Taylor Swift’s “Mean” Not The Message For MTV

Remember when MTV played videos? It’s an old joke, but I am from the MTV generation and my friends and I would waste beautiful summer afternoons waiting for the latest videos from Van Halen, Mötley Crüe, or any hard rock video for that matter.

 Although I am no longer in the MTV demo, I still have a passion for music and videos. I was not glued to my set watching the MTV Music Awards but after going through the winners list I noticed “Best Video with a Message” category. Video with a message?  What!?!  Does not all videos or songs for that matter, have a “message”?  I know what the point  for this category is, Taylor Swift was nominated for “MEAN” but come on MTV, do we really need to keep creating pseudo categories to increase celebrity appearances or presentation spots?

 I know the idea is to extend the show for more commercial inventory or for crow-barring another sponsorship opportunity in but to do it by giving out awards, no matter how trivial? Does everyone need to win or get recognized for something, like every kid who participates in little league these days?  I guess leaving someone out would be just mean. Below is the list of songs with "the best message" message.

Eminem featuring Rihanna, "Love the Way You Lie"
Katy Perry, "Firework"
Lady Gaga, "Born This Way"
Pink, "F****** Perfect"
Rise Against, "Make it Stop (September's Children)"
Taylor Swift, "Mean"