A writers strike, such as the one in 2007, can have a crippling effect on the television and film industry. Without writers, shows run out of scripts and production must end. This results in delayed filming, fewer new episodes, and less revenue from commercial ad placements. It is in everyone’s best interest to resolve a writer’s strike quickly.
When writers who belong to the Writers Guild of America Union are dissatisfied with the terms of their contracts with television and movie studios, they may choose to start a writers strike. This can be a crippling blow to the television and film industry because even a script that has already been written needs editing and adjustments when a show is filmed. Without writers, this cannot be accomplished, forcing TV shows to run out of episodes to film and movies that are being made to halt production.
One such strike occurred in 2007 and primarily concerned writers’ rights to royalties from DVD sales of television series, Internet rebroadcasts, and podcasts. The emerging technology of these lucrative markets, especially the rise in popularity of downloadable DVDs of series and episodes or movies, has prompted writers to charge more for selling their work in other non-traditional markets. When this type of writers strike occurs, other unions, including unions outside the entertainment industry, have to choose sides. Actors’ unions often strike out with writers, while producers tend to be on the opposite side of the fence, since they’re negotiating the profits they feel entitled to.
If a writer’s strike lasts long enough, it has a negative effect on television programming. This may depend on when the strike occurs and also how long it lasts. A strike lasting several weeks during the fall or spring season means most major shows are in production. They’ve already filmed some pre-written scripts, but they may only be a week or two ahead in filming the shows that are going to air. Also, staff writers are not on hand for rewrites, which means any rewrites are done by people who don’t usually do the work, which in turn can create lower quality scripts in the finished product. Normally, once a TV show runs out of scripts, production of the show must end until the strike is resolved.
What this means in terms of television scheduling is that filming is delayed, new episodes are not available, and radio stations have to choose to air reruns, perhaps much sooner than expected. Some late-starting shows, such as those in January, may delay production of their first few episodes and may decide to skip a season if a writer’s strike occurs in the late fall or early winter of the previous year. Networks may also decide to air other pilots or new shows that they were saving for later or considering airing only. What tends to be important for networks is that fewer people watch reruns, which results in less revenue from commercial ad placements. Commercials are worth as much as a network airs a rerun, and fan loyalty to shows can be lost if fans have to wait a long time for a new episode of their favorite show.
It is in the best interest of all parties: writers, producers, directors, actors and film crew to resolve a writer’s strike as quickly as possible. Prolonged strikes dramatically disrupt television programming, lose money to networks, and keep actors, cameramen, special effects teams, sound engineers, directors, and producers out of work. The cost of making up for lost time can be astronomical, and networks continue to make less than expected while the writer’s strike lasts.
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