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Re. these news about @MTV contemplating to drop MJ's name from the Vanguard Video Music Award. I actually thought they have longed quietly dropped it because they've never mentioned his name in the past years either when they presented this award.
@MTV In articles too it was mostly just called "Vanguard Video Music Award". But apparently it was still officially called "Michael Jackson" last year.
@MTV In any case, I really don't care about whether they drop his name or not. For one, because MTV is totally irrelevant now. They don't even play music any more. They are just a reality TV show channel.
Interestingly the peak of MTV's cultural significance aligned with the time when MJ made music videos. No, I am not saying MJ was alone MTV. Obviously, there have been lots of great videos made by other artists, but...
... I always found it symbolic that MTV rose to being culturally significant, when MJ started making great videos and they declined in cultural significance when MJ stopped making videos.
That MJ put MTV on the map is not a hyperbole. MTV co-founder Les Garland said: 
Considering this historical fact, one would think that MTV would have no problem respecting and honoring the artist that helped them so enormously to become the cultural force they once were. Reality is, however, that they often went out of their way to disrespect him.
It has nothing to do with the allegations either. Long before that, MTV seemed to have a love-hate relationship with MJ. Perhaps they hated the fact that it was this black artist who put them on the map while they initially intended to be a "rock" (ie. white) channel.
Remember, MTV originally did not want to play MJ. Music like Billie Jean was "too black" for their taste. billboard.com/articles/colum…
Billie Jean was followed by Beat It and Thriller and the art form of music videos was taken to another level. Which then prompted other artists to come out with quality videos as well. MTV's golden era came.
But it seems like MTV's the appreciation did not last too long. By the end of the 1980s they made some questionable negative gestures towards MJ.
One was that despite of the clear pioneer role of MJ in putting MTV and the art form of music videos on the map, they declared Madonna the artist of the decade. No disrespect to Medge, but... well, just watch MJ's videos and hers from the 1980s.
One of MTV's biggest atrocities and hostile moves towards MJ was the 1989 MTV video music awards. In a year where MJ created "Smooth Criminal" and "Leave Me Alone", Neil Young's "This Note's for You" video was elected for "Video of the Year".
A video that mocked the most popular black artists of the era: MJ and Whitney Houston - distastefully mocking MJ suffering second- and third degree burns on his scalp during the shooting of a Pepsi commercial.
Smooth Criminal, one of the most iconic videos of all times, did not get any award and Leave Me Alone came away only with a special effects award.
Yeah, I get it. MTV thought it was "cool" that Neil Young sang against the commercialization of popular music, but isn't it a bit hypocritical from a channel whose whole existence is the commercialization of popular music? I mean they lived off of advertisers as well.
Then who can forget MTV's "Artist of the Millennium" Award fiasco which seemed to have been designed to make fun of MJ? MJ was told that he would get an "Artist of the Millennium" award in 2002 and he did his acceptance speech accordingly.
Later MTV denied it was an "Artist of the Millennium" Award. They claimed it was just a birthday celebration. MJ got mocked for being delusional. Except, on their own website MTV referred to the "Artist of the Millennium" award.
At next year's VMAs MTV took it further with an unfunny and lame Jack Black parody.
So this his how "classy" MTV has always been with the artist that put them on the map.
So this his how "classy" MTV has always been with the artist that put them on the map.
But wait! " If he dies sympathize", so of course, after MJ died and he was cool again, MTV embraced him all over again. But it is not surprising if they drop him again. Their appreciation for him was never really honest.
The bottom line is, though: MJ doesn't need MTV. He also does not need his name to be on some award which they present year by year without even uttering his name, anyway. MTV is culturally irrelevant now.
Go to YouTube and Spotify or Billboard and look at MJ's streaming and sales numbers compared to those who MTV declared "Artist of The Decade" over him or those who won "Video of the Year" for mocking MJ. Those numbers tell it all about which art prevailed on the long term.
This is from 2010. So they have done it from time to time. Now they have the perfect excuse, so let them finally remove his name if they want it so bad. It won't affect MJ.
