When did things start going down hill, for MTV?  ???

1998 when "TRL" premiered and far less music videos  :P

Was pretty much mediocre when I started watching in 1997

i agree with you, on that statement.

1994. I've got a whole topic devoted to early MTV rants from vintage computer posts (definately a thing I'll be saying more once I transition out of '80s nostalgia into '90s nostalgia!) on this board, so you can see here.

http://www.inthe00s.com/index.php?topic=38082.0- Early MTV Rants from 1994, 1996

MTV already was showing signs of decline as early as 1988 with Yo! Raps and The Real World debuted, so for me 1981-1987 will always be my "Glory Years" for MTV. It's a lost cause; Fuse is the closest thing to "the real MTV" these days, while VH1 classic is fairly similar to watching VH1 in the early '90s today.

Here is my evaluation on MTV:

1981-1987: Classic, the BEST, will always love
1988-1990: Some shakiness, but still enjoyable
1991-1993: Channel surfing during some programs, in the "starting to suck" phase, and the network has definately jumped the shark at this point. But there are still lots of videos being aired (even at a less prime timeblock), though rap is really starting to dominate MTV's playlist.
1994-1998: The REALLY SUCK era. Only occassional flips to watch for the now long-in-the-tooth '80s artists and perhaps Beavis and Butthead.
1999+ RTV era. A complete joke.

I would have to say...when "Beavis and Butt-Head" went off the air...and that was in 1997?

I got into music as early as 1987, age 7. Watched a little bit of MTV then.

I started to lose interest around the debut of Beavis and Butthead, ironic because i loved the show...

But once TRL premiered. It became nothing but a joke.

I would venture to say that 1992 is when MTV really started to go down hill. Yes I know this is when alternative and rap got more exposure and the music scene was a lot better. However, I noticed in 92, MTV started to play a lot less videos. They seemed to overkill anything grunge and hip hop. Certain popular songs of the time were being played over and over again. This is also when MTV was covering the presidential race and doing stupid news shows about things going on at the time like gang violence, rock the vote etc.. MTV had no business getting involved in things like this. Viewers wanted to see music not thier take on politics and social issues. This is also when the Real World started along with that crappy animation show, Liquid Television.

At least in 90-91, MTV played videos for everyone's tastes. MTV gave fair play to all genres such as dance, pop, rock, metal, alt rock, and rap. However, 92 was when MTV started to cut many of their niche shows such as MTV Street Party and eventually Headbangers Ball, YO MTV Raps. MTV only focused on playing what was popular at the time and giving little exposure to lesser known groups. Even the signature alternative rock show 120 Minutes (Which would eventually be renamed to Alternative Nation) which had played some of the best Alternative Rock videos ever and tons of bands that were very obscure seemed to only care about playing grunge or the more popular alt rock bands when in reality there was a lot more to alternative rock then just grunge.

Beavis and Butthead was somewhat a relief and it was generally very funny. Somewhere around 93 or so, there were all these other shows that were popping up that had nothing to do with music. The MTV Movie awards started around this time as well and gave awards to the dumbest, crappy movies.

Two years later, it seemed like Beavis and Butthead were watching more videos then we were! MTV were playing the Real World all the time and when there were video played iit only what was popular and again the overkilled the same videos. Many people say that after Beavis and Butthead went off the air is when MTV really started to decline. It's obviously that it did with TRL and even more mindless programming. Today, forget it, MTV is not even relevant. A lot of artists of using YouTube or other channels to broadcast their music.

This reminds of a song by the Dead Kennedys, MTV Get off the Air. Hopefully soon MTV will be gone!

And another reason why TV is so screwed up these days: on The Weather Channel, they had a news story about how Celine Dion announced she is having twins! Something that MTV or VH1 ought to have, but everything is getting lost in the shuffle.

And another reason why TV is so screwed up these days: on The Weather Channel, they had a news story about how Celine Dion announced she is having twins! Something that MTV or VH1 ought to have, but everything is getting lost in the shuffle.



