News Flash: The CEOs Aren't Playing Fair

We shouldn't get all misty-eyed at the revelation that the studios are happy the strike has happened.

Jeff Zucker picks up an easy $40 million by terminating overall deals. Peter Chernin is the face of reality when he boasts, "We save more money in..., you know, story costs and probably the lack of making pilots than we lose in potential advertising."

We shouldn't be surprised that a cable network told a tv-writer last week that her movie will go into production, but before they green light her project, they need the tiniest of rewrites before they green light. They know the WGA doesn't want her to do the work, but maybe she could 'supervise' someone else who could. Wink, wink.

And we shouldn't be shocked that the studios have backed themselves into a corner by paying too much for high profile deals. Whose problem is that? Theirs? No, they tell us, it's our problem. As Nick Counter says with condescension, "Don't ask for more money. The movie business is unprofitable."

Was anyone surprised by the AMPTP's full page ad in Variety and the LA Times claiming that writers were already being paid for their work on the internet? Since when are the studios the source of accurate accounting?

Ok, so nobody's surprised by any of that. We all know that the CEOs aren't nice guys. But there's too much talk about the strike being over in a couple of weeks.

We have to be realists. Sure 90.1 % of the membership voted for the strike authorization. 4,000 rallied in front of Fox Plaza last Friday. But consensus isn't enough.

We need determination.

The strike will last at least 60 days, because, as Peter Chernin happily says, the short-term bottom line is so good. There has to be time for CEOs, like Jeff Zucker, to bend over and pick up the loose change dropped from terminated deals.

Sooner or later, reality will catch up with the CEOs. Although they don't like it, they need product and that means they need writers.

What will bring the AMPTP back to the bargaining table in the near future? Continued pressure from our picket lines. Increasing public support for the strike. Political influence. Back channel phone calls.

Yes. All of that and more.

We are negotiating for meaningful issues. The AMPTP is a difficult adversary. It's essential to pace ourselves. We have to be prepared for the long haul. And we will win. We absolutely will win!