COLEGIUL NAIONAL VASILE ALECSANDRI GALAI

LUCRARE DE ATESTAT

Coordonatori: Prof. Anca MANEA

Absolvent:
Andreea Partene

Anul
2015

COLEGIUL NAIONAL VASILE ALECSANDRI GALAI

MTV (Music Television)

Coordonatori: Prof. Anca MANEA

Absolvent:
Andreea Partene

Anul
2015

Table of Contents:

INTRODUCTION
1.The Importance of MTV 6
2.Born of an MTV nation ..8
2..1 MTV and the Globalization of Popular Culture.9
2.2 MTV Generation10
3.The most important moments in MTV history.12
3.1 10 Classic Moments in MTV History.13
3.2 The Billie Jean moment17
4. Image and branding.18
5. Recent music programs (2009present).20
CONCLUSION
REFERENCES
APPENDIX

Introduction
In August 1981, Music Television- now popularly known as MTV- was launched. Within
a matter of years it revitalized a struggling record industry; made the careers of leading pop stars
like Madonna, Boy George, Cyndi Lauper, and Duran Duran; infiltrated traditional network
television and the movie industry; revolutionized the advertising industry; and stimulated
purchases in several markets, most notably fashion apparel. The reach of MTV has proven long
and profitable. In this book, Jack Banks examines the historical development of music video as a
commodity and analyzes the existing structures within which music video is produced,
distributed, and exhibited on its premier music channel, MTV. Who controls MTV? What part do
record companies play in the financing and production of music video? How do the power
brokers in the business affect the ideological content of music video? Given the tight sphere of
influence within the music industry, what are the future trends for music video and for artistic
freedom of expression? This piece of work tries to demonstrate how MTV became one of the
most influential media enterprises of our society and also how it works.
The reason why I chose to write about the MTV and the whole music industry
revolutionized with its apparition, is that I find it representative how powerful was this
programme which managed to influence many generations since its emergence. When you fall in
love with music you become interested in everything that lead to it. That is why for me MTV
seems more interesting than any other subject. It is fascinating to discover that all that music
that you listen when you turn on the TV have an interesting history which is maybe more
bewitching than what you see in that moment.I strongly believe that it changed the whole way
we had to think about marketing our music. It created an opportunity, a platform for the music
industry to not just sell cds. The interesting fact about MTV is that it has nevertheless redefined
the way people relate to music.
The first chapter The Importance of MTV and also the second one Born of an Mtv
nation with its subsections intend to prove the idea that behind what we see it is a whole
interesting history and also the interesting fact that MTV has nevertheless redefined the way
people relate to music.

The third chapter The most important moments in MTV history is meant to show
exactly what revolutionized the entire music industry but also what bought fame to MTV.Also
the last two chapters Image and brandingand Recent music programs surprise how was
chosen the perfect logo for for what became MTV over time and what is going on nowadays with
all the programmes created by MTV .

1.The Importance of MTV

In 1981 MTV was introduced for the very first time. The executives had good intentions
when they decided it was time to bring rock music to the viewers. There target audience were
men and women between the ages of twelve to thirty-four. The main goal of the operation was to
get the baby boomers to open up their wallets because they felt that this was the peak of
consumer spending in the United States.
Two huge companies Time Warner Inc. and American Express decided to go into
business together as partners. Their mission was to attempt for the very first time to provide
innovative programming to cable television.
To the surprise of many big corporations in America television in the 1980s proved to be
a much better promoter for popular music than it was for their competition radio and motion
pictures.
At the end of the 1980s MTV reached over 40 million people mostly teenagers who
became the focal point of advertisers because they were the ones who purchased the music in
stores.
A music video had become just as important as it was to record music. Music Videos
became the alternative to am and fm radio. MTV made sure a music video was played three to
five times a day, seven days a week for up to two months.
By 1990 MTV music video was in 56 million homes. That was a larger audience than
American Bandstand and the ED Sullivan Show.
The key to MTV success was a new group of performers who introduced pop music to
the world. These artists were Paula Abdul, Madonna, and the king of pop himself Michael
Jackson. They wore outrageous outfits and had fantastic choreography. Their clothing was just
as important as their music was because the clothing told us who they were as a person. It
brought out their personality and made people curious. They wanted to know more about the
artist.

