Do I Want Your MTV?

For Generation Y, it was the day that music died. On Nov. 16, 2008, Erin Boyce, A&S '12, watched her television with a strange mix of joyful nostalgia, grief, and even a sense of relief. She watched Carson Daly waving with a crew of celebrities from Manhattan while credits rolled. Boyce released a sigh as MTV staple Total Request Live, better known as TRL, made its last airwave transmission. She then released a more hostile sigh when the credits led into a "very special" The Hills.

"After celebrating the tradition of music videos and the real roots of MTV, I was kind of annoyed that a show about nothing, least of all music, followed it," Boyce says.

Such shows, however, will inevitably become the present and future of MTV. An acronym for Music Television, MTV aired its first broadcast in 1981 with the command of "Ladies and gentlemen, let's rock and roll." With its 24/7 music video programming, the young station did just that, attracting the 12-24 set with its new wave attitude and attractive video jockeys, or "VJs." In the competitive entertainment market, though, MTV struggled to maintain viewers and went from dance shows to animated cartoons, including Beavis and Butthead, to gain an audience. It wasn't until 1992 that MTV hit pay dirt with the first true "reality program."

"I think at some point during the early 1990's, MTV realized that they were a lot more than just radio on the television," says Kenneth Lachlan, a professor in the communication department. "At the time, they were really the only cable network solely devoted to serving the 12-24 demographic, and they needed to find programming to help them retain their core audience. At the same time, they looked to European television and saw that early reality shows were a huge hit with these viewers, so they became the pioneers of reality programming in the U.S. when they debuted The Real World; they haven't looked back since."

The premiere of The Real World, a concept revolving around putting seven strangers together in luxurious locales and watching their drama unfold, ushered in a new era of television that MTV continues to build upon. With the show's success, MTV continued to manufacture reality programs, including Road Rules, Jackass, and The Osbournes. Not until 1998 did TRL debut amidst the dirge of reality television.

"While I didn't watch much of the programming then, I still think TRL tried to bring MTV back to its conception. It showed America the music videos that MTV should be well known for rather than expose them to a 'not-so-reality' program," Max Hartman, A&S '12, says.

With MTV's cancellation of TRL, though, and their banishment of music videos to the wee hours of the night/early morning, their change of course lies firmly in the meta-scripted program, a genre spawned by MTV's Laguna Beach, which led to its spin-off and MTV's new staple, The Hills.

"The Hills can be entertaining at times, but it also can be really boring," Hartman says. "Plus, it's been revealed again and again that it's not real, so why does everyone care about these girls? It just seems silly for a network based on music to show such vapid programming. Also, I can't take a show that pays Heidi and Spencer's bills seriously."

The show bears its fair share of supporters, as well, though. "I think the show is just entertaining. I'm not watching it thinking, 'This is nothing like an MTV show,'" Victoria Rodgers, A&S '12, says in an e-mail. "It's just fun to watch obnoxious people sometimes."

Despite criticism from the press and viewers, the show recognizes itself as the new face in the evolution of MTV, producing two spinoffs of its own, The City and Bromance. In fact, according to variety.com writer Daniel Frankel, MTV plans on releasing 16 more unscripted, Hills-style programs in the next four months.

"Historically, the 12-24 demographic gets bored easily. They tend to be on the lookout for new, cutting edge premises and show types. MTV realizes that the reality genre has changed over the last couple of years. Shows like The Real World and Road Rules have become passe, and younger audiences are more interested in meta-scripted shows like The Hills, pseudo-competitions like Tool Academy, and first-person documentaries. Much of their new programming fits into these categories," Lachlan says.

Much of this new overhaul is owed to the ongoing economic crisis because with their 23 percent fourth-quarter drop in viewership in the 12-34-year-old demographic, MTV needs to find more success to keep ratings and checking accounts high.

"Media outlets have universally experienced a downturn in ad sales revenue, so they need to find a way to generate a fast spike in ratings in order to recoup some of those losses," Lachlan says. "MTV's strategy of introducing a bunch of new shows is not uncommon; oftentimes, you can get a short-term spike in ratings simply because a program is new and well marketed. Of course, the question then becomes how long this spike will last, particularly if the shows are not well received."

MTV looks to receive critical acclaim in their new programs, however, through a new twist on their reality programming. Whereas their staples, The Real World and The Hills, often focus on negativity and backstabbing, their new programming hopes to express a new positivity and inspiration.

"Our new shows will feature themes of affirmation and accomplishment," Brian Graden, president of entertainment at MTV networks, says in an article on variety.com. "Our shows are going to focus less on loud and silly hooks and more on young people proving themselves. These are themes that are consistent with the Obama generation."

Among the shows in the new line up is Donald Trump-produced The Girls of Hedsor Hall, chronicling the rehabilitation of naughty socialite girls, and From G's To Gents, a re-imagination of My Fair Lady with men. Perhaps most interesting, though, is College Life, a program filmed completely by freshmen at the University of Wisconsin with the use of handheld cameras.