WTF?! :o Seriously? What the hell does Celine Dion have to do with the weather? ???

It sucked from the day it was born

The same thing with MTV, playing less music and showing mindless shows, also effected MTV2 and VH1.

Q: When did MTV start really sucking, during the 90's?

A: Yes.

It sucked from the day it was born


Early MTV was a radio station with pictures.  Actually,  a lot of the new bands at the time from Duran Duran to A Flock of Seagulls owed their success to MTV.  I liked MTV because I happened to like pop music back then, especially New Wave band from Britain. 

By 1987 the cool videos were relegated to a two-hour program on Sunday nights called "120 Minutes." 

Then they started "Remote Control" with Colin Quinn, a games how.  That was when MTV crossed the Rubicon. 

Misogyny was always a problem on MTV.  Tipper Gore was an early critic.  She was also a tightwad who got in bed with the Christian Right.  A better critic was Dr. Sut Jhally who made the "Dreamworlds" series of documentaries on how MTV depicted women in music videos.  He was spot-on except for two points, the main one being he commercials were even worse than the videos.  He also selected The Cars "Drive" video as one of the baddies, which I thought was unfair.  The woman in "Drive" is depicted as mentally ill, not as a wanton sex object.

ok i might be a little too young here but i think MTV is still preety genuine until 2002...... 00s for mtv was a joke...

ok i might be a little too young here but i think MTV is still preety genuine until 2002...... 00s for mtv was a joke...
I don;t get MTV they were still playing rap video's like it was 2004-2005 in 2008 or 2009. Its like uh MTV your behind the times!

I enjoyed Beavis and Butthead and Daria.  ::)

I enjoyed Beavis and Butthead and Daria.  ::)


Definitely!  Once Mike Judge disappeared from MTV, the network had absolutely nothing to offer me. 

About that time they would give you 1/2 hour a day of "classic" MTV, ie. videos from the '80s, one of which was always Adam Ant's "Goody-Two Shoes," which is a totally annoying song.  My apologies to Adam Ant fans.

I think it started to suck around 2002.  I actually loved TRL, but after Carson Daly left, the show went to crap, as did the channel.    At least in the '90s, the shows they introduced had to do with music, whereis now, the shows have nothing to do with music.

Actually, MTV recently removed the 'Music Televison' from their logo.

I think it started to suck around 2002.   I actually loved TRL, but after Carson Daly left, the show went to crap, as did the channel.    At least in the '90s, the shows they introduced had to do with music, whereis now, the shows have nothing to do with music.

Actually, MTV recently removed the 'Music Televison' from their logo.


Ouch.  Can't say I loved TRL, though I did catch a few of the episodes for music video purposes.  I do miss Celebrity Deathmatch, Daria, Beavis and Butthead, and the various "Unplugged" specials they had.  I dunno why MTV started becoming a reality tv based channel.

Ouch.  Can't say I loved TRL, though I did catch a few of the episodes for music video purposes.  I do miss Celebrity Deathmatch, Daria, Beavis and Butthead, and the various "Unplugged" specials they had.  I dunno why MTV started becoming a reality tv based channel.


I know, the reality stuff is so lame.  At least before, they would create music based programs.  Like you mentioned, Unplugged, also Diary, Making the Video, Ultrasound, etc.  I don't think anyone really expects them to play music videos 24/7 anymore, but their programing sould have stayed music based, with videos slipped in.

I think it started to suck around 2002.   I actually loved TRL, but after Carson Daly left, the show went to crap, as did the channel. At least in the '90s, the shows they introduced had to do with music, whereis now, the shows have nothing to do with music.

Actually, MTV recently removed the 'Music Televison' from their logo.


Yeah I agree. When Carson left the show in 2003, TRL should've gone off the air because it just got worse and worse. I honestly stopped caring about MTV by 2003/2004.