Instead of having a performance on Network TV the rock video had a complete

performance that could be constructed and edited on videotape.
Unfortunately, making a music video was very expensive but the rewards were even
higher. Michael Jacksons thriller album sold over 40 million copies worldwide becoming the
most successful product in the history of recorded sound.
The success of Thriller lead to a major marketing campaign which highlight world tours,
groups, stars, and profits for the big corporations. Many companies rushed to get music videos
on the shelf of stores because they were in high demand. People wanted to watch their favorite
music videos over and over again which surprised the record company. It lead to huge profits.
Overall, I believe MTV was huge because of the upcoming stars. I feel they got lucky.
After all there was only one Michael Jackson and one Madonna two huge stars that happened to
be around in the early 1980s. I also feel it was huge that they could construct and edit a
complete performance on video tape. To me that was the key to MTV success.

2.Born of an MTV nation

7

In 1981, MTV: Music Television goes on the air for the first time ever, with the words
(spoken by one of MTVs creators, John Lack): Ladies and gentlemen, rock and roll. The
Buggles Video Killed the Radio Star was the first music video to air on the new cable
television channel, which initially was available only to households in parts of New Jersey. MTV
went on to revolutionize the music industry and become an influential source of pop culture and
entertainment in the United States and other parts of the world, including Europe, Asia and Latin
America, which all have MTV-branded channels.
In MTVs early days, its programming consisted of basic music videos that were
introduced by VJs (video jockeys) and provided for free by record companies. As the record
industry recognized MTVs value as a promotional vehicle, money was invested in making
creative, cutting-edge videos. Some directors, including Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich,
Three Kings) and Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), worked on music
videos before segueing into feature films. In the 1980s, MTV was instrumental in promoting the
careers of performers such as Madonna, Michael Jackson, Prince and Duran Duran, whose
videos played in heavy rotation.
By the late 1980s, MTV started airing non-video programming, geared toward teenagers
and young adults. Its popular reality series The Real World launched in 1992 and was followed
by such highly rated shows as The Osbournes, Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica, Laguna Beach, My
Super Sweet 16 and The Hills. MTV also debuted animated series including Beavis and Butthead
and Celebrity Deathmatch, as well as documentaries, news, game shows and public service
campaigns . MTV developed a reputation for pushing cultural boundaries and taste; the airing of
Madonnas 1989 Like a Prayer video is just one famous example. In 1984, the channel
launched the MTV Music Video Awards, which were followed in 1992 by the MTV Movie
Awards. Today, MTVs music-video programming is largely confined to one show, Total Request
Live.

2.1 MTV and the Globalization of Popular Culture

8

Like other media companies, MTV Networks has expanded its operations globally,
launching derivatives of MTV, including MTV Europe, MTV Asia, and MTV Latino, in other
countries and regions. This international expansion of MTV's services raises perennial concerns
about U.S. cultural influence abroad since MTV's programs mostly play artists from the United
States and the United Kingdom, often giving scant attention to indigenous music and only
showing local artists if they mimic American-style rock. This chapter examines the history,
operations, and programming of MTV's various international services, giving special attention to
the proportion of regional and foreign music presented. MTV's strategies in its overseas
operations are reviewed, most notably its attempt to foster and exploit an international youth
culture. MTV hopes to shape a global audience of young people that will be sought by
transnational advertisers wanting to reach this group. Finally, alternatives to MTV are explored
like Canada's MuchMusic, which attempts to preserve the country's indigenous music.

Corporate Incentives to Develop International Markets

MTVN's launch of music program services in other countries is the company's most
extensive attempt to develop ancillary markets related to the original American MTV. Tom
Freston, the president of MTV Networks, stresses the importance of MTV's international
expansion, saying, "Our goal is to be in every home in the world."1 MTV Networks also has
ambitious plans to export versions of MTV's sister services VH-1 and Nickelodeon to other
countries. This expansion exemplifies the natural tendency for U.S. companies with media
interests to expand to other countries after the U.S. market has been saturated, relying more on
foreign markets for future growth. International operations often account for more than 50
percent of total revenues of media conglomerates.

