Here it is, your moment of (Writers Guild-approved) Zen

woynukz ptbmk Sat, Feb 16, 2008 at 02:20 AM EST

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Ray Sat, Nov 17, 2007 at 01:05 PM EST

Hmmm...if a picture is worth "a thousand words", and, according to Redstone, words are worth a BIL-L-L-LION dollars, well, do the math! With my picture I can buy Viacom! I OWN you, Sumner!

Seriously, I don't get why the media companies aren't looking to resolve this, and soon. I mean, even Walmart pays their slaves...er, employees...and if they walked out in the middle of the Christmas shopping season, they might notice the shortfall in help...

Raven_Moon Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 11:57 PM EST

That was great. I miss "The Daily Show." Reruns I've seen several times aren't cutting it for me. Also, so glad to see John Oliver in this clip. He's so funny. Pay these people all ready!

Dio_K Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 02:33 PM EST

Sigh, I miss the Daily Show. Of course there are two sides to everything, but traditionally writers have been considered as after-thoughts in "Hollywood". They've made great strides in the past few decades and I can see why they don't want to lose the momentum. After-thoughts don't get paid well, so the writers have to stick to their guns and make sure their work is compensated commensurate with where their work is shown. Sometimes the only way to make their point is to show what happens when writers don't write. Personally, I hope this is over soon. I watch TV and am not too fond of Reaper reruns in the middle of November. I agree with "Mike" and hope they get a mediator in there soon. The strike will harm network TV as much as the writers if it's not settled quickly.

jayel Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 02:28 PM EST

GOB - you're right; it is the studios that take the big monetary risk on new shows, just like it's publishers that take the big monetary risk on new books. That's why studios, like publishers, make much, much more money on the projects that do succeed than the writers who conceived and wrote them in the first place. As a novelist, I earn a royalty on every copy of my story that my publisher sells, regardless of format (hardcover, paperback, Ebook, etc.). If my publisher makes money on my work, they have to give me a cut, small as it may be. Why should the people who write for television and movies be any different? Yes, TV shows and movies cost a lot more to produce than books. They also have a lot more earning potential, particularly when the marketing possibilities of the Internet are factored in.
As far as I'm concerned, reason and fairness are all on the side of the writers in this one. All the other side has is the money to tough it out - which they made from writers.

GOB Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 01:17 PM EST

While I mostly side with the writers, there are two sides to the coin. The studios make a lot of money from the internet and repeats of programming that should be shared with the writers. However, it's the studios taking the risks when greenlighting new tv shows/films, and the success rate is not very high. If the writers want to have studios to work with to create new projects, the studios need money to back them in the first place. I don't think I've seen any stories of studios suing writers for failed sitcoms or movies that bomb. When money is lost, it's lost by the studios. Again, I do side with the writers here to a large extent, but there are many other industries in which the creatives do not get paid repeatedly for their work. Do you think a designer of a logo (like Coke or Harley Davidson) gets paid every time it's used on an ad or appears on merchandise? No. Does a copy writer get paid for every time an ad runs? No. Please make a compromise and get back to work.

Anne Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 11:39 AM EST

Mike, I agree. I am disappointed with the unprofessional behavior of a good number of the writers I have seen (remarks made, attitudes observed) and am unimpressed by the corporations as well. I only watch three shows on a regular basis and the strike could issue a death blow to two of them (FNL and The Unit). And the obnoxiousness of "Kelly" "Toby" and "Ryan" caught on tape in the picket line has caused my interest in The Office to wane. Will I watch the remaining new episodes of The Office? Sure, but I will not jump hurdles to be in front of the TV for the show, as I have done in the past. Will I return to TV if the strike drags on for months? Maybe but it would take some time (and some really good shows) to get me to pick up the remote. On a brighter note, if the strike continues I may get to the three remaining books on my 2007 reading list before the end of the year.

Here Here Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 11:35 AM EST

Mike is absolutely right. This wil hurt the industry in the long run - there are so many more media outlets that are vying for the audience's attention. By fighting over the Internet now, they will lose to the Internet in the long run.

Luis PJ Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 11:23 AM EST

Well it got better in the end...and that good thing

Mike Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 11:23 AM EST

Get a mediator in there now and settle this. Both sides in a strike snipe at each other and assume 100% of the public will come back the minute the strike is settled. the writer's strike in 1984 cost the networks 10% of their audience. Major League Baseball lost a World Series to a strike and took years to come back. The Nation Hockey League had a long strike and now their games are on Versus.
The audiences attention span is so much shorter now. We'll just find something else to do.

sympathy for writers Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 11:15 AM EST

This was most excellent!

plushpuppy Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 11:14 AM EST

Well done, made their point in a smart, funny way.

Molly Thu, Nov 15, 2007 at 10:40 AM EST

Oh, I miss the Daily Show and their slice of brilliance. Please pay the writers for said brilliance so I can see John Oliver back on the air :)