MTV is notorious for reality television, a genre of video art, which is calculated, manipulated and edited, all by willing participants who sign a contract to have their public image recreated. The stunt itself fits right into the genre of reality television, right down to the way that it was shot and executed.  The multi camera coverage of the event allowed for perfect action shots of Sacha as he dangled from the ceiling. Also, there is a shot of Eminem sitting in the audience before he even makes contact with Bruno. This is the shot that gives away the whole stunt. The camera is able to anticipate where Bruno will land before he falls. If the stunt had not been not well rehearsed, the camera would not have had enough time to pinpoint the exact seat in which Bruno's body would land, causing a safety hazard for Sacha as well as all of the A list guests. Also, notice the hand held camera shot taken right after Bruno has settled into Em comfortably. This angle should look familiar. You have probably seen it before on almost every MTV show. This tight, griping action shot is only made possible from a hand held camera, operated by a professional standing right next to Eminem, waiting for his cue to run by MTV executives. 

Eminem, who has just released a new album Relapse, which has already hit the top of Billboard charts, is a prime candidate to participate in a stunt of this nature. The only publicity surrounding this public figure within the last few years were centered on his days in rehabilitation for drugs and alcohol. By allowing Sacha to land on him in such a crude way, Eminem is gaining lots of positive publicity without having done a thing. No matter how you look at it, Eminem has been victimized by this supposed accident, a sympathetic ploy to recreate his image as an artist. Lets face it, Eminem has been accused in the past of being a homophobe and his anti-gay rap lyrics certainly don't refute these accusations. Take the song "Criminal" for instance: Even though Eminem's voice was bleeped out when he started cursing, you better believe that he wasn't calling the straight actor, Cohen, a faggot, a word that the old Eminem was not too shy to throw around in the past. Sacha also has a film coming out Bruno, which he is starring in. Both Sacha and Eminem, are two performers who make fun of people for a living, are both signed to Universal, and have made no accusations against each other since the incident. This accident sure sounds like a dirty marketing scheme to me, one that sent twitter feeds through the roof.  

Since the airdate of the awards, the show's head writer Scott Auckerman has released a statement, "Yes, the Bruno/Eminem incident was staged. That's all anyone wants to talk about, so let's get it out of the way. They rehearsed it at dress and yes, it went as far as it did on the live show then." Why are some viewers still convinced that the trick was not staged? Are we so warped by the word "reality", that anything labeled real, all of a sudden becomes real?