2.2.MTV Generation

The MTV Generation refers to youth of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, a time
when many were influenced by the MTV television channel. The term is sometimes used
synonymously with Generation X.
The origin of the phrase has been attributed to the MTV Network itself "to describe the
teenagers that dominate their ratings".
The phrase came into general use more than two years after the cable network's 1981
debut. One observer notes that "By 1984, MTV was reaching 1.2 percent of the daily television
audience, and more than a quarter of daily teen viewers. Children of the eighties would
henceforth be known as 'the MTV Generation.' As early as its October 13, 1984 issue, Billboard
Magazine was using the term in reference to musical preferences. The phrase was later expanded
to include the purchasing choices of a generation of consumers, with the J. Walter Thompson
advertising agency describing the demographic in a 1985 presentation entitled "The New
American Consumers", with one business columnist noting that "We baby boomers are raising
what J. Walter calls the MTV Generation and these 12 to 19 year olds are unbelievably
affluent..." Bret Easton Ellis was called the "voice of the MTV generation" as early as 1985, after
the publication of his first novel, Less Than Zero.
MTV broadcast a documentary titled MTV Generation in 1991. Reviewing it, the New
York Times described the group as "young adults struggling to establish a cultural niche for
themselves, something that will distinguish them from the hippies and baby boomers and yuppies
of times past." The documentary depicts the MTV Generation as characterised by cynicism,
uncertainty, and an ability to process information quickly, and focusing on diversions and retro
interests.
"Much has been written about the so-called "baby buster" generation--the fairly
anonymous group of 20ish young adults struggling to separate themselves from the shadow of
the baby boomers ... The group's newest moniker, "the MTV generation," might be the most
accurate description yet. For while much has been made about the generation's lack of a single
unifying theme or experience, its members seem to have one thing in common: music videos."
In 1991, author Douglas Coupland said of the label: "MTV would like to have us believe
that everyone in their 20s is the MTV Generation. That's like going through life with a big
10

product placement tattooed on your head, as if they're the only cultural influence on the entire
planet."

3.The most important moments in MTV history

11

01.August 1981-In the beginning-MTV sings on with its fist video the symbolically charged
video Video Killed the Radio Star by the Buggles.Instead of disc jockeys it features video
jockeys or VJs ,the first of it which include Nina Blackwood,Mark Goodman,Alan
Hunter,J.J.Jackson and Martha Quinn.
02.Dec 1983-Thriller-Michael Jacksons 14-minute Thriller video is unleashed.The JohnLandis directed short-film,which incorporates dialogue,film music and guest appearances ,proves
huge influential,expanding the concept of music videos.
14 sept 1984-Video Music Awards-MTV airs its first-ever Video Music Awards ,which helps
launch a then up-aand-coming Madonna to superstardom.The singer performs a provocative
rendition of Like a Virgin,which ends with her rolling around the stage in the weeding gown.
13 iul 1985-Live Aid-The Live Aid benefit concerts are staged with MTV airing 17 hours of
programming from two stadium on two different continents.
21 ian 1990-Unplugged-The Unplugged acoustic music series makes its first appearance and
featured Squeeze,Syd Straw and Elliot Easton.Artists who later appeared on the show included
Nirvana,Eric Clapton,Mariah Carey,Sting and Bruce Springsteen in an intimate setting.
04 sept 1998-TRL-MTV premiers Total Request Live,an interactive request program
featuring Carson Daly as the host.It runs for 10 years.
05 mar 2002-The Osbournes-The Osbournes appears on MTV ,both amusing and
bewildering viewers with its look into patriarch Ozzy Osbournes eccentric rock nroll
family.The show later receives a Primetime Emmy for outstanding non-fiction program.
01 aug 2011-Happy Anniversary!-Starting July 3- at 6 a.m. VH1 Classic will air a three-day
tribute to MTVs birthday.The program will re-air MTVS first original hour of programming on
July 31 at midnight and wrap up Monday,Aug 1,at midnight.

