Dancing In The Distraction Factory: Music Television and Popular Culture

Goodwin argues that most criticism written about music video misses some key things: music has always, and especially in the twentieth century, relied on images to sell music, whether through posters, cover art, or live performance, so music video represents a change and not a sensory addition to the repertoire. Music videos are made as promotional devices, with systematic effects on content. And music videos are only part of what viewers end up associating with the music in terms of images. It’s an interesting read, and helpful in thinking through the relationship between fan videos and non-fan videos.