In 1985, Sting sang “I want my MTV” as the hook in
Dire Straits’ “Money for Nothing,” and
generations of teens have earnestly agreed with him. But with the
televisions in Ackerman Union’s dining area playing mtvU
exclusively ““ at the expense of student programming or other
news coverage ““ the question is whether MTV is all they
want.
An affiliate channel of MTV Networks, mtvU is dedicated to
college students and broadcasts 24 hours a day to more than 720
colleges in the United States and features music videos marketed to
the college scene paired with news and student life features.
According to mtvU general manager Stephen Friedman, the
televisions in Ackerman, as well as several in the Wooden Center,
which exclusively broadcast mtvU, were installed by the network
free of charge.
“We make sure there are no costs paid by the
university,” Friedman said, noting that at many schools it is
a case of the students asking for mtvU.
“mtvU is more than just entertainment. We try to be a
resource for jobs, grants and other opportunities,” Friedman
said, referring to programs available only to schools in the
“mtvU family” such as the grant contest “Digital
Incubator.” The program rewarded 10 winning entrants ““
including David Harrison, a graduate student in the UCLA School of
Theater, Film and Television ““ $25,000 grants to produce
original broadband video projects for mtvU. “I hope more UCLA
students participate,” Friedman said.
According to Rich Delia, Associated Students UCLA finance
director, UCLA is just reaching the end of a six-year licensing
agreement with mtvU. UCLA originally had an agreement with College
Television Network, a network which was bought by MTV in 2002 and
relaunched as mtvU in January of 2004.
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Like all decisions made by ASUCLA regarding new services, Delia
stresses that, like the previous decision, the renegotiations will
be based on input from the whole campus, including students and the
student-led Services Committee.
“Originally we got requests from students (for
MTV),” Delia said. “There have been no negative
comments. It seems to be a win for everyone. Certainly if there was
an uproar ““ if students were unhappy ““ we would
react.”
He also noted that if students wanted, the television areas
could be used to broadcast UCLA student programming or other
shows.
According to Friedman, if students want to see content from UCLA
students featured on mtvU, it is simply a matter of becoming
involved in the channel. Audience contributions are a major facet
of mtvU.
“The audience tells us what to play, and by and large,
student reaction is incredibly positive,” Friedman said.
At least for students who are watching it, that is. For
second-year undeclared student Deanna Shah, mtvU hasn’t
affected her daily routine.
“I don’t know if I’d like to watch MTV all the
time, but I never eat in Ackerman, so it doesn’t bother
me,” she said.
Still, Friedman emphasized that the channel is a “national
stage” for people who choose to get involved, with increasing
amounts of student programming on the channel. He cited shows such
as the weekly “Student Shots,” which showcases student
work.
“mtvU doesn’t view itself as competitive with
student programming,” said Jason Rzepka, mtvU communications
manager. “Together they can be a powerful mix.”
This creates a problem for students deciding what they want to
see ASUCLA support; although featuring UCLA student programming
would hinder the potential homogenization of a mainstream national
broadcast, mtvU does allow for a larger perspective, representing
regional diversity and preventing the insulation that could result
from a local broadcast.
Clearly a balance is needed, like the one that can already be
found in UCLA dorms. One way to reach broadcast equality is for
ASUCLA to choose to support both mtvU and UCLA programming in
future service decisions.
As UCLA’s contract with mtvU expires and ASUCLA prepares
to negotiate a new agreement, many students undoubtedly still want
their MTV. Now they get to decide just how much they really
want.