The Right Strike

The Hollywood Writers' Strike reminds us of the importance of writers and the importance of writing.

No writers, no Succession.

No writers, no Parks and Rec.

No writers, no Stephen Colbert monologue.

No writers, no…insert-your-favorite-show here________________________.

The WGA (Writers Guild of America) is on strike for the first time in 15 years.

The issue is largely fueled by tensions over streaming pay.

Indeed the “Streaming Wars,” that is the rise of platforms like Netflix, Disney+, HBOMax, has forced the whole industry to look at things differently and do things differently.  

You see, television production has exploded over the past decade, as media companies have invested billions into streaming services. But the growth and demand in production has not turned into growth in writers’ wages.

CEOs, on the other hand, whoo-boy! The folks at Equilar follow CEO compensation: A recent study shows the median pay for S&P 500 CEOs (Warners and Netflix CEOs among the highest paid) was $14.5 million in 2021—a 17.1% increase from the previous year. And climbing. Feel free to fall into this rabbit hole here.

So, more opportunities for writers, yes, but they don’t get paid more money to do them. And the engagements are a lot shorter. 

In fact, the new model has reduced the length of writer engagements from, say, 20 episodes, to something like 8.

Then there’s the whole issue of residuals. Residuals are a type of royalty for re-runs. When a show goes into syndication – like, when it’s sold in another market – part of the proceeds from that sale go to the writers of the show. These residuals are a way to be compensated between gigs. A way to have some income to keep your life going before you get hired for your next thing.

Well, with this new platform-distribution, that form of compensation is drying up.

There are other Strike issues too like AI and new forms of cheaper Writers Rooms called “mini-rooms.”

Same themes: More for less. Less money…and less respect.  

Soon enough, a prolonged shut-down will take its toll on all of the crafts people of Hollywood: the set designers, costume designers, composers, musicians, the folks who make the breakfast burritos at craft services, to name but a few.

We’re talking $Billions in losses — for the economy. (Not to mention the show Billions itself.)

I share all of this with you because writers are creators.

And we need professional creativity as well as our own creativity.

Professional writers synthesize and crystalize our lives and then reflect it back to us.

Of course, the first thing writers do is bring us joy. Laughter, drama, a release from reality.

But there’s more.

Think about how life imitates art in Succession. We’re getting an inside  look of sorts into the mad world of folks like Rupert Murdoch and the late Sumner Redstone.

Beyond these specifics, we can extrapolate out and relate to characters. Maybe you’ve had to deal with addiction like Kendall. Maybe you’ve been denied a seat at the table due to gender dynamics like Shiv. Maybe you are looking for ways to prove yourself like Roman.

Writers bring these characters to life to help us make sense of the world.

Writers also remind us of the importance of writing – even if we are not professionals.

Writing is thinking.

It’s imperative you get the ideas in your head onto the page.

So kindly support the writers of this Strike.

And also, get in touch with the writer in you.

The world (and your world) will be better for it.