Two articles in the New York Times today (11/16/07) put a personal perspective on the strike. Bill Carter's "Late Shows Move to Help The Workers Not on Strike" and Jennifer Steinhauer's "Writers' Strike Opens New Window on Hollywood".
Carter reports about efforts by Talk Show Hosts to keep their staffs paid, even if they can't be on the air. Steinhauer profiles the personal stories of writers, costumers, assistants, electricians, and thousands of others who are now or who will soon be out of work.
What these stories have in common is one underlying fact: the AMPTP won't sit down with the WGA.
Notwithstanding the AMPTP's full page ads, they'd rather spend their energy and money on avoiding talking to the writers and negotiating a fair deal. And why?
Simple. They don't want to give up revenue. Since they've been using writers' work on the internet at a devalued rate or, even better, at no cost, they have ZERO interest in giving away any portion of that money.
That's understandable. If someone is used to getting something for free, they'll fight like a mad dog when they're told that they need to pay up. Surely some accountant in one of the AMPTP companies has worked up a spread sheet showing how much they'll make, the longer the strike continues.
The writers say they want a fair deal, but to the AMPTP what's not fair is having to pay fair-market rates for "product".
How do we get out of this mess and get back to work?
The AMPTP needs to come to its senses and give up on their unreasonable demands.
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