by Emily Shimp

Created on: May 13, 2009

I was only a kid back in the 1980s-by the end of the decade I was five years old-but I can still remember when a little channel known as MTV was showing music video after music video. Here was a channel that forever changed the way that songs were marketed: now songs with videos associated with them could become hits if the films were popular enough. The 1980s were filled with lots of memorable videos, played 24/7, and thanks to YouTube and other sites, those videos will not be forgotten. I wished that the channel would air music videos every day, all the time, forevermore. If only that were the case...

Thanks to the powers that be, however, it is not.

Over the years, MTV has gradually decreased airtime for music videos in favor of reality shows targeted at teenagers and college kids. These shows are often ripe with celebrity embarrassment or mature themes. What they all have in common, however, is that collectively they have destroyed the network's original purpose: to air the hottest new music videos from artists old and new in hopes that they will become hits and leave a lasting impression.

MTV's video airtime had been reserved mainly for the early morning hours, when almost no one is watching, for much of the past decade. Earlier this year, music videos were temporarily gone from the channel, replaced by the same old sickening reality shows, even in the early morning. In my eyes, there is absolutely no excuse for this action, which pretty much nearly terminates the network's legacy since they now only air a few hours every day. it is as if MTV does not want to be "Music Television" anymore. I could see its name changed to RSTV (Reality Show Television) or SCTV (Stupid Celebrities Television) or maybe even JPOJTV (Just Plain Old Junk Television).

In this day and age, it is just as well that MTV has diminished its video airplay. Nowadays, new songs have wound up on numerous video websites, most notably YouTube, giving people a way to catch up on new (and classic) music videos without having to subscribe to any cable service. Even MTV has recognized the growing trend of online videos: as of last year, their website has become home to many videos, past and present, from its 28-year history. In fact, their programming now includes music video clips, with a reminder to go online to see the complete clip. As such, MTV as a music service on television is not completely dead...but its programming remains a far cry from its glory days of the 1980s.

As a child, I loved MTV dearly and obtained a lifelong fascination with music videos. As an adult, I tend to avoid MTV like the plague, as its programming has gone downhill and its music videos have all but vanished from there. I used to think cable television was the best thing to ever occur, but a lot of factors, not the least of which is MTV's transition to non-music shows, have made me think otherwise. Even in the age of on-line videos, where I could simply look up the one I wish to watch in seconds flat, I wish that MTV returned to the way it used to be: a lot more focused on music videos, and a heck of a lot less focused on showing shows filled to the brim with pure garbage.

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