OK, cameraman's
question, what gutsy experiment started
on this small Manhattan TV set
brought record sales out of the slump, became
the most watched channel on cable TV.
The three letter answer gave one recording
group Dire Straits, a big hit single
with pictures.
MTV, it's fast, it's curious
what good does it serve?
They entertain, they provide
relaxation.
MTV music television videos,
it's the marriage of FM radio to the two.
A rock concert beamed into one out of every
three American homes, homes that
subscribe to cable TV.
This is where MTV got its start here in
New York, the Big Apple.
When it first went on the air in 1981, MTV
was losing money, 50 million dollars
the first two years.
But recently, all of that has changed.
Less Garland senior vice president for
programing says MTV made eight point
one million dollars in the first half
of last year.
A lot of people didn't believe you could play
rock and roll music on television and it would
work. Why? Because it's never been done before.
What hasn't been done before is what a team of
artists and technicians put together in
this studio. Five, four, three,
two, a of information living
and working.
The announcers known as BJ's or
Video Jox pretape introductions to music
videos and visual interpretations of
songs sent in by artists.
Those introductions and trivia about the music
world are edited together with the videos
and slick looking commercials.
The result? A rock and roll program
that runs 24 hours a day, seven
days a week.
Have a target audience for MTV 30 for
the average viewer is 20 for the average.
Household income is thirty thousand dollars a
year in the Metroplex.
That adds up to a half million viewers,
a growing number who tune in to see
their favorite tunes.
Shelley Kofler, Channel 5 News tonight.