Although this show takes place in 1989, the characters are using a camcorder with a swing-out LCD screen. Three years later, in 1992, Sharp became the first company to build in a color LCD screen to replace the conventional viewfinder. In fact, their LCD screen was basically the entire camera with the lens assembly hanging off of it. No longer did users have to squint through a tiny eyepiece. This has become a standard feature of almost every consumer camcorder. Finally, today's digital video technology first arrived in late 1995. Panasonic and Sony brought out the first Digital Video camcorders, soon followed by Sharp and JVC.
Joel wears a Chicago White Sox with the MLB logo on the back. The MLB logo did not appear on the back of caps until 1992 and the show is set in 1989.
When the counselors meet for the first time, a caption gives the vague date of "Summer, 1989", but a camcorder POV explicitly shows the date is "Jun. 23 1989". Janet Jackson's "Miss You Much" is playing in the background. This song was released as a single on August 22, 1989, and its album ("Rhythm Nation 1814") was released on September 19, 1989.