3.1. 10 Classic Moments in MTV History

12

10.The Material Girl-From her excessively accessorized fingerless gloves and bracelets 80s
look to the Since when is she British? And whats Kabbala? 90s image to the Holy cats, have
you seen her arms? We should all hope to look that good at 50. gym-toning of the 00s, Madge
has inspired many a trend. My personal favorite was the short-haired Open Your Heart/Papa
Dont Preach/Cherish Madonna, but for the definitive look, we have to travel back to the
1984 Video Music Awards. There, atop a giant wedding cake and clad in a skimpy bridal gown,
she sang Like a Virgin, inspiring countless Quentin Tarantino monologues and establishing
herself as an MTV fixture.(PIC 3)

9. The King of Pop-Perhaps more than any other artist in the early years of the network, Michael
Jackson and MTV had an intensely symbiotic relationship. Prior to Jacksons arrival, the
networks lineup was, frankly, white. R&B had virtually no representation, and raps sole inroad
was Blondies Rapture. That changed dramatically with Thriller. Videos for Beat It and
Billie Jean entered heavy rotation, and Jackson fans flocked to MTV in droves. The peak of
the Thriller phenomenon was the video debut of the albums title track. On December 2, 1983,
MTV

premiered

the

14-minute-long,

Romero-inspired

Thriller.

With

outstanding

choreography, makeup effects by Rick Baker, and direction by John Landis, Thriller has been
called the greatest video of all time. And it put MTV on the pop culture map.

8. The Specialty Shows-In 1986 MTV launched the first of its genre programs, 120 Minutes.
Hosted by Dave Kendall and featuring the top acts in new wave, goth, punk, industrial, and the
emerging alternative genre, 120 Minutes provided a showcase for bands that, outside of college
radio, had limited exposure in the United States. The following year, heavy metal was given
similar treatment with the debut of Headbangers Ball, and 1988 saw the premiere of Yo! MTV
Raps. Hosts Ed Lover and Doctor Dre (no, not that Dr. Dre) brought hip-hop to mainstream
America, a factor that helped contribute to the explosion in that genres popularity in the 90s
and beyond.

13

7. The Performance-In 1989 MTV launched its Unplugged concert series. Featuring a live
audience and few, if any, amplified instruments, Unplugged was intended to bring the audience
closer to the artist, presenting music in a more stripped down or raw form. At no time was that
mission more successful than in November 1993, when Nirvana took the stage. While other
Unplugged shows were little more than an acoustic journey through a bands greatest hits,
Nirvanas set list included seldom heard album tracks and relatively obscure covers. The
program closed with a reinterpretation of Leadbellys classic murder ballad Where Did You
Sleep Last Night? On its own, the performance was uniquely compelling, showing a band at the
height of its creative power. When Nirvana front man Kurt Cobain committed suicide just
months after the show was broadcast, it became a snapshot of the final days of a supremely
gifted, but tortured, artist.

6. The Question-As the 1992 presidential election approached, MTV launched its Choose or
Lose campaign to promote voter registration among young people. This signaled a new era of
political involvement for the network, one that continued (albeit in far reduced capacity) until
fairly recently. In 1994 MTV hosted a town hall meeting with President Bill Clinton to discuss
issues that directly affected young people. While many of the audience members posed questions
about youth violence or the then-pending national crime bill, one chose to make things a bit more
personal. Boxers or briefs? Briefs, in case you were curious.

5. The Kiss-One label that had never been applied to the King of Pop was normal. His outsize
personality incorporated a personal amusement park, a pet chimp named Bubbles, and a string of
accusations involving inappropriate relations with children. So when he married Lisa Marie
Presley (daughter of the King himself) in 1994, it seemed as if the relationship must be another
example of Michael being Michael. The pair appeared hand-in-hand at the 1994 Video Music
Awards, and were greeted with a standing ovation. Jackson quipped Nobody thought this would
last, before embracing Presley for a lingering kiss. They were divorced two years later, but it
made for great television.

