MTV's Good and Bad News

Posted by Jim_Daly May 21, 2012

This report is a mixture of good news and bad news, all wrapped up within the same story.

Several weeks ago MTV announced plans to launch a new reality show titled “Losing It” – as in losing one’s virginity. It promised to chronicle “sexual firsts” in candid fashion.

Obviously, that’s bad news.

Yesterday, it was reported that MTV has scrubbed plans for the show.

That’s good news.

But that executives at MTV would even consider such a tawdry feature in the first place is bad news. It’s good news, though, that executives have apparently listened to the collective outcry from parents, which I hear was significant.

This incident strikes me as a metaphor of not only the culture at large, but also the way a Christian is called to engage it. How one views this story may also speak to how one views the world.

The cynic will decry the hedonistic and greedy motivations of MTV executives in general. That they canceled the show will do little to placate. The optimist will see it as a victory for decency and a nod to higher values.

How do I see it?

It strikes me as a great example of the ongoing tension, of the struggle that has never ceased since man first sinned. Should we expect any less of a worldview that sees life so differently, that values very different things? As believers we’re called to do our best to reform culture, but it’s up to God to ultimately transform it.

Of course I am glad that MTV changed course on the show. God’s design for sexuality is sacred and beautiful and should never be exploited. But for a Christian swimming upstream against the cultural tide, life is always going to be a mixture of good and bad news. I will not always be happy with the ways things are turning, but if I commit my actions to the Lord and do my part, I can trust that they will turn out alright (Psalm 37:5)

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