Writer's Strike Thread

[Dooly]

It seems widely agreed that the soaps cannot survive a prolonged preemption -- and, newly scheduled talks aside -- most indicators unfortunately point to a long strike. If the soaps are going to stay on the air in the interim, somebody's got to write them. Fi-core and scabbing are not synonymous. Yes, fi-core is strike-breaking, but it is not done in cowardly anonymity. There are many writers walking the picket lines who do not believe in this strike because they are impelled by the WGA and afraid of the consequences if they do not. There are others (many more than has been made known publicly) who elected fi-core because they care about the shows, plain and simple. It is not a decision made by anyone lightly, believe me. But in an industry where backstabbing fellow colleagues is the norm, this show of "solidarity" at strike time is pretty ironic, IMO. Everyone in the WGA believes in principle that the writers deserve a bigger share of digital revenue. However, not everyone voted for this strike. And the decision to actually go out was precipitous and ill-advised, IMO. We're not hitting the huge corporate conglomerates where it hurts -- we're hurting the writers much more. And worse, the below-the-line employees who do not earn residuals, who will not benefit from the strike when it's over, and who did not make this choice. Frankly, writers are currently EXTREMELY well-compensated up-front for what they do. Yes, corporations are greedy, but there's no reason we couldn't have continued negotiations over digital media without striking. (When SAG and DGA contracts expire in June, that would have been the time to strike if no progress was made across the board.) It will suck if daytime writers don't have jobs to come back to at all because of this strike. I'm not saying the striking writers owe any debt of gratitude to those who elected to collect paychecks and keep the shows going during the stirke -- but there is a complex interplay at work of greed, fear, ego, and loyalty to fellow writers/employers/the genre. It's not as black-and-white as some seem to believe.

[Roman]

Let's also keep the discussion respectful. Whether you agree or disagree, no need to get personal.

[Sylph]

International Guilds support US strike



Leaders of major writers' guilds from around the world – representing more than 21,000 screenwriters internationally - have pledged to take action in support of the WGA strike against multi-national media conglomerates.

At the annual International Affiliation of Writers Guilds' meeting in Montreal, Canada, screenwriters announced an International Day of Solidarity on Wednesday, November 28, 2007. Writers will demonstrate in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, English and French Canada, United Kingdom, Mexico and France.

"Their fight is our fight," asserts Rebecca Schechter, President, Writers Guild of Canada. "Screenwriters around the world are entitled to receive their fair share of revenues from the internet, and that is what our American colleagues are fighting for."

Katharine Way, Chair, Writers’ Guild of Great Britain, argues that "The future of our industry is shifting toward new media. Writers have always had to fight for a small share of the revenues generated from their work and this case is no different."

Audrey O'Reilly, Chair, Irish Playwrights and Screenwriters Guild, added that "Our solidarity means that no self-respecting screenwriter in any country will undermine the US strike. The overwhelming majority of our members will never take work from striking American colleagues because the fight now taking place in the US is a fight for screenwriters across the globe."

Tim Pye, President, Australian Writers Guild, says that "the IAWG urges the international corporate giants to share just a few more drops from their buckets of money with the creators – without whose work their TV shows, movies, webisodes and downloads would not exist. The networks and studios must return to the negotiating table without delay."

The International Day of Solidarity on Wednesday, November 28, 2007, will demonstrate the resolve of the worldwide screenwriting community.

More details on how the day will be marked in the UK will follow soon.


http://www.writersguild.org.uk/public/003_WritersGuil/172_WGGBNewsInt.html

[juppiter]

Bump!

[Toups]

bump? It was on the first page! And the last post 9:43am. No need to bump. It's not like this thread is going to die out soon.

[exwriter]

It's actually pretty black and white. I'm a striking writer. I'm out there on the line. And not just for myself. For my union brothers and sisters.

You don't get to just opt out of a union because you disagree. Your union goes out on strike, you go. You don't undercut it by taking your check anyway. 90% of membership voted to strike. That's a huge mandate. Imagine if 90% chose one candidate in a general election? And around 50% of the guilds voted on the issue. Imagine if we had that kind of turnout in a national election.

In 1988, the strike lasted five months because of its timing. It was summer. All the other shows were on hiatus. Daytime writers were hardest hit, and the issues were not so much our own. It was months before tptb even noticed the writers weren't working. This timing is important, because it disrupts the primetime season, it boondoggles the january-march movies that were to be shooting, and it effectively screws pilot season.

Finally, the writers who have gone FiCore are NOT the ones who care about the shows' future. There are daytime writers who love the genre, and aren't just in it to make money -- well, maybe not that, but -- they do love the genre. Those people are walking the picket lines. Most of the headwriters are out there in the street. That says a lot.

[bellcurve]

I wonder if last year's SOAPU winner is scabbing?! I can't help but to wonder if scabbing would be part of his "internship."

[Punky Brewster]

dumb question but even if they do sit down and begin to negotiate and say they can't come up with an agreement. Has it been official they will be using scabs? and even if they do can't they still stop production altogether on the soaps.? I am not saying I want this to happen. I was just curious cause it seems like they have shut down everything else.

[Sylph]

Does anyone here think Jim and Babs will be fired after the strike?

[ChangedBYSon]

O Gd Let's hope so.

Btw,

I loooooove that you put your old picture back up.

That's how I see you, Sylph.

When I see that picture, I think it's really you.

You're one of my 3 favorite people around here, too.

Brad.

[Khan]

Definitely, Sylph. I think Frons will go through the pretense of "assuring" fans that B&E are still employed at AMC; then, a month or two (or even earlier) down the road, an ABC spokesperson will release the official announcement.

Unfortunately, I wish I could say the same for Jean Passanante and David Kreizman.

[Kubla Khan]

[Khan]

If only AMC was that clever.

[Southofnowhere]

That pic is tooooooooooooooooooooo CUTE for words!

[Sylph]

I wrote about the reinstating of my first avatar here.