14

4. The Achiever-In 1992 MTV created the MTV Movie Awards, a tongue-in-cheek awards show
that recognized cinematic achievement in such fields as best action sequence, best sandwich
in a movie, and most desirable female. Alongside such legitimate categories, the Movie
Awards also honored lifetime achievement. Intended as little more than a gag, the award was
conferred to such screen idols as Godzilla and Chewbacca (the award took the form of a medal,
to correct the glaring omission of one being conferred upon Chewie at the end of Star Wars). But
in 1998, MTV chose to select Clint Howard. Best known as the younger brother of Ron Howard,
the character actor was immediately recognizable as You know, that guy in a host of movies
(more than 200 at the current count). The jaw-dropping pride and graciousness with which
Howard accepted the award left the audience a bit humbled, but it all worked out for the best.
MTV retired the award (because, really, how could it top itself) and Howards career got a huge
boost, as he entered the realm of actors (such as Bill Murray and Christopher Walken) whose
presence in a film virtually guaranteed a certain measure of campy, self-aware brilliance.

3. The Other Kiss-At the 2003 Video Music Awards, Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera took
the stage to re-create the classic Like a Virgin performance (complete with the cake and bridal
gowns). Halfway through the number, Madonna (in a grooms tuxedo) appeared at the top of the
cake and launched into, well, were post Ray of Light here, so its not a song that many would
remember anywayespecially given what came next. The trio engaged in a sultry dance routine
that culminated with Madonna leaning in to kiss both Britney and Christina. And thats as far as
anyone ever gets when watching the video, which means that they miss out on a fantastic, highenergy performance by Missy Elliott thats part of the same number.

2. The Best Video of All Time-You knew that Kanye had to make the list. Its not every day that
ones name becomes a verb for an ill-advised attempt to seize the spotlight, and Mr. West
certainly made the most of his moment (not to mention the subsequent hilarity that was his
Twitter feed). When it was revealed that country songstress Taylor Swift had captured the award
for best female video, Kanye rushed the stage, interrupting Swifts acceptance speech, to declare
that Beyonc had one of the best videos of all time. Beyonc, to her credit, was horrified by
15

the display, and later invited Swift onstage to finish her speech. Kanye didnt do too badly for
himself in the aftermath. The strange trip that was 2009 proved to be a crucial element in the
creation of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, one of the best albums of 2010.

1. The Meat Dress-When blurring the line between pop singer and performance artist is ones
stock-in-trade, the outrageous becomes the routine. Such is the case for one Stefani Germanotta,
better known to the world as Lady Gaga. Whether arriving at events encased in a giant egg, or
greeting Queen Elizabeth II attired as a member of the Red Queens entourage from Wonderland,
Gagas fashion statements sometimes spoke louder than her music. Which is not to diminish the
music in any wayif MTV were still playing videos, Bad Romance would have jump-started
the channel. It was for just that song that Gaga appeared at the 2010 Video Music Awards attired
completely in meat. From head to toe, her hat, dress, and shoes were made of Argentinian beef.
The meat dress perfectly captured the spirit of Gaga, and it was placed in the Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame in 2011 (Gaga herself will not be eligible for induction until 2033).