Everything on MTV after about '96 was totally slutty and skanky -- not even in good ways either!
8-P

Even if MTV was still around with its classic format today, I wouldn't like it still because most of today's music SUCKS! (Fuse is basically what MTV should have been). At least there's VH1 Classic.

Even if MTV was still around with its classic format today, I wouldn't like it still because most of today's music SUCKS! (Fuse is basically what MTV should have been). At least there's VH1 Classic.


I started watching Fuse back in '03 because, by that point, MTV was basically where it is now, and it was really the only place to try and catch the occasional new music video (this was before YouTube of course. Now things are much eaiser, and you don't have to sit through the crap in hopes of seeing the rare new song that's actually good).

Isn't it incredible that now, even with more "music" channels than ever before, oftentimes VH1 Classic is the only one actually playing videos?

VH1 Classic only airs music videos during the late night/morning hours (or dusk to around noon in Eastern Time), which the selection tends to be very limited/repetitive and gets interrupted by ring-tone ads.  8-P

VH1 Classic mainly airs VH1 specials/documentaries, the same ol' concert specials, and movies, which most aren't music related. Not to mention the channel tends to be very  classic rock oriented. Where's the variety?  Like it had when it made it's debut a decade ago?

Heck, how about some vintage music peformances and such from the MTV, VH1 vaults or whatever Viacom owns. Centric airs vintage "Soul Train", so why couldn't VH1 Classic air it or "Bandstand", "Midnight Special", "Solid Gold", which VH1 aired in the '90's.

YouTube & satellite radio...now that's where the music's at  8)

^Yeah, I was gonna say that VH1 Classic doesn't play many videos anymore.    And like you said, it'd be nice if they aired music related shows, like the ones you mentioned.

Centric which is basically a mix of classic BET (some old-school videos by black artists) along with some classic black-oriented (although they have showed Miami Vice reruns on it before) programming, with a few newer shows targeted at the 30+ audience. There is still some good VH1 classic programming; on Sunday they aired an 8-hour block of one-hit wonders in various categories (#1's, '80s) and was mostly videos, even if some artists weren't exactly one-hit wonders, such as Tiffany. At least most movies they show are music-oriented and before 2000. But I feel VH1 Classic is airing too much "metal" oriented programming as of late.

Now MTV is a lost cause with all that Jersey Shore crap and another crappy new reality show Buckwild!

Now MTV is a lost cause with all that Jersey Shore crap and another crappy new reality show Buckwild!


I agree.

When I was a grammar school/junior high student(freshman year of High School was 99/00) in the 1990s MTV( and VH1) was just a channel that allowed me to see the videos for many of the top 40, rock, pop and rap hits I heard on my radio. The best time for me to watch that network was late at night or early in the morning before school when it would play a long block of videos from each of the aforementioned music genres.  With the exception of Beavis and Butthead I rarely watched many of the TV shows on MTV at all.  I knew full well what The Real World was but I just felt it was a waste of space and could not imagine how anyone would find it entertaining. In my opinion, MTV( and VH1) started to "suck" around the early 2000s when both networks stopped caring about music and used reality shows and documentaries as their cash cow. 
   

 

MTV wants to show reality programs instead of what it used to be.  ::)

When I was a grammar school/junior high student(freshman year of High School was 99/00) in the 1990s MTV( and VH1) was just a channel that allowed me to see the videos for many of the top 40, rock, pop and rap hits I heard on my radio. The best time for me to watch that network was late at night or early in the morning before school when it would play a long block of videos from each of the aforementioned music genres.  With the exception of Beavis and Butthead I rarely watched many of the TV shows on MTV at all.  I knew full well what The Real World was but I just felt it was a waste of space and could not imagine how anyone would find it entertaining. In my opinion, MTV( and VH1) started to "suck" around the early 2000s when both networks stopped caring about music and used reality shows and documentaries as their cash cow. 


