Writer's Guild Strike

It's time for me to weigh in on this Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike.

The WGA produced a video explaining their side of the story:


I've thought about this a lot, because I have a 3 hour class on Tuesdays wherein I don't learn anything useful.

Cutting right to the heart of the matter, it's easy to see that the WGA is on the moral high ground. The advent of streaming TV on the internet has resulted in increased revenue for the studios, of which the writers don't see a dime. While the writers haven't done any additional work to increase the revenue, neither have the producers! They clearly deserve a cut of the profits. Let's not be silly.

On the other hand, there is another non-negligible layer to this problem. We simply can't ignore the pragmatics of the situation, the cold hard economics. Now, my grasp of economics doesn't extend far beyond the concept of "supply and demand", but in this case, I don't think we need to look any further to see why the WGA is screwed.

There is a huge supply of writers. According to the WGA's video, something like 48% of WGA members are unemployed at any point in time. A glut on the supply-side requires a proportionally glutty demand.

So, are audiences falling all over themselves to watch the very best that the TV has to offer? (Please note that being an elitist connoisseur of TV who's also not too snooty to disdain it completely, I get to define what "best" means). Of course not!!! How many reality shows are there on TV right now? How many game shows?

Audiences don't want well subtle dialogue and clever plot twists. They don't want character development and story arcs. They want bright, shiny pictures and repetitious soundtracks. They want artificial drama, obnoxious personalities, and big breasts.

Take, for example, I Love New York 2. This is a show about a bunch of guys competing for the love of a woman nicknamed New York. She's famous for having fallen in love with Flavor Flave on his own competitive-romance show (Flavor of Love). That show's conception was the result of his documented romance with Brigitte Nielsen (Strange Love), which had blossomed on another reality show (The Surreal Life). This is Season 2 of I Love New York, because Season 1's winner promptly dumped Miss New York.

Thanks, VH1. Thanks for giving us indisputable evidence that people simply don't need the writers' skill sets to be entertained. Thanks for showing us New York's unnaturally ample cleavage.

Additionally, the writers want a cut of DVD sales, which, as I said, is only fair. However, we're all so focused on the distribution of monies that we miss what's really going on. People are buying DVDs because the shows are so damn involved. Can't figure out who the bad guys actually are on Lost? Not sure how Jack Bauer disarmed the bomb using saliva and chapstick? Distracted by the hot evil chick on Battlestar Galactica? Buy the DVD! It's the only hope you have of understanding the next season.

These primetime soap operas have turned the writers into drug dealers. People gets hooked by the intricate plot lines, and when the audience can't afford to miss a single episode, advertisers will pay big bucks. It's brilliant, really.

At least, it's brilliant until the dealers go on strike. Do they really think that people are going to pound on the networks' doors until the producers cave? These are the same people that sit like zombies 3 hours a night, every night.

The people will find something else to do that involves less work than voicing their opinions. They'll read books. They'll go to the gym. Okay, they'll probably just play video games. In any event, when the strike finally ends, no one will remember why they cared about Greg House, M.D., let alone Charlie Crews or Ned the Piemaker.

When the users go to rehab, the dealers are screwed.

So here's the thing, writers of WGA: You're expendable. Your product just isn't addictive enough. You deserve more money, but this strike is going to screw you, along with everyone else in your industry. I hope you're happy. Lord knows the people at Nintendo must be.