3.2. The Billie Jean moment

16

Music video
A male is shown standing in a bent down position on his toes on top of an illuminated
tile. He is wearing a black jacket and pants with white shoes and a pink shirt. Behind the male a
grey narrow path can be seen as well as buildings in the far background.(PIC.1)
Jackson landing on his toes and illuminating a tile in the music video for "Billie Jean".
The short film for Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" is considered the video that brought
MTV, until then a fairly new and unknown music channel, into mainstream attention. It was one
of the first videos by a black artist to be aired regularly by the channel, as the network's
executives felt black music wasn't "rock" enough. Directed by Steve Barron, the video shows a
photographer who follows Jackson. The paparazzo never catches the singer, and when
photographed Jackson fails to materialize on the developed picture. The entertainer dances his
way to Billie Jean's hotel room and as he walks along a sidewalk, each tile lights up at his touch.
After he performs a quick spin, Jackson jumps and lands, freeze framed, on his toes.
Upon arrival at the hotel, Jackson climbs the staircase to Billie Jean's room. Each step lights up
as he touches it and a burnt out "Hotel" sign illuminates as he passes. The paparazzo then arrives
at the scene and watches as Jackson vanishes under the covers of Billie Jean's bed. Trailed by the
police, the paparazzo is then arrested for spying on Billie Jean.Jackson sported a new look for the
video; Jheri curled hair. Jackson's clothes, a black leather suit with a pink shirt and a red bow tie,
were copied by children around the US. Imitation became so severe that, despite pupil protests,
Bound Brook High School banned students from wearing a single white glove like Jackson had
on during the performance of "Billie Jean" at Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever.
Walter Yetnikoff, the president of Jackson's record label CBS, approached MTV to play
the "Billie Jean" video. He became enraged when MTV refused to play the video, and threatened
to go public with MTV's stance on black musicians. "I said to MTV, 'I'm pulling everything we
have off the air, all our product. I'm not going to give you any more videos. And I'm going to go
public and fucking tell them about the fact you don't want to play music by a black guy.'"MTV
relented and played the "Billie Jean" video in heavy rotation along with Prince's "Little Red
Corvette".After the video was aired, Thriller went on to sell an additional 10 million copies.The
short film was inducted into the Music Video Producers Hall of Fame in 1992.In a 2005 poll of
31 pop stars, video directors, agents and journalists conducted by telecommunications company
3, the music video was ranked fifth in their "Top 20 Music Videos Ever".The video was also
ranked as the 35th greatest music video in a list compiled by MTV and TV Guide at the
millennium.The music video is featured on the DVDs Video Greatest Hits HIStory, Number
Ones, on the bonus DVD of Thriller 25 and Michael Jackson's Vision.

17

4.Image and branding

Original logos and IDs
The MTV logo was designed in 1981 by Manhattan Design, a collective formed by Frank
Olinsky,Pat Gorman and Patty Rogoff, under the guidance of MTV's original creative director,
Fred Seibert. The 'M' was sketched by Rogoff, with the 'TV' spray painted by Olinksky.
Throughout MTV's early days, the channel's main logo was a large yellow "M" with red
letters "TV," but unlike most networks' logos, the MTV logo constantly morphed and adapted
with different colors, patterns and images filling in the large block letter. The very first moments
of MTV featured an adaptation of the first landing on the moon, directly from NASA still images
(a concept of Seibert's, executed by Buzz Potamkin and Perpetual Motion Pictures). After the
"moon landing," as well as the top of every hour until at least the mid-1980s (which ran "more
than 15,000" times each year, according to Seibert), featured a rapidly changing network ID logo
that changed its appearance several times per second. The only constant aspects of MTV's logo at
the time were its general shape and proportions; everything else was dynamic.(PIC 2)
The channel's "I want my MTV!" image and branding campaign was launched in 1982. The
media strategy and creative executions were developed by George Lois, based on a cereal
commercial from the 1950s, "I want my Maypo!" that George created.Over the years the
campaign featured known artists and celebrities including Pete Townshend, Pat Benatar, Adam
Ant, David Bowie, The Police, Kiss, Culture Club, Billy Idol, Hall & Oates, Cyndi Lauper,
Madonna, Lionel Richie, Ric Ocasek, John Mellencamp, Peter Wolf, Joe Elliot, Stevie Nicks,
Rick Springfield and Mick Jagger interacting with the MTV logo on-air, encouraging viewers to
call their cable or satellite providers and request that MTV be added to their local channel
lineups. Eventually, the slogan became so ubiquitous it became incorporated as a sung (by Sting)
lyric in the Mark Knopfler penned Dire Straits' record "Money for Nothing."
1990s and 2000s updates
Once MTV's original morphing logo had run its course, the channel began to use a solid color
white logo that was otherwise the same as the original. During the late 1990s and early 2000s,
MTV updated its on-air appearance at the beginning of every year and again each summer,
18

