In support of the WGA Strike
Even if you’re not a TV geek like me, you’ve probably heard about the WGA strike. I don’t typically get very political, but this hits close to home. These are not greedy writers looking to get rich. As someone who works on contract, I can tell you that a regular paycheck is not a luxury most of the writers in the WGA have. They rely on residuals to cover their health care and pensions between gigs, and the big guns – who draw salaries in the tens of millions of dollars – have been screwing them out of money that is rightfully owed to these writers for the past twenty years. What they’re asking for is so little it’s appalling that it even came to a strike. Check this out for more information:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJ55Ir2jCxk[/youtube]
What you can do:
WATCH scripted television. They got paid for that, and they need their jobs waiting when the strike ends.
DON’T buy DVDs. DVDs aren’t the big issue, but the writers have been getting screwed out of a huge portion of that revenue for years, so it’s a way to show your support.
DON’T watch television shows online. The networks sidestep paying the writers for their full-length shows by calling these “promotions” despite the fact that they receive revenue from ads that they play whenever anyone views them online.
DON’T purchase television shows or movies online from iTunes or any other online purveyor. The writers get nothing for these shows.
Also, I’ve created an unauthorized (the WGA didn’t have an authorized one) banner you can put on your blog to show support. Here it is:
Feel free to save it, put it on your site, and link it to The WGA (http://www.wga.org/).Thanks!
Thank you for the banner, I’m off to add it to my blog.
I’ve been following strike reports through a couple blogs and I have to say at least for the first few days it does my heart good to see some of the other people showing up and walking the line with the writers. Of course I’ll be much more impressed in a week, or two, or (God forbid) six when actors are still coming out to support the writers.
One thing I wish the media would stop reporting, is the whole “reality show” myth. Guess what guys, they have writers too. I remember the last strike. There were a lot of pilots aired that summer, I wonder if the networks will figure that out this time around. They have all this product they paid for but didn’t pick up, airing it would at least be new content. But then again – I’m giving the network heads too much credit.
Okay, I’m done. If I go on will really rant. Besides, that’s what my blog it for.
Okay, I’ll answer your blog question here too. Yup, I’m in NY, just south of Buffalo. Like I said to a friend this morning, it’s never a good morning when the first thing you hear when you turn on the tv is the weather guy on CNN talking about the snow in your county. It only gets worse when the Weather Channel desides to send a crew out this way – that’s a really really bad sign.
Thanks for posting the logo and the info on what we can do. I hope the network heads pull their heads out soon. Probably too much to hope for, but I’m having bad flashbacks to Moonlighting during the writer’s strike in the ’80s.
Thanks for the banner, Lani. I’m definitely going to put that up later today.
Awesome post. As someone who has friends out walking the strike lines in California, it’s great to find bloggers (and not fake industry rat-rags) posting in support.
There’s a petition up now on United Hollywood: http://www.petitiononline.com/WGA/petition.html
Well stated. The Guild has to make a stand because people are increasingly turning to DVDs and downloads. You can imagine a time in the not too distant future where individuals will go on line and order what TV they want for the week and at what time. It will download onto a computer in the TV (like a Tivo) and we’ll watch at will. We can’t change new media- but we can insist that writers earn their well deserved piece of the pie.
Without writers, the rest of them don’t have a product to sell. Simple as that. I hope they figure that out sooner rather than later.
If anyone is inclined, here’s a more proactive idea. I just read this over at Deadline Hollywood Daily. Send pencils to the studios in support of the writers of your favorite shows.
Here’s the link:
http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/pencils-down-more-pencils-in-the-mail/
Ooooh, thanks, Cynthia. Great idea!
thanks for posting the logo. Here in Australia the message gets watered down due to the time it takes to receive new shows. We need to realise that unless the negotiations are successful for the writers everybody loses further down the track.