Who is you MTV?

By Wayne Raicik on 02/24 (4) Comments •
tagged: design, identity, jersey shore, Logo, new MTV logo

Gone are the words "Music Television". After 28 years MTV has decided to re-design it's logo. The bones are essentially the same, but now they're skinned with the likes of Snooki and "The Situation". Back in the day, Billy Idol, Mick Jaggar and Bowie screamed for their MTV. The network knew these guys were their meal ticket, but they didn't put their mugs on the logo. So what's changed? Well, the "M" no longer stands for music. It stands for "Me". Boys and girls, welcome to Me TV. Hipness and cool has been traded in for buffoonery and tequila shots.

Ask any designer and they'll tell you the MTV logo and brand ID were some of the best ever. The new version is less of an ID and more of a mini ad with each rendition hawking one of the growing number of reality shows. Before the loveable lunkheads of The Jersey Shore came around, MTV's ratings were in the toilet as well as their ad revenues. So, it comes as no surprise that they would hitch their wagon to the Jersey kids. It has allowed them to hold on to the coveted 20 something audience. How long will that last? Every generation had its music. I'm pretty sure that's still true today. Anyone heard or seen The Black Eyed Peas? I doubt every generation will have it's own trashy reality show. It's disposable and fleeting at best. Abandoning music could prove to be MTV's biggest blunder.

Reportedly, the network is working on a new tag line as well. No doubt it will be: MTV. We all be fist-pumping.

Mary Ann Gates said on 02/26/2010

I want Mark Knopfler’s MTV.

Brendan said on 02/26/2010

Looks like they are finally acknowledging what everyones been saying forever, that they aren’t a channel about music anymore. Good for them.

Since I’m 24 I spent my adolescence watching MTV; and it hasn’t been about music since I have started tuning in around the late 90’s. More about pop culture, fame, different lifestyles, etc. Since my generation has grown up in a face paced internet era of overabundance, and a short attention span, having a logo that is interchangeable seems like a good fit rather than just a static one, and it finally represents the brand more accurately!

The Museum of Arts and Design took a similar approach with their logo:

http://pentagram.com/en/new/2008/09/new-work-museum-of-arts-and-de.php

Topher said on 02/26/2010

It seems all cable stations have gone from meaning something (having a brand) to meaning nothing.

Here’s the short list of some channels that have homogenized their content:

A&E (Arts & Entertainment)
CMT (Country Music Television)
and now MTV

What is the benefit for cable stations to offer specialized content anymore?

The opposite is true for the web. If I want to find a website that caters to left-handed Star Trek fans with mullets; it’s out there, and there’s a a dedicated audience who will consume content for it. Why the cable stations can’t stay true to their brands escapes me.

John Hentz said on 02/27/2010

I am so not a fan of MTV. Haven’t been for years. But, it’s clear that they are playing to their base…and it ain’t us! Superimposing icons (in this case, the Jersey Coast douché bags) into an established brand is nothing new - whether we think it’s pretty or not.

You don’t have to like it, but you have to respect it – especially if it succeeds.