creating a consistent brand across all of its music-related shows. This style of channel-wide
branding came to an end as MTV drastically reduced its number of music-related shows in the
early to mid-2000s. At this time, MTV introduced a static, single-color digital on-screen graphic
during all of its other programming.
2010 rebranding- Since the premiere of the short-lived FNMTV in 2008, MTV has used a
revised, chopped version of its traditional logo during most of its on-air programming. This new
logo was finalized and formally became MTV's official brand mark on February 8, 2010, when it
debuted on MTV's website. The channel's long-running official tagline "Music Television" was
officially dropped at this time.The revised logo is largely the same as MTV's original logo, but it
excludes the "Music Television" caption, the bottom section of the "M" block letter, and the
trailing letter "V" that branched off to the side of the original logo.However, much like the everchanging patterns that filled MTV's original 1981 logo, the new 2010 logo is designed to be
filled in with an unlimited variety of pictures and images. It is used worldwide, but not in all
countries. It was first adopted for MTV Films with the 2010 release Jackass 3D. MTV's
rebranding was overseen by Popkern.

19

5. Recent music programs (2009present)

MTV again resurrected the long-running series MTV Unplugged in 2009 with
performances from acts such as Adele and Paramore. However, unlike past Unplugged specials,
these new recordings usually only aired in their entirety on MTV's website, MTV.com.
Nevertheless, short clips of the specials are shown on MTV during the AMTV block of music
videos in the early morning hours. On June 12, 2011, MTV aired a traditional television premiere
of a new installment of MTV Unplugged instead of a web debut. The featured artist was rapper
Lil Wayne and the show debuted both on MTV and MTV2. The channel followed up with a
similar television premiere of MTV Unplugged with Florence and the Machine on April 8, 2012.
MTV launched 10 on Top in May 2010, a weekly program airing on Saturdays and hosted
by Lenay Dunn, that counts down the top 10 most trending and talked about topics of the week
(generally focused on entertainment). Dunn also appeared in segments between MTV's shows
throughout the day as a recognizable personality and face of the channel in the absence of
traditional VJs aside from its MTV News correspondents.
The animated series Beavis and Butt-head returned to MTV in October 2011 with new
episodes. As with the original version of the series that ran from 1993 to 1997, the modern-day
Beavis and Butt-head features segments in which its main characters watch and criticize music
videos
Sometime in 2012, MTV debuted Clubland, which previously existed as an hour of EDM
videos during the AMTV video block. The show has no host, but most editorial content is pushed
online by the show's Tumblr and other social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter. The show,
which leads off the channel's music video programming during the early morning hours on
Tuesdays through Thursdays and also airs on MTV Hits, was hosted by DJ Hardwell on July 5,
2012, but 'Clubland remains hostless and as a source the best new and old EDM tracks.
MTV launched a new talk show based on hip hop music on April 12, 2012, called Hip Hop
POV, hosted by Amanda Seales, Bu Thiam, Charlamagne, Devi Dev, and Sowmya
Krishnamurthy. The show featured hosted commentary on the headlines in hip hop culture,
providing opinions on new music, granting insider access to major events, and including artist
interviews. Hip Hip POV lasted several episodes before going on hiatus. The show was supposed
20

