VMA RATINGS "NOSEDIVE"

We quote The Wrap for our headline; that site reports that the MTV VMAs plummeted 34% in ratings, scaring up a mere 6.5m viewers across the multiple Viacom properties via which it was simulcast. That's against last year, when ratings were already substantially down; the show's 2011 peak saw 12.4m viewers.

Streaming, on the other hand, was up 70%, as target viewers sampled the show online.

It seems clear that viewers in general weren't aware of the show beforehand, a further indication of MTV's vastly diminished visibility on the cultural landscape.