The cable television network MTV is launched - August 1st, 1981

On this day in 1981, MTV went on the air for the first time at 12:01 AM. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This Day in a History classic production of My Heart Radio. Hello,
and welcome to This Day in History Class, a show
that gives a quick look. It's something that happened a
long time ago. Today I'm Gabe Lousier and in this episode,

(00:24):
we're talking about a monumental moment in TV history, the
launch of the world's first all day music channel. The
day was August one. MTV went on the air for

(00:44):
the first time at twelve oh one am. It was
the first cable channel devoted entirely to music videos, which
had aired around the clock seven. That programming concept had
been developed through a joint venture between Warner Commune, Occasions,
and American Express. The idea was to copy the format

(01:05):
of Top forty radio stations by having on air hosts
here known as video jockeys or VJs, introduced music videos
and then banter about music related topics in between the clips.
Not many people saw the channel when it first launched,
as it was originally available only to households in certain

(01:25):
parts of New Jersey. The channel was picked up by
cable operators in Kansas City shortly after its debut, but
larger markets like New York City and Los Angeles didn't
carry the channel until considerably later. Despite that slow start,
MTV or Music Television went on to shake up the

(01:45):
entire music industry, driving record sales and creating new ways
for audiences to find and fall in love with music.
It's a little surprising, then, that MTVS broadcast began now
with a music video, but with a countdown played over
footage from a Space Shuttle launch and the Moon Lady.

(02:05):
As the footage played and the rockets began to blast off,
a voice announced the channel's arrival, saying, quote, Ladies and gentlemen,
rock and roll. At that point, the now iconic MTV
logo filled the screen and the network's original theme song,
called Man on the Moon began to play. A moment later,

(02:26):
viewers were introduced to Mark Goodman, one of the networks
first VJs, against the background of a studio made up
to look like a cozy loft style apartment. Goodman gave
a brief description of the channel's concept and what had
hoped to achieve. Take a listen, this is it. Welcome
to MTV Music Television, the world's first twenty four hour

(02:50):
stereo video music channel. Just moments ago, all of the
VJs and the crew here at MTV collectively hit our
executive producer su Steinberg over the head the bottle of champagne,
and behold, a new concept is born. The best of
TV combined with the best of radio. Starting right now,
You'll never look at music the same way again. We'll

(03:12):
be right back to introduce the other VJs and the
other folks who are gonna be with us on MTV.
After a short commercial break, the other four VJs introduced themselves.
Nina Blackwood and j J. Jackson both had backgrounds in radio,
as did Mark Goodman. The other two VJs were Alan Hunter,
a struggling actor and waiter, and Martha Quinn, a recent

(03:35):
graduate of n y U who had worked at the
campus radio station. All the VJs hoped the gig at
MTV would be their big break, but some of them
knew it was a long shot and kept their day
jobs for several months just in case the network fell apart.
That seemed like a plausible outcome, as the channel's success
was hardly a sure thing. According to MTV studio producer

(03:58):
Robert Morton, part of the problem was that many people
didn't even know what a music video was, including potential investors.
And advertisers. Music videos had existed in some form for
more than four decades, but they weren't a top priority
for artists or record companies, as there was no reliable
way to distribute them. That started to change in the

(04:20):
late nineteen seventies has more established cable channels like HBO
and USA began to dedicate single programs to the airing
of music videos. However, a channel that played nothing but
music videos was a completely different story, and it was
tough to get people on board with the concept, but
the creators of MTV had faith in their medium. In fact,

(04:44):
the first music video ever played on the channel was
for the Buggles song video Killed the Radio Star. The
track was already two years old at the time, but
it was a fitting introduction to a channel bold enough
to believe that video really was the of the future.
If you've never heard the song before, here's a taste

(05:19):
wine We've gone to. After its flashy debut, MTV struggled
to find an audience for its first few years. One
major hurdle was a lack of fresh content. The videos
that played had been supplied for free by savvy record
companies who had already invested in the medium. However, many

(05:42):
executives were wary of producing new videos for the network
since it was still an unproven model. That left MTV
with only a small library of videos to pull from,
reportedly just two hundred and fifty or so. Almost half
of that collection was shown on the channel's very first
day on the air, with many of the videos being

(06:03):
played multiple times. For example, April Windes Just Between You
and Me, The Who's You Better You Bet? And Phil
Collins in the Air Tonight, where each played five times
during the first twenty four hours. Luckily for music fans
and for employees of MTV, record companies eventually came around

(06:23):
to the idea of producing new music videos to be
played on the channel. This change of heart was due
to an increase in album sales for artists who weren't
being played on the radio but did air videos on MTV.
As the industry began to realize MTVS potential, music promoters
invested in the creation of increasingly creative and elaborate videos

(06:45):
to showcase their acts. One of the first to make
a big splash with the public was the three video
for Michael Jackson's hit song Thriller Clocking in at nearly
fourteen minutes. The epic horror themed video boasted detailed costumes
and special effects, and demonstrated the medium storytelling potential. It

(07:06):
also added some much needed diversity to the channels otherwise
mostly white line up. The promotion of artists like Jackson, Madonna, Duran,
Duran and Prince helped keep MTV afloat during its early
years and also gave the singers a nice career boost
in the process. Another turning point for the network was
the introduction of its famous slogan, I Want my MTV.

(07:31):
It was first featured in a nine two ad campaign
and was meant to get kids and teens to demand
their cable providers start carrying the channel. The popular commercials
featured rock stars like David Bowie, Cindy Lauper, Mick Jagger,
and the Police joining in the plea for MTV I

(07:52):
want my TV, I want my MTV, I want my
MTV on compa. The ads worked well to get the
word out, an MTV star continued to rise throughout the
early nineteen eighties. In fact, it grew so successful that
in the network was purchased by Viacom, expanding its reach

(08:16):
to even more markets. This change in ownership led to
a shift in content as well. Instead of airing a
grab bag of videos from all different genres, the network
started packaging videos into single genre blocks like alternative rock,
heavy metal, and hip hop. By the late nineteen eighties,
the network had even expanded into non video programming, including

(08:39):
game shows, animated cartoons, award shows, news, and of course,
reality shows. As the years went by, MTV realized that
it's narrative programming, whether scripted or not, earned better ratings
than its music videos. In response, it continued to broaden
its focus from popular music to you targeted pop culture

(09:01):
in general. By the early twenty one century, this transition
was all but complete, and viewers were hard pressed to
find any videos in the network's lineup. MTV may have
strayed from its original mission, but it's continued to have
a profound effect on the cultural landscape, both in the
US and abroad. In that sense, the network has grown

(09:23):
beyond its original branding as music Television. Just don't expect
the name change anytime soon. Without the M It's just TV.
I'm gay, Bluesier, and hopefully you now know a little
more about history today than you did yesterday. You can
learn even more about history by following us on Twitter, Facebook,

(09:46):
and Instagram at t d I HC Show, and if
you have any comments or suggestions, feel free to send
them my way at this Day at iHeart media dot com.
Thanks to Chandler Mays for producing the show, and thanks
to you for listening. I'll see you back here again
tomorrow for another day in History class. I'm I want

(10:19):
my MTV al right, I want. I won't I MTV
Wow twenty five hours a date on cable TV. I
wont md MTB. Yeah. Too much is never enough