to return in Fall 2012, but was moved to MTV2 instead, where it was rebranded and merged with
Sucker Free Countdown. The new show debuted as The Week in Jams on October 28, 2012.
MTV launched a live talk show, It's On with Alexa Chung, on June 15, 2009. The host of the
program, Alexa Chung, was described as a "younger, more Web 2.0" version of Jimmy Fallon.
Although it was filmed in the same Times Square studio where TRL used to be broadcast, the
network stated that "the only thing the two shows have in common is the studio location."It's On
was cancelled in December of the same year, which again eliminated the only live in-studio
programming from MTV's schedule, just one year after TRL was also cancelled.
Shortly after Michael Jackson died on June 25, 2009, the channel aired several hours of
Jackson's music videos, accompanied by live news specials featuring reactions from MTV
personalities and other celebrities.The temporary shift in MTV's programming culminated the
following week with the channel's live coverage of Jackson's memorial service. MTV aired
similar one-hour live specials with music videos and news updates following the death of
Whitney Houston on February 11, 2012, and the death of Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys on
May 4, 2012.
The channel tried its hand again at live programming with the premiere of a half-hour
program called The Seven in September 2010. The program counted down seven entertainmentrelated stories of interest to viewers (and included some interview segments among them),
having aired weekdays at 5 p.m. with a weekend wrap-up at 10 am. ET. Shortly after its debut,
the show was slightly retooled as it dropped co-host Julia Alexander but kept fellow co-host
Kevin Manno; the Saturday recap show was eliminated as well. The Seven was cancelled on
June 13, 2011. Manno's only assignment at MTV post-Seven was conducting an interview with a
band which only aired on MTV.com. Manno is no longer employed with MTV and has since
appeared as an occasional correspondent on the LXTV-produced NBC series 1st Look.
Presently, MTV airs sporadic live specials called MTV First. The short program, produced
by MTV News, debuted in early 2011 and continues to air typically once every couple of weeks
on any given weekday. The specials usually begin at 7:53 pm. ET, led by one of MTV News'
correspondents who will conduct a live interview with a featured artist or actor who has come to
MTV to premiere a music video or movie trailer. MTV starts its next scheduled program at 8:00
21

pm, while the interview and chat with fans continues on MTV.com for another 30 to 60 minutes.
Since its debut in 2011, MTV First has featured high-profile acts such as Lady Gaga, Katy Perry,
Usher and Justin Bieber. In the absence of daily live programs such as TRL, It's on with Alexa
Chung and The Seven to facilitate such segments, the channel now uses MTV First as its newest
approach to present music video premieres and bring viewers from its main televis As MTV
expanded, music videos were no longer the centerpiece of its programming. Conventional
television shows came to replace the VJ-guided music video programming. Today, MTV presents
a wide variety of non-music-related television shows aimed primarily at the 12 to 18-year-old
demographic.ion channel to its website for real-time interaction with artists and celebrities.

Conclusion
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In conclusion, MTV, Music Television, continues to be a powerful cultural force. As it

can be seen throughout this piece of work MTVs evolution and development over several
generations of youth has proven more interesting than its immediate impacts on popular music,
visual style, and culture.
What MTV Networks did was to incorporate into its programming the imagined global
thereby naturalizing discourses of struggle between the global and the local through an overlay
of localization. To put it another way, by re-organizing its programming to provide local hooks
into global culture, MTV Networks was able to coopt the local imagination of its place within the
global.
What caused MTV to begin moving towards live and reality programming was the need
to capture audiences for longer periods of time than music videos would permit.This shift
coincided with the rise of the talk format in radio. In both instances programmers sought to hold
audiences for longer periods of time than was typical in a format that relied on the three minute
long pop song to sustain interest. In the case of MTV the result was a move toward a more
traditional television genre consisting largely of half-hour long programs, and also toward
audience participation.
So, MTV is a global brand that can be marketed, and used for marketing,irrespective of
the content and type of music programmed, indeed irrespective of music videos. As time passed
what had once been the pre-eminent medium for the broadcast of music videos became the preeminent medium for reality TV.

REFERENCES

23

Jack Banks, Monopoly Television:MTV's Quest to Control the Music, Boulder: Westview Press,
1996,page.89.
Critical Studies in Media Communication,Vol. 22, No. 1, March 2005, pp. 8388
CSMC-MTV.pdf,< http://stevejones.me/>,online, accessed April 29 th 2015
Birth of an MTV Nation.,< http://www.vanityfair.com/>,online, accessed April 29 th 2015
MTV, <www.wikipedia.com>,accessed April 27th 2015

APPENDIX
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(PIC 1)

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(PIC 2)

(PIC 3)

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