In the dark ages of 1990 when Focus on the Family launched what would soon become Plugged In, Edison’s light bulb was the light bulb, maps were made of paper, MySpace was what you violated in a crowded elevator, and even websites were, for most of us, those hard-to-reach, spider-infested corners of your basement.

Just a few things have changed since then!

The website you’re looking at right now marks our latest evolutionary—no, make that revolutionary—stride to keep you on top of that rapidly changing media world.

It's been almost a year since we first sat down and started seriously talking about reworking, redesigning, revamping, relaunching, reloading and adding a whole bunch of new stuff to Plugged In Online. Exhausting at times, the process has been consistently exhilarating for a whole host of reasons. But first and foremost was the idea that we could greatly improve the way we offer you advice and insight on entertainment.

Here's some of that advice and insight, packaged in a brand new way:

Plugged In Blog
A little less formal. A whole lot more interactive. (And you're reading it right now!) All of the Plugged In writers will be posting thoughts to our new blog. But the whole point is for you to join the dialogue. The more voices, the better.
 
The Official Plugged In Podcast
Hosted by Plugged In senior editor Bob Smithouser, our new audio podcast features spirited roundtable discussions among Plugged In writers—about the entertainment they're covering each week.

Family Room
Need to sit down for a spell and think things out? Need some specific help navigating entertainment for yourself or for your family? That’s why we’ve developed the Family Room, a place where you can explore timeless topics and access a growing archive of articles from the printed pages of Plugged In magazine (may it rest in peace!).

Focus on the Films
Every week Bob Waliszewski, Plugged In’s director, sits down to talk about what the latest box office hits are and how your family should react to them. Look for these short video episodes on our movie page.

Audio and Video Icons
You’ll notice that some of our movie and video reviews now have "Watch" and "Listen" icons next to them. Sometimes hearing about a film and actually seeing clips from it can help us get a better grip on what it’s all about. So keep an eye out for these links.

FIND Reviews
In most major areas of the new site we’ve placed a "Find" box in the top-right corner directly under the search box. It’s your compass as you look for whatever it is you’re looking for! Link here to try one of them out.

Top 10 Lists
We had a few of these on our old site, and they were so popular we’ve decided to put a whole bunch of them on our new site. Check out what other Plugged In readers are reading, along with movie box office lists, and video rental and sales lists.

So make yourself at home. Raid the fridge. And never fear, all of your favorite stuff is still here! Our movie, video, music, TV and games pages are all exactly where they should be—but with better layouts and cooler photos.

I think I can safely say that change is a good thing. It keeps us all young, energetic and relevant. But a few things, you can be sure, will never change: Our commitment to shining a light on the world of popular entertainment. Our commitment to telling the truth about what we encounter. Our commitment to giving you the best in Christian media discernment—information to safeguard your families and, maybe, offer a little inspiration along the way.

We’re pretty excited about this site. We hope you like what you see