It's a moment that none of us have forgotten, including Taylor Swift. Back in 2009, Kanye West stormed the stage of the MTV Video Music Awards to snatch the microphone out of Swift's hands. Swift was thanking her fans as she was awarded Best Female Video, but her acceptance speech was cut short when West proclaimed, "I'm sorry, but Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time." At the time, the New York Post wrote that West seemed to be intoxicated at live awards shows, which was being watched by nine million people. With the 2013 VMAs scheduled to be held tomorrow, the Huffington Post reports that Swift still jokes about the incident.
All jokes aside, MTV should have permanently banned Kanye West from attending the VMAs. The 2009 incident was far from the rapper's first outburst. MTV writes that in 2007, Kanye West, "lost his temper after he was displeased with his performance being set inside a hotel suite rather than on the show's main stage." In 2004, he stormed the stage of the American Music Awards to proclaim that he should have won the Best New Artist award.
West's willingness to be reckless in public has been demonstrated not just by his alleged intoxication at the VMAs, his history of storming the stage at awards shows, or his outbursts when he doesn't agree with who receives awards. He has made numerous headlines because of scuffles with the paparazzi including an incident in which he allegedly attacked a paparazzo at LAX in July according to TMZ. These controversial headlines may drive public interest in the rapper, and his presence at the VMAs may drive curious viewers to tune into the show to see whether another incident will occur. However, some things are more important than driving ratings, and being required to abide by common courtesy is one of them.
MTV may not be responsible for responding to West's behavior outside the VMAs or managing his public image, but they can choose how they respond to his actions at the awards show itself. What kind of message is MTV sending to young viewers when there is no consequence for West's behavior? The message is that if things don't go your way, you can storm the stage, be rude to other guests, and face no consequences other than increased attention and interest. Instead, MTV should have permanently dismissed West from the awards show and sent the message that everyone, no matter how famous they are, has to treat others with respect.