Artists Form Copyright Alliance to Protect Their Work
Increasingly, artists, writers and other persons who produce creative works are finding their work is being misappropriated, reproduced and distributed without their knowledge, consent or benefit. Now these artists are taking action to ensure their copyrighted works are protected and that they can continue to earn a living with their talents and ideas.
Several unions, including the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), have joined with major communications and entertainment companies to form the Copyright Alliance, a network of artists and creators working to protect their rights and the work they create.
AFTRA, IATSE Working to Rebuild Middle Class
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In the midst of an economic downturn, two entertainment unions reaffirmed their commitments to rebuild the middle class by organizing and fighting for their members’ hard-earned benefits.
AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka told delegates to the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) convention, which ended over the weekend, that now is the time to focus on organizing. He quoted economist John Maynard Keynes, who wrote in a 1938 letter to then-President Franklin Roosevelt that, to achieve a real recovery—a lasting recovery—the federal government had to invest in employment, production and purchasing power.
And that meant building the labor movement.
He didn’t mince any words about it: “I regard the growth of collective bargaining rights as essential.”
SAG, AFTRA Members Ratify Commercials Pact
In a nationwide mail ballot completed yesterday, members of the Screen Actors (SAG) and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) overwhelmingly approved new three-year contracts with the advertising industry. The new agreements cover performers working in commercials made for and reused on TV, radio, the Internet and new media.
The unions estimate the contract will raise members’ earnings by more than $108 million over the three-year agreement. The deal also establishes a first-ever payment structure in commercials for the Internet and new media. The new payment structure goes into effect in the third year of the contract.
SAG, AFTRA Reach Tentative Contract on Commercials
Just hours after the old contract expired, the Screen Actors (SAG) and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) reached a tentative three-year commercials contract.
The tentative deal with the Joint Policy Committee of the American Association of Advertising Agencies and the Association of National Advertisers must be approved by the SAG/AFTRA Joint National Board and the membership of both unions. The contract expired at midnight Tuesday.
AFTRA to Honor Four Entertainment Giants
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| AFTRA will honor legendary Motown recording artist Smokey Robinson and others at its annual awards ceremony. |
For five decades, music lovers have sung, danced and rocked to the tunes of Smokey Robinson. The list of his songs reads like a history of rhythm and blues. He sang or wrote such hits as “Shop Around”—Motown’s first number one hit—and such favorites as “Who’s Loving You,” “My Guy,” “The Way You Do the Things You Do” and “My Girl.”
Now Robinson, the man Bob Dylan proclaimed as America’s “greatest living poet,” will be honored for his lifetime achievement by the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists’ (AFTRA’s) Foundation during its Media and Entertainment Excellence (AMEE) Awards ceremony on March 9.
Along with Robinson, AFTRA will honor broadcaster Vin Scully, actress Jeanne Cooper and the late Don LaFontaine, a voice-over artist. The AMEE awards recognize members of the union who have made a significant contribution to American culture.
AFTRA Foundation President Shelby Scott says:
The AFTRA Foundation is proud to honor AFTRA members Smokey Robinson, Vin Scully, Jeanne Cooper, and Don LaFontaine for their lifetime of achievements that have entertained and informed audiences around the world.