I think it really just depends on your individual definition of "suck". If you mean when MTV stopped focusing predominantly on music videos, then the answer would clearly be the 90's.

To me, the more interesting question is when did MTV stop being "culturally relevant"? It still is to an extent today (with shows like Jersey Shore), but I mean more from a musical standpoint. You can certainly say alot of negative things about Y2K/TRL era MTV, but one thing you cannot accuse it of is a lack of cultural relevancy. I was very much into pop culture at that time, and I saw firsthand how, even then, MTV and Carson Daly drove the conversation in terms of what was "hot". Every major group of the late 1990's (from Limp Bizkit to the Backstreet Boys) got the MTV "seal of approval" and rode it to superstardom in much the same fashion as the Seattle alternative groups did in the early part of the decade.

I honestly have no idea what the answer to my own question is, as I haven't watched MTV regularly in over 10 years, but if I had to take a guess, I'd say it was during the mid 00's (when YouTube launched, and high speed internet connection was becoming more the norm than the exception) that the internet began to overtake MTV as the arbiter of what music kids liked.

It seems like MTV's descent coincided with the internet. I agree that by the 2005 arrival of Youtube and other video streaming sites, MTV was pretty much irrelevant musically. The downfall probably started in the mid to late 90s.

It seems like MTV's descent coincided with the internet. I agree that by the 2005 arrival of Youtube and other video streaming sites, MTV was pretty much irrelevant musically. The downfall probably started in the mid to late 90s.


Will it ever go back to the way it used to be?  ???

I'd probably say not until the early 00s actually. TRL wasn't that bad, at least it was music oriented. MTV is irrelevant nowadays in the YouTube era.

They have to keep up with sheesh that will get ratings, because Youtube is where you go to watch a music video now. In some ways, Youtube is like MTV. Take a song like Gangam Style - that isn't going to be played on the radio without the Youtube hype.

Based on these replies, most people here seem to think Mtv started to suck starting around 1997 or 1998. Especially by 1998.
I guess it depends on personal preference, and also which circle of people you hang around with.

I'd probably say not until the early 00s actually. TRL wasn't that bad, at least it was music oriented. MTV is irrelevant nowadays in the YouTube era.


people watch videos via youtube these days.

Well i stopped watching in 2006. The last show i watched was the real world: key west. MTV just sucks now. However, i stopped watching trl when carson daily left.

I think it really just depends on your individual definition of "suck". If you mean when MTV stopped focusing predominantly on music videos, then the answer would clearly be the 90's.

To me, the more interesting question is when did MTV stop being "culturally relevant"? It still is to an extent today (with shows like Jersey Shore), but I mean more from a musical standpoint. You can certainly say alot of negative things about Y2K/TRL era MTV, but one thing you cannot accuse it of is a lack of cultural relevancy. I was very much into pop culture at that time, and I saw firsthand how, even then, MTV and Carson Daly drove the conversation in terms of what was "hot". Every major group of the late 1990's (from Limp Bizkit to the Backstreet Boys) got the MTV "seal of approval" and rode it to superstardom in much the same fashion as the Seattle alternative groups did in the early part of the decade.

I honestly have no idea what the answer to my own question is, as I haven't watched MTV regularly in over 10 years, but if I had to take a guess, I'd say it was during the mid 00's (when YouTube launched, and high speed internet connection was becoming more the norm than the exception) that the internet began to overtake MTV as the arbiter of what music kids liked.


Yep! Which was pretty much the reason why TRL was cancelled back in '08.

Now, if you want to watch old clips from MTV just go to Youtube.

For me, MTV has eras and stages.

Building up popularity: 1981 to 1982
Gold years: 1983 to 1992
Silver years: 1993 to 1997
Last decent years: 1998 to 2002/2003

MTV was still at it's best in the '90s. They still played music videos, which was awesome!

