The Writers Guild of America strike

Here’s how the Writers Guild of America strike will impact the television industry.

Transcript

00:00More than 11,000 Hollywood writers are officially on strike, so we need to talk about how this will

00:04impact the television industry. The Unionized Screenwriters, part of the Writers Guild of

00:09America, initiated the strike after the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers failed

00:13to provide them with an adequate deal during ongoing contract negotiations. WGA members are

00:18seeking higher minimum pay, less thinly staffed writing rooms, shorter exclusive contracts,

00:22and a reworking of residual pay, all of which are conditions that have been diminished amid the rise

00:26of streaming, according to the Guild. Streaming has increased the number of series and films made,

00:30meaning more jobs for writers, but they're making much less money and working under more

00:34strained conditions. Scripted series and films will take longer to be affected,

00:37but late-night talk shows and soap operas will be the first impacted. The last WGA strike was

00:42in 2007 and lasted 100 days, prompting studios to turn to more reality TV and other unscripted

00:47shows. Late-night hosts eventually returned to the air by improvising material and writing their

00:51own monologues, a move that angered union leadership. The AMPTP says it is willing to

00:56improve on its offer, but it will not meet all of the union's demands.