is a village close to the city
Leiden. I live in a terraced house, together with my mother, father and my sister. My mother
lived with her mother, father and 2 sisters. But my father lived with his mother, father and 2
brothers. The historical event I remember the most of our time, is probably the Covid
pandemic. This is because I was majorly affected by it, and because it is a world-wide
pandemic, which hasn’t happened much in my lifetime.
The media has developed quickly in throughout the years. A lot of it is online now, which is
accessible via laptops, computers, phones, tablets, etc. The media we use the most
nowadays, are phones. We still use newspapers, magazines, books, radio’s and television,
but the usage of those items has decreased. Some characteristics of our media is that
everything is much more accessible than before, the online media is used way more
frequently than the analog media and the online media is increasing its importance. Some
names of the media I use, are SkyRadio, Spotify, Minecraft and Valorant. I use these media
for entertainment, because it is more accessible than other things, like the cinema.
Therefore, these media are very important for me. That is why I use these media daily, for a
couple of hours. I do not have to share my phone, but sometimes my laptop with my
mother, because she has online gatherings as well. I don’t really spend my money, but
sometimes I buy a new videogame. But besides that, I don’t have to pay for any other sort
of media. The only changes I can think of is the development of the devices we use for the
internet and the rate at which they develop.

Comparison
1. The similarities of our grandparents were that most of the televisions in that time
were still black and white. And our grandparents experienced that the radio was one
of the most important forms of media when they were our age. Some differences
were that Michael’s grandmother had her own radio, while the rest had to share it.
And that Ruben’s grandmother liked books more instead of the radio.
 2. All our interviewed parents did not live in poverty. Our parents mostly used the
television, radio and magazines. They used these types of media for entertainment.
During the time of our parents, we can say that the media was quite advanced
already. One of the differences were that the mother of Michaela lived in England, so
the radio and television were different than the ones in the Netherlands.
3. Similarities between our grandparents and parents are that the media in there days
was more used for information and trading than it is now. And that they used the
radio a lot, because it was the most accessible. But some differences are for example
that our grandparents lived in way bigger families. Our parents also had colored tv
when they were younger while at our grandparents the tv always stayed black and
white through their childhood.
4. Well, in the time of our grandparent’s money was not really a subject because you
just needed as much media as you could get to make even more money. While with
our parents the media was mostly used for entertainment like nowadays. Of course,
we still have the news, but entertainment got a bigger role in the media.

Conclusion
1. The role of media changed a lot during these 3 generations and will change even
more in the future. For instance, in the time of our grandparents the media was
almost fully used to share news and information and to do a lot of trading. Then in
the generation of our parents the media was still used for the news, but less for
trading and more for entertainment. And nowadays, we use it even more for
entertainment. But when you think about it, we still use it for the news and trading.
You can think of the advertisements and commercials for certain products.
2. One recommendation for teenagers nowadays, is that they should hurt other
people’s feelings less. Because if someone posts something, and you go to the
comments, you almost always see a comment which gives negativity. And secondly,
keep in mind that u shouldn’t spend too long on social media and other things like
that. It is hurtful for your eyes and it is very tiring. Next to that, think of how long you
have left everyday without the usage of your phone. Therefore, we recommend to
not use your phone for a long time after each other.