MTV's VMA's

There's a reason this year's MTV VMA's tanked (getting half the audience it did in 2011):  Performers.
The 2011 show had Beyonce, Adele, Lady GaGa.  And Amy Winehouse had just passed away, so there was a tribute to her.

The 2012 version had the overexposed Rihanna, Pink, Alicia Keys, Taylor Swift, One Direction, Green Day among its headliners.  None of those will make you want to tune in.
In fact the best performance of the night was by Frank Ocean. who gets half the airplay of the above combined.

These MTV music awards have nothing to do with Music Television anymore, anyway.  MTV only shows videos early in the morning.  MTV is just using it's 30 year brand name to get  it's biggest audience tune in.  The ratings for 2012 were still above 6 million, but half of the 2011 take.

But the main problem is that Pop music, which MTV celebrates, just wasn't that exciting in 2012.  And the audience numbers show it.