The WGA strikes. Did the studios ever take this seriously?

As of 12:01 AM today, the Writers Guild of America is on strike.

The WGA released a PDF last night detailing the status of their talks with the studios. It’s sobering to see how far apart the two sides are.

This strike, like the 2007 one, will affect many people, not just writers. And that’s a shame for workers across the industry. I want to believe the studios are playing dumb, that they’re not this disconnected from the issues, and that they aren’t willfully pushing the WGA into striking.

But…Maybe they are?

Because this document reads like the studios aren’t taking this seriously.

“Rejected our proposal. Refused to make a counter” is the constant refrain.

An image making the rounds on social media.

The PDF I linked above is part of a broader strike page the WGA has set up. There’s much to read and process there, and I hope to dive deeper into this in future posts.

However, I do need to call out this particular section:

AI has become a reoccurring topic on this substack, and I almost did a spit-take when I read the studios’ response.

AI is not the central issue of these talks. Earning a living as a writer is. But this back-and-forth speaks volumes. The studios need to wake up.

UPDATE:

Deadline.com published an interview with the WGA’s Chef Negotiator, Ellen Stutzman:

Yep. That sounds about right.