The Writers Guild strike and what it could mean to you. Yes, you. OK, and me.
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- October
- 31
You’ve probably been wondering  what is this threatened strike by the Writers Guild of America and what does it mean to me?
C’mon, admit it. It’s been keeping you up at night. Tossing and turning, you lay awake, pondering the imponderables.
Will the winter blockbuster movie season be a bust? Will Leno and Letterman have to go on hiatus? WHAT ABOUT THE DAILY SHOW?
Well, thank goodness for Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune.
The main issue hanging everyone up, Ryan explains, is “a long-brewing fight over payment for online distribution of TV shows, movies, Webisodes and other new-media content.”Many writers I talked to last week are gloomy about the chances of an 11th-hour settlement between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which have been in contentious on-and-off negotiations for months.
Here’s a look at what Ryan says will be the primary effects of a strike:
• Late-night TV gets hit first. Writers would walk out on all late-night programs, such as The Daily Show, The Tonight Show, Late Night With Conan O’Brien and Late Show with David Letterman. Some would go into repeats; others would air with mostly interviews, little other chat (and few, if any, sketches) in between (I suppose we’ll see how much fun in the funny each of these hosts actually contribute).
• Most daytime soaps will run out of scripts within a month. News and sports could take their place.
• Primetime has a couple of months. Most scripted shows have episodes (or at least scripts) in the can already; most reality shows are not covered by the guild’s agreements, so they’re golden. Plus, December is mostly repeats and annual holiday shows anyhow.
• “Midseason” is the big question. If the strike were still on, networks might save their remaining scripts for February sweeps. (Amy note: Jericho not only has all seven of its episodes written, they’re already produced, so a strike could actually be a boon to the show!)
As for 24, which is scheduled to premiere Jan. 13 & 14, Fox isn’t saying what the plans are.
David Fury, an executive producer of 24, said that if the writers work past their contract date, as some think might happen if progress is made in negotiations, Jack Bauer may indeed return in January. “As of right now, I think Fox will premiere ‘24’ as scheduled,” Fury said, but he noted that “it really depends on if and when the writers are called to walk out. If the strike does hit on Nov. 1, it certainly makes sense for Fox to delay the start, even if the lack of new programming hurts their bottom line.”“Lost” is another high-profile network show that is scheduled to come back at midseason  ABC previously announced that the island drama’s 16-episode season would begin in February. But “I have no idea” when “Lost” will return if there’s a strike, writer/executive producer Damon Lindelof said. It “depends on how many episodes we’re able to bank and that depends on when a strike actually occurs.”
“American Idol,” Fox’s perennial blockbuster, is expected to return in January, which means Fox, which has only two hours to fill on weeknights, is probably the least nervous of the major networks.
Game shows, anyone? Dateline: NBC five days a week, anyone?
2006 Writers Guild strike file photo by Nick Ut, Associated Press.
This entry was posted
on Wednesday, October 31st, 2007 at 11:00 am by Amy Vernon.
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I’ll always stick up for writers for obvious reasons.
That said, I wouldn’t object to a new or rehashed game show on an interim basis or beyond.