Friday 7 November 2008

I (don’t) want my MTV

Back in 1985, when Dire Straits launched “Money for Nothing”, people in Europe didn’t understand what the hell they were talking about. “MTV? What’s that all about?” – I remember saying at the time. It was not until August 1st 1987 that MTV Europe began and young people began to realise there was a channel for them, where they could see 24 hours of music videos!!

I remember being glued to the TV set for hours, watching my favourite VJ’s, people that became icons for my generation. Does anyone remember Ray Cokes’ “MTV Most Wanted”? Zig & Zag? Adam Curry? Paul King?

MTV today is nothing but a 24-hour naff reality show channel, where the new generation can only listen to music when it’s played by their “celebs” at home or in their cars or when they have to fill the void when nothing is happening with Hulk Hogan or Kim Kardashian.
I can already see some of your comments to this post: “You are too old, no longer the target for MTV”; well, I STILL hear music! I am still interested in watching music videos! Why shouldn’t MTV be my target as well?

All this whinging/vitriol has to do with yesterday’s EMA awards (and also the US MTV ones).
How detached from reality is MTV nowadays? How deaf/dumb/numb are its viewers?
How can you give the "Act of 2008" to Britney Spears???? Where did she act this year? Surely not in Europe, where these awards relate to!!

MTV has become more and more a channel for Political Correctness and “Highest Bidder” label merchandize vehicle!

Music is a business, I know that! But awards should reward quality, not serve as an apology! If MTV wanted to say sorry for putting a drunken out-of-shape Britney in the spotlight last year, they should have written her a cheque! Not give her all the awards they can think of! That may please the brainless few that don’t see past it, but not me.

MTV forgets we live in the digital world now, with music channels growing like mushrooms and dividing the audience's attention. It does not help their cause if more and more people watch them throw away their credibility!

And that is why I can safely say I will never watch MTV again!!

The good ol' days of MTV Europe!

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

não podia estar mais de acordo contigo. hoje de manhã, quando soube que a Britney tinha ganho esse prémio, pensei: "Endoideceram todos". já há uns tempos que ando para fazer um post sobre a MTV e sobre como a qualidade da sua programação decaiu calamitosamente na última década. a MTV, que devia ser um canal de música, agora tem mais reality shows que outra coisa. enfim, sinais dos tempos...

Anonymous said...

Estou totalmente de acordo.

nes said...

O Most Wanted é o meu programa de TV favorito de sempre!!! Ainda tenho alguns eps em cassete!! Incluindo o último com os Cure :D Até era sócia do clube de fãs do Ray Cokes lol.

Mas dessa foto não consegui reconhecer mais ninguém, assim em pequeno. Mas os meus tempos áureos de MTV foram mesmo esses, com ele, a Davina, Toby Amies, Lisa, Christian Sommervile, Enrico Silvestrin, a israelita que não me lembro do nome mas conheci à porta dos estúdios quando fui a Londres lol, a rapariga moreninha que apresentava o MTV News e de cuja boca ouvi a notícia de última hora, enquanto almoçava, que os Take That tinham acabado snif snif lol.

Tuga em Londres said...

Também fiquei muito surpreendida para ver que o melhor acto de 2008 e o melhor albúm foram para a Britney Spears. Ela teve o pior ano da carreira dela e só porque lançou agora um novo albúm de repente fica logo como a melhor do ano? Qual é a lógica??

Renato said...

e o grande Headbangers Ball que juntava desde death-metal ate ao grunge tudo num programa!

Ou o top rock com um jovem finlandesa (?) que era do melhor.....

Adaptando os grandes LZ a MTV é um pouco "what was and what should never be"