Dancing teddy bears, a half naked Lady Gaga and the reuniting of former boy band NSYNC were just a few of the things that graced television screens across the country Aug. 25. The 2013 MTV Video Music Awards were broadcasted from the Brooklyn’s Barclays Center,  but the star-studded night seemed to consist more of outrageous performances and celebrity tensions rather than the recognition of the most popular music videos of the year.

    MTV handed out less than ten awards throughout the entire two and a half hour show. From its first airing in 1984 to 2013, the annual VMA’s have surely embraced pop culture and entertained many. That being said, the VMA’s have transformed tremendously. This may be due to the fact that MTV’s programming has undergone a major transformation as well. The network is now filled with reality TV shows such as Teen Mom, Catfish, Real World, etc rather than what it was founded upon: music. The VMAs now seem to be more about embracing the most current pop culture and showcasing it to the world rather than truly appreciating music videos.

      In what was the most talked about moment of the night, Miley Cyrus sang her hit “We Can’t Stop” and was later joined onstage by Robin Thicke to perform “Blurred Lines”. Cyrus reminded the world that she was no longer an innocent Disney Channel star with her raunchy dance moves and lack of clothing. The performance shocked viewers and for a second made the VMA’s seem more like a freak show rather than an awards ceremony. In fact, there were more tweets per minute about Cyrus’ performance than the blackout at this years superbowl. Cyrus’s performance was raunchy, vulgar and seemingly demeaned the culture and purpose of the VMAs. The last thing anybody was actually focusing on was her singing as she used Robin Thicke as a human prop to show off her explicit and racy dance moves.

     Senior Amy McQuaid said, “I just laughed throughout the whole performance because I couldn’t believe it. I used to love Miley.”

    The President of Pop, Justin Timberlake, saved the night from being a total disaster as he performed hits from throughout his entire singing career. Timberlake performed for fifteen minutes straight starting with the songs that made him famous and ending with his new and current hits. In the middle of his performance he was reunited with his former boy band, N SYNC, which was by far the most anticipated moment of the night. The group sang and danced to two of its most famous songs “Girlfriend” and “Bye Bye Bye”. Timberlake was then presented with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard award and once again reminded the viewers what the VMAs was all about, the appreciation of the music and music videos.

    With the exception of Mr. Timberlake’s outstanding mini-concert, the VMAs this year proved that the award show is now focused on getting the biggest reactions from its viewers rather than focusing on the actual music videos.

      Junior Mairead Treanor said, “It’s sad that they don’t really show good music, more just the popular stuff that everyone gets sick of. It shouldn’t be focused on these outrageous performances but rediscovering the music and their videos, hence what MTV literally stands for.”

    The event showcased celebrity tensions as seen when Taylor Swift indirectly called out her ex-boyfriend Harry Styles as the inspiration behind her song “I Knew You Were Trouble” (which later won Best Female Video) and spent less than half of the show actually honoring artists with the awards they deserved.

    From the risque dance moves, to the constant costume changes, to the celebrity drama and tension, the 2013 VMAs surely entertained it’s viewers, but in the meantime lost touch on the true purpose of the program; the music.