For somebody who didn't watched MTV at all, I have to say it sucked since 2003/4. I know that Daria may not be a true MTV show at its time, but it at least show a lot of licensed songs for its soundtrack. Plus Splendora made a great theme song for the show. Does that mean MTV was great during the late 90s/early 2000s? Not really. But it was certainly better than what it is now. Since 2004, VH1 may have taken the spot for best music channel. But considering we live in an era where not a lot of people watch cable TV, there is no doubt that MTV nor VH1 could be relevant today. As for now, MTV is more like a Buzzfeed clone than a devoted music channel.

For me, MTV has eras and stages.

Building up popularity: 1981 to 1982
Gold years: 1983 to 1992
Silver years: 1993 to 1997
Last decent years: 1998 to 2002/2003


I'd even subdivide the Gold into "Early" and "Late" phases, with the switch occurring around the end of 1987. (IMO, those are my "Gold" and "Silver" phases of MTV, with your "Silver" my "Bronze", and quite honestly, I don't care for the TRL era of MTV as I myself felt that the channel was stupid and would prefer VH1 or MTV2 (when it was actually decent). The early phase had all five of the original VJs for most of the run, and honestly was quite similar to the "Building up popularity" mini-phase. The format was simple, but very good: A Top of the hour bumper with one of the five VJs introducing some of the groups/singers to appear in the upcoming hour, a video or two, a Music News segment that usually ended with a plug or upcoming tour dates by a favorite band, a commercial break, then two or three more videos, a bottom of the hour bumper, another video or two, another commercial break, another video, another VJ segment, sometimes with an interview with a band, a short commercial break, another video or two, and then rinse and repeat for the next hour, with a new VJ sometimes signing on. Then you would have a Saturday night concert in the late evening, along with a special Sunday Showcase feature that may include a documentary or featured songs by that particular artist. More specials would eventually be added for big events (Live Aid, VMAs, etc.) along with the Top 20 Countdown some special shows like Metal Mania and later 120 Minutes, but it was clearly a music first channel. 

1987 was the year that this formula was starting to wear thin, so MTV dropped some of its VJs and added new faces such as "Downtown" Julie Brown, Kurt Loder, and Daisy Fuentes. Sure, Headbangers Ball continued its focus on music, and Club MTV (when dance music was actually fun and not terrible like it is now) gave you a chance to jam, as did the debut of The Week In Rock, but in December of that year Remote Control was the first show on the network that was not focused on music. Sure, it was only 30 minutes a day, but a fin had been spotted in the water. 1988-1992 would generally be a mix of good and bad new shows (Yo! MTV Raps, Dial MTV, Rockumentary, and Unplugged for the good, House of Style, Just Say Julie, specials like "Sex in the '90s" as the bad in terms of promoting the channel's mission, with Liquid Television getting a pass). When The Real World premiered in May 1992, this era rapidly was coming to an end as the MTV fanatics rode their skis up the ramp.

By the fall of 1994, in addition to TRW, you also had Dead at 21, Beavis and Butthead (that gets a pass though by most), The State, Lip Service, Most Wanted, Brothers Gunt, sports specials, and The Headbangers' Ball and Yo! Raps on its last legs. Most of the music videos were relegated to either schooltime or "Dreamtime", although MTV Prime for awhile was an exception. This was also around the time the Usenet group "MTV Sucks" was created, and it was clear that the channel had recently jumped the shark for the purists.

By 1998, in addition to TRL, we had Jenny MCCarthy, Singled Out, Loveline, XPosed, Austin Stories, True Life, Road Rules, Say What?, Buzzkill (that's where I get the Buzzfeed reference), Daria, Ultra Sound, and the Top 20 Countdown reduced to a Top 10. Only 120 Minutes from its classic era had remained, and outside of school hours and dreamtime, music videos had all but disappeared, including the MTV Prime block. Hope you remembered to set your VCR at the time while in school or bed!

