Back in the 80s, before the Internet. for a Midwestern kid it was a portal to a world of (Britpop/Europop/New Wave) music that was difficult to find in the US outside of large cities. I have good memories of MTV in the early and mid-80s.
I have good memories of it too.
Starting with Video Killed the Radio Star.
When I first heard about MTV I thought that they would also do some classical music and opera. Boy, was I naive.