MTV News abruptly shut down its website Monday, along with two decades worth of content.
Photo by Allan Tannenbaum/Getty Images MTV Founder Bob Pittman, New York, New York, January 18, 1983.
MTV removed more than two decades worth of content from its MTV News website. Similarly, its sister site, CMT.com, which covered country music, has also seen its content archives taken offline, according to Variety. Both actions are part of broader cutbacks by their parent company, Paramount Global, which shuttered MTV News in 2023 amid financial challenges.
Watch ‘I want my MTV News back’:
I want my MTV News back. Decades gone as website goes dark.
— Lucky13 (@13isLucky13) June 24, 2024
Users who try to visit mtvnews.com or mtv.com/news now will be redirected to MTV’s main site, signaling the closure of a chapter in digital music journalism that began in 1996. The site hosted thousands of articles and interviews, especially with its “Mixtape Monday” column, Variety reported. This feature was crucial throughout the 2000s and 2010s, providing detailed coverage of hip-hop culture and spotlighting new artists and producers.
MTV News Website Goes Dark, Archives Pulled Offline https://t.co/G7Y9LybWX3
— Variety (@Variety) June 24, 2024
The decision to pull down these archives has not only erased a significant portion of digital music history but also elicited strong reactions from former staffers and the journalistic community. Patrick Hosken, a former music editor at MTV News, shared his dismay on Twitter, mourning the loss of eight years of his work and contributions.
So, https://t.co/ypQLdbaWk5 no longer exists. Eight years of my life are gone without a trace. All because it didn’t fit some executives’ bottom lines. Infuriating is too small a word
— Patrick Hosken (@patrickhosken) June 24, 2024
Similarly, Crystal Bell, currently a culture editor at Mashable and previously with MTV News, emphasized the significance of losing vital music history. (RELATED: MTV Awards Canceled Due To War In Israel)
sickening (derogatory) to see the entire @mtvnews archive wiped from the internet. decades of music history gone…including some very early k-pop stories.
— Crystal Bell (@crystalbell) June 24, 2024
Brian Hiatt, a senior writer at Rolling Stone, also criticized the move.
This is disgraceful. They’ve completely wiped the MTV News archive. Decades of pop culture history research material gone, and why? https://t.co/xJQRXrNERS
— Brian Hiatt (@hiattb) June 24, 2024
As of now, MTV has not responded to requests for comment regarding the decision to remove these archives, according to Variety.