2003 was even worse as by that point, Rerun Abuse had started to arrive with multiple daily showings of Real World, Punk'D, Duets, Sorority Life, and Fraternity Life, not to mention other crap like "Sex 2k", Dismissed, Direct Effect, Flipped, Fastlane, and music videos reduced to around three hours a day. It's a shame my high school years were a disappointment and made me feel jealous for the '80s/early '90s teens who caught the network in its prime. VH1 was rapidly going downhill as well, turning more into a music Expose channel mixed with frequent countdowns and specials (I Love The...) before becoming an E! wannabe. Anything post-2003 is just downright horrible and if I discover anyone who recorded anything off of MTV during those years, those tapes will be shredded and smashed!

I'd even subdivide the Gold into "Early" and "Late" phases, with the switch occurring around the end of 1987. (IMO, those are my "Gold" and "Silver" phases of MTV, with your "Silver" my "Bronze", and quite honestly, I don't care for the TRL era of MTV as I myself felt that the channel was stupid and would prefer VH1 or MTV2 (when it was actually decent). The early phase had all five of the original VJs for most of the run, and honestly was quite similar to the "Building up popularity" mini-phase. The format was simple, but very good: A Top of the hour bumper with one of the five VJs introducing some of the groups/singers to appear in the upcoming hour, a video or two, a Music News segment that usually ended with a plug or upcoming tour dates by a favorite band, a commercial break, then two or three more videos, a bottom of the hour bumper, another video or two, another commercial break, another video, another VJ segment, sometimes with an interview with a band, a short commercial break, another video or two, and then rinse and repeat for the next hour, with a new VJ sometimes signing on. Then you would have a Saturday night concert in the late evening, along with a special Sunday Showcase feature that may include a documentary or featured songs by that particular artist. More specials would eventually be added for big events (Live Aid, VMAs, etc.) along with the Top 20 Countdown some special shows like Metal Mania and later 120 Minutes, but it was clearly a music first channel. 

1987 was the year that this formula was starting to wear thin, so MTV dropped some of its VJs and added new faces such as "Downtown" Julie Brown, Kurt Loder, and Daisy Fuentes. Sure, Headbangers Ball continued its focus on music, and Club MTV (when dance music was actually fun and not terrible like it is now) gave you a chance to jam, as did the debut of The Week In Rock, but in December of that year Remote Control was the first show on the network that was not focused on music. Sure, it was only 30 minutes a day, but a fin had been spotted in the water. 1988-1992 would generally be a mix of good and bad new shows (Yo! MTV Raps, Dial MTV, Rockumentary, and Unplugged for the good, House of Style, Just Say Julie, specials like "Sex in the '90s" as the bad in terms of promoting the channel's mission, with Liquid Television getting a pass). When The Real World premiered in May 1992, this era rapidly was coming to an end as the MTV fanatics rode their skis up the ramp.

By the fall of 1994, in addition to TRW, you also had Dead at 21, Beavis and Butthead (that gets a pass though by most), The State, Lip Service, Most Wanted, Brothers Gunt, sports specials, and The Headbangers' Ball and Yo! Raps on its last legs. Most of the music videos were relegated to either schooltime or "Dreamtime", although MTV Prime for awhile was an exception. This was also around the time the Usenet group "MTV Sucks" was created, and it was clear that the channel had recently jumped the shark for the purists.

By 1998, in addition to TRL, we had Jenny MCCarthy, Singled Out, Loveline, XPosed, Austin Stories, True Life, Road Rules, Say What?, Buzzkill (that's where I get the Buzzfeed reference), Daria, Ultra Sound, and the Top 20 Countdown reduced to a Top 10. Only 120 Minutes from its classic era had remained, and outside of school hours and dreamtime, music videos had all but disappeared, including the MTV Prime block. Hope you remembered to set your VCR at the time while in school or bed!

