This is why I wish that every musician would boycott MTV and the VMAs (the completely ludicrous awards show that literally has Perez Hilton picking the winners). MTV used and abused Michael in so many ways over the years and clearly nothing has changed...
A week or two before the VMAs aired with this "Artist of the Millennium" fiasco MTV sent out press statements to the media indicating that Michael Jackson would be receiving this award. They informed Michael well in advance that he would be receiving that award which is why he attended the show in the first place and also why he had prepared a full acceptance speech. On MTV's site at the time they even posted that Michael received this award but quickly changed it to reflect that he made a mistake.
However, their real intentions have long been to demean and humiliate the very person who allowed their network to survive in the first place. When they realized viewers were tuning out, they began relying strictly on controversy to boost ratings. Not only with Michael Jackson, but with other artists including Britney Spears in 2007. No longer did artists matter to them at all, it was all about how controversial they can make the awards show. Sick bastards.
He did in fact receive the Male Artist of the Millennium award and the Artist of the Century award at other award shows. :yes: