Writers Rack Up More Support for Strike

by James Parks, Dec 19, 2007

With negotiations on hold until January, striking members of the Writers Guild continue to gain support across the industry and the country. They also are trying a few new ideas in their effort to gain a fair share of the expected revenues from new media such as the Internet.

After negotiators for the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) stalked out of talks last week, writers announced they plan to begin negotiations with individual producers. They will formally approach studios today to discuss their willingness to make individual deals with companies.

Last week, David Letterman’s production company, Worldwide Pants, said it wanted to strike an interim agreement with the writers to cover those who work on its two programs, “Late Show with David Letterman” and “The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson.”

Even though the strike is in its second month, support for the writers is growing daily. This week, actors and staff for daytime television and crime shows will join the writers’ picket lines. And across the country over the past 10 days, writers and their allies marched in Boston, Kingston, N.Y., and Minneapolis. (See video.) 

Members of the Writers Guild have been on strike since Nov. 5. The writers and their supporters are on the picket lines at major studios in New York and California in a drive to win an equitable contract that addresses how writers are paid as new media plays a bigger and bigger role in the entertainment industry.

The writers are seeking a formula for fair compensation for their work when it is broadcast on the Internet, downloaded to iPods or cell phones or distributed via DVD.

 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) President Alan Rosenberg said in a letter that it’s time for the producers to return to the bargaining table. 

I salute the cast members and rank-and-file SAG members who are so much a part of this struggle and have made their opinions known to the press, the public, and our employers. As most television shows and motion pictures have shut down, actors are not working. But we know that this fight is for the rights of all creative artists, and our collective future is at stake. We share your sound and reasonable goals for fair compensation for new media formats, and we believe you are doing the right thing by taking a stand.

Meanwhile, NBC announced that late-night hosts Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien would return to the air Jan. 2 with new episodes. Leno and O’Brien, both members of the Writers Guild, say they are returning to ensure that the nearly 200 nonwriting staff for the shows would not lose their jobs.

The two comedians have been paying the nonwriting staff out of their own pockets. Both Leno and O’Brien say they still support the writers but had to think of the other staff as well.

In response, the Writers Guild said in a statement: 

NBC forcing Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien back on the air without writers is not going to provide the quality entertainment that the public deserves.

Joe Medeiros, lead writer for “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno,” told the Los Angeles Times: 

We knew it was just a matter of time before late night would come back. But Jay has been very supportive to us, and we support him.

Don’t forget, thanks to our friends at Firedoglake, you can send a message to the producers and executives of your favorite shows asking them to reach a fair deal with the writers.

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