Based on the Jose Antonio Vargas account of the MTV video music awards bash in The Washington Post,  I'm spurred to ask the following:

1. When Vargas reports that MTV still knows how to create awards-show moments such as "Al Gore, to wild applause, giving a short lecture on the effects of global warming," is the audience reaction due to Gore's cause, or were the cheers for the brevity of the lecture?

2. When Vargas describes MTV News diva Suchin Pak as the "Katie Couric of MTV," is that a compliment? Or was her apparent failure to ask the Juicy Big Questions about dueling female singers Couric-esque?

3. Now, based on the MTV website, is Al Gore signaling hard enough that he's eager to be seen as un-presidential? I refer to this report of "chilling" with the "Jackass" crew:

More than 30 cameras captured an uncensored, up-to-the-second look at what's never been televised before, treating viewers to ... um, Al Gore hanging out in the "Jackass" dressing room, for one ("I'm so nervous my balls are shrinking into my stomach," Steve-O joked as the former vice president laughed along).