Unless you've been living under a rock for the past 10 years, you'll know this stark truth: the 'M' in MTV does not mean music anymore. Because of a change in public perception, music video are no longer an acceptable format to run between advertisements. First, if there's a video you want to see, you no longer have to wait for it, thanks to YouTube. You can also see covers of that song ad infinitum, remixes, mash-ups, live performances, and probably cats falling off of tall objects perfectly timed to said music. Second, with the music industry crumbling, the labels and record companies no longer have the same influence to make national stars with the same clout, like a Madonna or N'sync (I always forget where that apostrophe goes). Everyone's taste in music is very different and as time goes on, it's becoming more refined and succinct. Sub-genres of wizard rock and crunkcore have millions of hits online, yet a poll would reveal that an overwhelming majority of the population have never even heard of these musical offshoots. This has left little interest in the Top 40 and pre-teen stars of yesteryear, and therefore have left video jockeys (the hosts who would guide you through these videos on television) in search of other professions.
But in the past few years, a resurgence of video jockeys have made their way through another form of entertainment: laughter. With the 24 hours of video that are uploaded every minute to YouTube, a need for an editor to find funny videos that will go viral and become the next topic at the watercooler has emerged. And shows like Tosh.0, Web Soup and Ridiculousness, along with internet sensation Ray William Johnson, are filling the void that America's Funniest Videos solely clung to for two decades. These shows are very popular; Tosh.0 is currently the highest ranked show on Comedy Central, and RWJ's YouTube channel gets over a million hits per video. Some cable shows would kill for those numbers, because the more eyes you have, the higher you can charge for advertising.
This leads to the question: why have these video clips of failures and cats become so popular, while the music video has declined so far? Well, it all boils down to a simple fact: laughter is universal. You don't need to understand what Daniel Tosh is saying to understand why someone falling from a table they shouldn't be on is funny. And while we could all sit at a computer and search through countless hours of video to find gems, who has the time to piece it all together in a montage, with funny commentary? These people have teams of researchers and writers, who do this as their daily job, scouring the internet for the next 'chocolate rain'. Over time, they build trust in knowing that what they ultimately showcase will be worth the audience's time, solidifying themselves as experts in a new frontier of editorial glory (sidenote: if you've ever been an editor, you'll know that there is absolutely zero glory. Just lots of muck. And coffee.)
Though currently the competition is low, as is the entry bar, for becoming one of these vjs. All one needs is a camera and some editing software, or even just a blog. One can monetize through AdSense and other affiliate products, and become a new sensational gatekeeper of comedy. In a few years, this new frontier of video jockeying will become saturated and we will split off into new factions of groups who will base their humor on their most trusted host. But for now, let's all sit back and laugh at more cats. Meow.
Nanashi N. Nogombe is a pop culture enthusiast at night, while getting hammered during the day as a bartender. His other talent is finding funny videos for his friends to watch at http://allfunnyvedios.com
He also likes cat videos. http://nanashinogombe.hubpages.com/hub/Funny-video-clips-of-cats