2003 was even worse as by that point, Rerun Abuse had started to arrive with multiple daily showings of Real World, Punk'D, Duets, Sorority Life, and Fraternity Life, not to mention other crap like "Sex 2k", Dismissed, Direct Effect, Flipped, Fastlane, and music videos reduced to around three hours a day. It's a shame my high school years were a disappointment and made me feel jealous for the '80s/early '90s teens who caught the network in its prime. VH1 was rapidly going downhill as well, turning more into a music Expose channel mixed with frequent countdowns and specials (I Love The...) before becoming an E! wannabe. Anything post-2003 is just downright horrible and if I discover anyone who recorded anything off of MTV during those years, those tapes will be shredded and smashed!


Nice list.

Yeah, by 2003, MTV was just plain horrible.

Since 2015, MTV doesn't even do "frat boy" shows like they did in the 2000s. Instead, they mostly do social justice and race-baiting shows meant to rile up conservatives and moderates.

Since 2015, MTV doesn't even do "frat boy" shows like they did in the 2000s. Instead, they mostly do social justice and race-baiting shows meant to rile up conservatives and moderates.


Do you lean towards left, or right?  ???

Do you lean towards left, or right?  ???

Moderate

2003 was even worse as by that point, Rerun Abuse had started to arrive with multiple daily showings of Real World, Punk'D, Duets, Sorority Life, and Fraternity Life, not to mention other crap like "Sex 2k", Dismissed, Direct Effect, Flipped, Fastlane, and music videos reduced to around three hours a day. It's a shame my high school years were a disappointment and made me feel jealous for the '80s/early '90s teens who caught the network in its prime. VH1 was rapidly going downhill as well, turning more into a music Expose channel mixed with frequent countdowns and specials (I Love The...) before becoming an E! wannabe. Anything post-2003 is just downright horrible and if I discover anyone who recorded anything off of MTV during those years, those tapes will be shredded and smashed!


At least you watched MTV by the 80s/90s/early 2000s. I don't remember MTV being great, since I was a toddler during the early 2000s. The only show that I watched from MTV was Daria, but it came from the DVDs released in 2010, which doesn't have the original soundtrack. Only the original songs were shown at the time MTV aired it during the late 90s/early 00s. So it would've been a pipe dream for me to see the episodes with the actual songs.

Even for now, MTV sucks ass thanks to them being a Buzzfeed ripoff. Not only do they just copy off ideas from what they do, but they also became more SJW-like feminine over the past year (no offense to you). So MTV has been like hell over the past 13 years, thanks to their schemes, and I feel jealous.


Since 2015, MTV doesn't even do "frat boy" shows like they did in the 2000s. Instead, they mostly do social justice and race-baiting shows meant to rile up conservatives and moderates.


Frankly, their summer shows during that decade were like their saving grace. But VH1 already proved themselves better by the time 2004 came.

Moderate


:D

When did things start going down hill, for MTV?  ???


I would say MTV jumped the shark when TRL ended, which was in the 2000s (don't remember which year).

I would say MTV jumped the shark when TRL ended, which was in the 2000s (don't remember which year).


TRL ended in 2008.

MTV went downhill when they started showing marathons of The Real World.

MTV went downhill when they started showing marathons of The Real World.
Was that about the early 1990s?

Was that about the early 1990s?


Well, they obviously had more than just The Real World during the early 90s.

Was that about the early 1990s?


No, it was in the fall of 1993.

No, it was in the fall of 1993.


People would still watch tons of music videos on MTV by 1993 though.

People would still watch tons of music videos on MTV by 1993 though.
Other pop video channels started up on cable television.

Other pop video channels started up on cable television.


By the time MTV first aired in the early 80s, they did have a few pop music channels that were similar to MTV. The biggest one was VH1, which is another music channel that Viacom owned.

By the time MTV first aired in the early 80s, they did have a few pop music channels that were similar to MTV. The biggest one was VH1, which is another music channel that Viacom owned.
There were also channels that viewers could phone up on a premium number as request pop videos.

There were also channels that viewers could phone up on a premium number as request pop videos.


