The gradual changes in media have initiated a four-fold transformation in family and home environments, in social practices, in learning, and in media literacy.  Each of these transformations includes youth that are exposed to new technology that is constantly advancing.  In order to give contemporary examples of how each of these four elements has impacted youth, a definition of each can be termed and explored. 
Gradual changes in media result in changes of home and family.  These changes involve a notable difference in what families include and view as spent time with other family members.  Not only has media moved into the center stage of family time, it has also moved family members into more family spaces.  Children moving into adolescence place media at a high importance in their lives.  This importance has grown into a challenging reverse child to parent teaching environment where the youth teach their parents the technology.  Children in families have also become very influential in the decision making of how much media is interjected into the home.  Unlike parents being the sole authority figures in the household, families now tend to practice negotiating and the decisions of all involved being equal.  A family board game night can now be overtaken by a night of SpongeBob as influenced by an 8-year old.   
As media evolves, there is a gradual change in social practices.  While leisure opportunities still exist outside the realm of media, social platforms offer a new endeavor for society to venture into.  This new venture builds a path for online relationships, advice, and even comfort and answers from people across the world.  “The Internet makes youth more sociable, independent, and serves as a safe haven.  It is also the space where a new type of culture is being created – the culture of participation.  
Learning practices are transformed as a result of evolving media.  Youth are no longer bound to the latest information from brick and mortar schools.  The evolving media dishes out a bottomless cup of knowledge that mixes with facts and figures taught in a physical school platform.  This new found knowledge utilized by youth can become a challenge to traditional learning.  Furthermore, presenting information in a newer technological way, and within a live teacher to student environment, can be positive if used in a suitable manner.  During the teaching of media literacy, youth can learn be given a voice.  “Perhaps this concept is not so different from any other areas of literacy, but it is more obvious in the area of media literacy because the ‘message’ is a vitally important piece of students’ lives”.  
 Questions involving media literacy arise while exploring the transformation of social structure.  Though youth are well-educated in media, it must be an educational experience that prepares them for a future as adults.  “Media literacy may mean that we require students to think a little more about their media choices.  It is truly not meant to ruin the entertainment value; although there will be some students who will make such a claim.  This of course, is not the intent of media literacy education”.Concerns about specific uses of technology that only skim the top of media literacy, may not give youth the solidity they need for a successful future.  The tools of media must be used properly in order for solidity to occur. 
In characterizing and exploring the gradual changes in media and how each impact youth, one can determine youth not only need protected, but they also need to be analyzed in how they are using new technology tools.  It is there society will learn how to help build family environments with comfortable media driven experiences, an awareness and understanding of youth social environments, engaging learning environments, and extensive media literacy education. 
