MTV turns 25
So in one of my yahoo groups, someone posted an articale about MTV turning 25 years old today.
There was one line in the article I found provoking:
"Believe it or not, when the music video cable channel was launched a
quarter of a century ago, it literally changed the world. "
Believe it or not, when the music video cable channel was launched a quarter of a centruy ago,
it used to play music videos.
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,19960869-
MTV isn't making a big deal of it, but the network is turning 25.
Believe it or not, when the music video cable channel was launched a
quarter of a century ago, it literally changed the world.
Seems like the kind of thing any company would want to trumpet -
loudly.
Not MTV.
But that's not to say it doesn't deserve credit.
For starters, it helped reinvigorate what was a sluggish music
business in the early '80s.
As it grew in popularity, it boosted the careers of such folks as
Carson Daly and Nick Lachey's current squeeze, Vanessa Minnillo.
And, with the launch of The Real World in 1992, MTV helped give life
to the reality TV craze.
Uncharacteristically, though, MTV is letting the birthday slide by
unnoticed. No big party, no on-air graphics - nothing.
Insiders say the birthday doesn't matter to its viewers, thus the
lack of interest in discussing the milestone.
That also suggests that kids today care more about hot-tub
happenings on The Hills than acknowledging the groundbreaking moment
when MTV played Video Killed the Radio Star.
Or that they want to watch programming on computers, rather than
learning about former VJ Martha Quinn.
That could be true. But there's probably something deeper to
ignoring the 25th birthday than the audience's not caring.
For most of MTV's shows, the target audience is ages 12 to 24,
meaning the network, if it was a viewer, is too old for its own
programming.
It's outside the demo, as they say in TV land, part of the audience
that advertisers don't desire, don't pay for, but who watch anyway.
Being 25 to that crowd is like, well, being older than dirt.
And that's what VH1 is for.
In a way, MTV is a victim of its own success. The cable channel's
foundation is built on being hipper and more happening than any
other. As anyone who has watched in the past 25 years knows, that
means younger.
MTV has had a dramatic impact on media - print and television - it
shouldn't be afraid of touting.
However, rather than point out the milestone - which would also
include noting it's, um, advanced age - the birthday will pass
faster than a William Hung music video.
Yet, by ignoring the birthday, MTV is acting like an ageing starlet,
shaving years off her resume, fearing roles will dry up. That seems
wrong for a network which has thrived, in part, because of its
history - a history that will fuel its future.
Maybe Mick Jagger was right when he sang, What a drag it is getting
old.
5006343,00.html
There was one line in the article I found provoking:
"Believe it or not, when the music video cable channel was launched a
quarter of a century ago, it literally changed the world. "
Believe it or not, when the music video cable channel was launched a quarter of a centruy ago,
it used to play music videos.
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,19960869-
MTV isn't making a big deal of it, but the network is turning 25.
Believe it or not, when the music video cable channel was launched a
quarter of a century ago, it literally changed the world.
Seems like the kind of thing any company would want to trumpet -
loudly.
Not MTV.
But that's not to say it doesn't deserve credit.
For starters, it helped reinvigorate what was a sluggish music
business in the early '80s.
As it grew in popularity, it boosted the careers of such folks as
Carson Daly and Nick Lachey's current squeeze, Vanessa Minnillo.
And, with the launch of The Real World in 1992, MTV helped give life
to the reality TV craze.
Uncharacteristically, though, MTV is letting the birthday slide by
unnoticed. No big party, no on-air graphics - nothing.
Insiders say the birthday doesn't matter to its viewers, thus the
lack of interest in discussing the milestone.
That also suggests that kids today care more about hot-tub
happenings on The Hills than acknowledging the groundbreaking moment
when MTV played Video Killed the Radio Star.
Or that they want to watch programming on computers, rather than
learning about former VJ Martha Quinn.
That could be true. But there's probably something deeper to
ignoring the 25th birthday than the audience's not caring.
For most of MTV's shows, the target audience is ages 12 to 24,
meaning the network, if it was a viewer, is too old for its own
programming.
It's outside the demo, as they say in TV land, part of the audience
that advertisers don't desire, don't pay for, but who watch anyway.
Being 25 to that crowd is like, well, being older than dirt.
And that's what VH1 is for.
In a way, MTV is a victim of its own success. The cable channel's
foundation is built on being hipper and more happening than any
other. As anyone who has watched in the past 25 years knows, that
means younger.
MTV has had a dramatic impact on media - print and television - it
shouldn't be afraid of touting.
However, rather than point out the milestone - which would also
include noting it's, um, advanced age - the birthday will pass
faster than a William Hung music video.
Yet, by ignoring the birthday, MTV is acting like an ageing starlet,
shaving years off her resume, fearing roles will dry up. That seems
wrong for a network which has thrived, in part, because of its
history - a history that will fuel its future.
Maybe Mick Jagger was right when he sang, What a drag it is getting
old.
5006343,00.html