'Friday Night Video Fights' (MTV)

[bandit957]

Anyone else remember this feature on MTV? This was around 1983-84.

Every Friday night, MTV would pit two music videos against each other. People would supposedly call in and vote for their favorite, and the winning video would move on to the next week. But it was not a toll-free number, so it cost money to vote.

Suspiciously, sometimes a video would be way ahead in the voting, but then at the last minute it would suddenly lose by 51-49%.

[golden eagle]

I didn't have MTV until the mid-80s. Sounds like a TV version of top 40 radio stations that did the same thing.

[bandit957]

I didn't have MTV until the mid-80s. Sounds like a TV version of top 40 radio stations that did the same thing.

I remember a couple top 40 stations where they would debut a new record and listeners would call in to vote yes or no on it. I don't think stations always paid heed to the results though.

WCLU occasionally had "Keep It Or Cram It." I remember one day they did "19" by Paul Hardcastle, which everyone voted overwhelmingly to keep. After that, they played "19" quite a bit.

WLAP-FM had "Like It Or Spike It" every night. I remember "The Dead Heart" by Midnight Oil getting a good reception. But I think people rejected "Orinoco Flow" by Enya (though the station did regularly play it not long after).

[triplemultiplex]

"Trash it or stash it" is the version I've heard on rock stations in the 90's. 

[GCrites]

Anyone else remember this feature on MTV? This was around 1983-84.

Every Friday night, MTV would pit two music videos against each other. People would supposedly call in and vote for their favorite, and the winning video would move on to the next week. But it was not a toll-free number, so it cost money to vote.

Suspiciously, sometimes a video would be way ahead in the voting, but then at the last minute it would suddenly lose by 51-49%.

Not surprising considering TRL was revealed to be fake -- inadvertently by MTV's own Tom Green.

[golden eagle]

I didn't have MTV until the mid-80s. Sounds like a TV version of top 40 radio stations that did the same thing.

I remember a couple top 40 stations where they would debut a new record and listeners would call in to vote yes or no on it. I don't think stations always paid heed to the results though.

WCLU occasionally had "Keep It Or Cram It." I remember one day they did "19" by Paul Hardcastle, which everyone voted overwhelmingly to keep. After that, they played "19" quite a bit.

WLAP-FM had "Like It Or Spike It" every night. I remember "The Dead Heart" by Midnight Oil getting a good reception. But I think people rejected "Orinoco Flow" by Enya (though the station did regularly play it not long after).

I remember a local radio station played "Mambo No. 5" and got a 100%. It was in rotation the next day.

[Max Rockatansky]

MTV had too much brain rotting qualities to it during the 1980s for me to watch beyond doing so covertly.

[snowc]

MTV had too much brain rotting qualities to it during the 1980s for me to watch beyond doing so covertly.

Now its turned into the Teen Mom Network. 

[golden eagle]

I don't want my MTV.