View From the Phlipside - MTV

My name is Jay Phillippi and I've spent my life in and around the media.  TV, Radio, the Movies and more.  I love them and I hate them and I always have an opinion.  Call this the View From the Phlipside.

It’s been interesting recently listening to members of Generation X complaining about how one of their cultural icons has deserted them.  And they are absolutely right.  MTV has walked away from its roots.  The shock of that has probably added a few grey hairs to the heads of the generation.

I thought it was interesting earlier this year when MTV took the words “Music Television” off of the corporate logo.  Like ESPN (you remember the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) MTV now no longer is a set of initials representing anything.  It’s just MTV.  Iconic.  A name unto itself.   Music?  They don’t need no stinking music.

Of course the folks at MTV would take exception to that characterization.  While they no longer are in the music video business they maintain they are still very much in the music business.  It’s just sort of in the background now.  Or as the president of the MTV Networks Music and Logo group recently said (and no I have no idea what he’s actually in charge of) music videos are the soundtrack.    Yeah, background music.  Like on all their TV series.  They play music.  To show it’s really important they even put the titles and artists in the credits.  Right along with the Second Unit Director and the Key Grip.  They also do those little pop up things when a song starts in the soundtrack.  So it’s music and video.  Of course there are also the big music video centered programs too like the VMAs, which I suppose are still actually the Video Music Awards.  So MTV is like still really into music.  Sorta.  In the background kinda thing.

As much as I like twitting MTV about abandoning music videos they don’t have the cool factor they once did.  Music videos are really kind of old school, been there, done that.  You knew it was coming to an end when they axed TRL.

The real question for me is can MTV ever regain that cachet again?  Once upon a time they were cutting edge.  Remember the prophecy that Video killed the radio star?  Do they really think they’ll climb to those heights once again on the back of “Jersey Shore”?


Call that the View From the Phlipside.

"The View From the Phlipside" airs on WRFA-LP Jamestown NY.  You can listen to WRFA online HERE
Copyright - Jay Phillippi 2010