A lot of the time though when people hear or read the word critical, they view it as the negative. We need to change, in a social sense, what the word critical and critical analysis means.
To add to this and explain what I mean, I look at characters critically when I like them. I find their flaws and perfections and see how they intermingle to make a character I like. I examine how that characters past as influenced their present and how it may influence their future.
From a narrative standpoint, I pick apart what makes a piece of literature I like to find out more about it. I use those ELA classes I took in Middle/HS and I put them to use in everything I read. I try to understand the story for what it is and what it could be trying to say between the lines. I look for all the negative and the positive and I ask, "What, When, Why and How?"
All aspiring authors should try to do this, with professional and non-professional(free content, like Fanfics) to see how their favorite authors convey emotions, tell a scene, etc. The people around you, be they famous or not, can teach you so much- you just have to look for the golden nuggets of themselves they sprinkled into their works.
I think the people who say “You don’t need to be critical of every piece of media you consume” fundamentally misunderstand what we mean by “critical”.
When we say “be critical of the media you consume” we don’t mean “be negative” as in, find every flaw and pick it apart CinemaSins style.
We mean “examine it”. Like, look at what you are consuming, and in many cases, enjoying, and ask yourself why you are enjoying it. Ask yourself who made it. Ask yourself if you are the target audience. Ask yourself if you are being represented by the characters you see. Ask yourself if the author has biases or political leanings they are trying to include in the story.
Just, ask yourself questions. The answers don’t have to be negative. That’s not what being critical means.