That as well, but they weren't as popular as MTV.

By the time MTV first aired in the early 80s, they did have a few pop music channels that were similar to MTV. The biggest one was VH1, which is another music channel that Viacom owned.


and now look at VH1, they used to show music videos all the time as well from what I can remember.

MTV shined with its "Unplugged" series during the 1990s.

In all honesty MTV was still GOAT in the 1990's. It really wasn't until the 2000's when the network started to noticeably go downhill.

In all honesty MTV was still GOAT in the 1990's. It really wasn't until the 2000's when the network started to noticeably go downhill.


When Daria ended, that's when MTV just started to die. I know I said the end of Clone High was when MTV died, but the show wasn't that much of a classic as Daria.

When Daria ended, that's when MTV just started to die. I know I said the end of Clone High was when MTV died, but the show wasn't that much of a classic as Daria.


I guess. But didn't the network still deliver in airing music oriented content around that time. IDK I always connected the downfall to MTV with their reliance on reality shows in the 2000's, thus shunning their actual original base music videos

Since 2015, MTV doesn't even do "frat boy" shows like they did in the 2000s. Instead, they mostly do social justice and race-baiting shows meant to rile up conservatives and moderates.


So they went from dudebro to hipster like everyone else!

So they went from dudebro to hipster like everyone else!


Probably. The mid 2010s were more SJW-like than any other era.  :P So they just went through the Buzzfeed method and dealt with it.

In all honesty MTV was still GOAT in the 1990's. It really wasn't until the 2000's when the network started to noticeably go downhill.



then the network started showing reality based programs. ::)

MTV began its downward spiral in 1998. There were several factors:

Beavis and Butt-Head ended in November 1997.
Cartoon Sushi, the successor to Liquid Television, was canceled.
120 Minutes, MTV's immensely popular alternative music program, switched hosts. Matt Pinfield was gone for most of the year, leaving the program to be hosted by Dave Holmes, who was a massive tool. Also, 120 Minutes increasingly became an outlet for more mainstream artists promoting albums. A whole show of 1998-era R.E.M. songs? No thanks.
TRL.
Carson Daly.
Unplugged only had two episodes. Both were lame. It was off the air for a year after this.
The godawful VMA ceremony, a ceremony that lives on in infamy. And Rose McGowan's dress.
The Week in Rock was canceled in late 1997.
The terrible state of American music. Boy bands. Girl groups. Vapid, soulless music was in vogue again.

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Add Britney Spears to that list too. Her career started in 1998. I like her, as a person, but as an artist, she's an avatar of how bad music has become the past 15-20 years! Her career has cooled down the past three years, or so, but for a while, she was big enough to be a symbol of how horrible music became in the late 90's and after.

MTV starting sucking around 1996 when the Real World and other mindless reality shows really took over the channel. Reality TV exploded in 2000 for everything else but MTV decided to be an early bird and eat the sh!t sandwich first. That year I switched over to MTV2 which was alright but not as good as 80's/early 90's MTV.

Really, MTV was total sh!t during the second half of the 90's aside from Beavis and Butthead or Daria or whatever.

I hated MTV starting in 2004. Those young kids and their rap videos!  ::)

Even before 2004, I thought MTV was awful. I don't even remember much of late 90's/early 00's MTV because of how little I watched it. By then I was almost exclusively on MTV2.

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MTV's ratings have dropped since around 2011/2012, ironically when it turned 30. It's a youth channel that's no longer youthful.  :P

I hated MTV starting in 2004. Those young kids and their rap videos!  ::)


MTV should just cancel themselves altogether, cause their crap is not worth watching anymore.  ::)

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MTV's ratings have dropped since around 2011/2012, ironically when it turned 30. It's a youth channel that's no longer youthful.  :P


I don't think it was ever youthful since the early 2000s.

I don't think it was ever youthful since the early 2000s.


Lots of young people still watched it because of TRL, though.