2008 MTV Video Music Awards /

The 2008 MTV Video Music Awards took place on September 7, 2008 live from Paramount Pictures Studios (which, like MTV, is owned by Viacom), honoring the best music videos from the previous year. Nominations for a majority of the categories were announced on the MTV program FNMTV after being selected through viewer online voting at MTV.com. The remaining, professional categories were chosen by a panel of music industry professionals. Unlike previous editions of the show, MTV announced the winners to the professional categories three days before the ceremony (September 4) via a press release, rather than on the pre-show or main show. The rest of the winners were announced during the ceremony. Comedian Russell Brand hosted the event. On September 4, 2008 it was announced that Britney Spears would open the event. This year's awards were a huge improvement ratings-wise, seeing a 19% rise on last year with 8.4 million viewers. It was also a 23% advance over the 5.76 million who saw the 2006 ceremony. Although ratings improved, this years video music awards was hosted at its smallest venue of its 25 year history. Britney Spears became the main winner of the night, walking away with three