First awarded in 1984, MTV’s Moonman award is getting an update for 2015.
In anticipation of this Sunday’s Video Music Awards hosted by IRL-emoji herself, Miley Cyrus, MTV unveiled a Moonman emoji for Twitter users, making it the first network to have its own award show emoji.
OOOH THEY MADE AN EMOJI OF MY @MTV MOON MAN REDESIGN !!! #VMAS !!! WE COME IN PEACE !!! pic.twitter.com/ekMnZDQe8X
— JEREMY SCOTT (@ITSJEREMYSCOTT) August 24, 2015
Tweets using #VMA and #VMAs will be tagged with neon-colored Moonman emoji created by fashion designer Jeremy Scott, who is also dressing Cyrus. The emoji was inspired by the actual Moonman award that will be given to winners and which also got a redesign by Scott last week.
Moschino’s creative director @ITSJEREMYSCOTT redesigned the @MTV #VMAs Moonman! https://t.co/fYYpEaU4fQ pic.twitter.com/IhfYIkDTZv — Moschino (@Moschino) August 18, 2015
MTV says the emoji only furthers the awards ceremony as an “iconic social event,” which is true because last year’s event garnered 12.6 million tweets, according to Nielsen Social. (Television ratings, however, dipped 18 percent compared to 2013.)
Of course, MTV isn’t the first to have its own Twitter emojis. Other live events, including the World Cup and Eurovision, also have teamed up with the social network to include mini-emojis with specific hashtags.
More in Media
Amazon expands media footprint with iHeart sales deal and new TV outcome tool
Amazon is deepening its role in streaming advertising with an expanded iHeartMedia sales deal and outcome-based TV buying technology.
Media Briefing: Inside publishers’ real Cannes agenda – AI money vs agentic hype
For publishers, Cannes this year isn’t just about showing up for clients and sponsors. It’s a mid‑year checkpoint on two hard questions: who is going to pay for the open web in an AI world, and whether agentic media buying is a real fix or just a freshly branded ad‑tech tax.
Forbes tests a creator-led audience play to grow off-platform reach
Forbes is yet another publisher tapping creators and their audiences to drive off-platform growth – with a slightly different structure.