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The Writers Guild Of America said today: “Comedy Central forcing Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert back on the air will not give the viewers the quality shows they’ve come to expect. The only way to get the writing staffs back on the job is for the AMPTP companies to come back to the table prepared to negotiate a fair deal with the Writers Guild.”
Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.
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Who says they’re being forced?
Yeah, and unforutnately, whether the writing staff is back on the job or not only seems to matter to the WGA. I mean, to the fans, too, but it certain doesn’t seem to make any difference to the AMPTP. Damn it, we need a third part who can force their asses to sign a deal, whatever it takes.
Comedy Central did NOT force these guys back on the air. They went back willingly because Leno, Letterman and Conan did. I was at those WGA meetings two years ago when the Guild was trying to unionize Stewart’s show (I might add none of the Daily Show writers were there because they were afraid they’d be fired if they attended).
I’m also tired of hearing how Stewart and Colbert are going to beat the drum for the WGA’s cause while on the air. They’re not. They’re two guys who simply don’t want to lose their shows. It’s easy to bash Bush. Bashing their own bosses? Not gonna happen
leno, conan, kimmel all suck and we don’t watch them
But, jon stewart scabbing and going back on air is a disappointment, we’ve lost respect for him
The public is with you, WGA — we will NOT watch any of these shows which will all be lousy without writers — it’s hard enough to make a good show when they have writers.
Networks are dumb to return the shows without writers — the shows will suck and people will get permanently turned off
Btw, the networks worries about people permanently drifting away from tv are well founded — we haven’t been watching tv and, frankly, haven’t missed it.
“I was at those WGA meetings two years ago when the Guild was trying to unionize Stewart’s show (I might add none of the Daily Show writers were there because they were afraid they’d be fired if they attended.”
Yeah, but wasn’t TDS the first show to be unionized on Comedy Central? Stewart deserves some credit for that.
Jon Stewart is not a scab. Stephen Colbert is not a scab. Jay Leno is not a scab. Conan O’Brien is not a scab. Jimmy Kimmel is not a scab. When David Letterman goes back to work without his writers, he will not be a scab.
A scab is only someone who is getting paid to WRITE for a signatory company during a strike. Performers, actors, hosts, guests, musicians, directors, teamsters who work on a show are NOT scabs.
They are indeed providing increased income for the studios at a time when it would help the WGA’s position for them not to do so, but they are also keeping hundreds of people employed (people who in Jay, Conan and Dave’s case have been with them for over a decade.) It’s a tough decision they’ve made, but as all these hosts have been pro-writer for years, I am giving them the benefit of the doubt.
How are they being “forced” back? Can someone explain that to me? Seriously.
@tom reynolds
“I was at those WGA meetings two years ago when the Guild was trying to unionize Stewart’s show (I might add none of the Daily Show writers were there because they were afraid they’d be fired if they attended).”
Sorry, but no. Stewart has long been documented as the one who pushed for his writers to be unionized in the first place.
they are punks. cowards. rats. always have been, always will be. and what goes around always comes around…
You would think that a writers’ guild would know to use a possessive before a gerund.
bowlofpetunias: that link you provide doesn’t actually document anything about Stewart’s position except via a third-hand quote from someone else, and in fact Stewart did not want the show organized by the WGA. (I can’t attest that he was saying he’d fire his writers if they showed up at meetings, but he definitely fought against it, because it basically tripled his writers’ salaries.)
Alan Clark- it’s guild comprised of writers, and though it is, essentially, *owned* by writers, that fact doesn’t need to be reflected in the name. Doesn’t need a possessive (though it wouldn’t be incorrect to have one)
“Sorry, but no. Stewart has long been documented as the one who pushed for his writers to be unionized in the first place.
Comment by bowlofpetunias”
Long documented? by a little know internet blog? give me a break.
that’s why it took over a year to negotiate a contract? that’s why writers working for basic cable shows had to wait months before trying to organize shows on the west coast?
I bet Comedy Central is really happy about signing that deal now, not to mention the writers… and what about those 4 comedy central shows that signed up with the WGA out here last year? well, the 2 that haven’t been canceled. oh, yeah… I guess they’re canceled now.
That’s really gonna help with the WGA’s organizing efforts. Almost as much as David Young’s venture into Reality Organizing at Top Model.
Bowl of petunias,
I hate to pour bleach on your flower arrangement but I sat in a conference room two years ago at reality organization meeting at the WGA building and the only item on the agenda was organizing the Daily Show. I asked where are the writers for the Daily Show, why aren’t they here? I was told they were afraid to come because they didn’t want to get fired. We had to draft the letter for them. Patric Verrone was even there.
If Stewart was such a supporter of theirs, why’d they feel threatened?
He only supported them AFTER the production company agreed to a union contract. I’m sure he was happy they got one but if you think he demanded it, you’re in REM stage. And those writers, talented as they clearly are, still aren’t getting paid even close to what the writers on CAVEMEN got.
You guys love Stewart because he bashes Bush (which is like killing an ant with plutonium; it’s too fucking easy). In the end, he’s still a guy who does what people want him to do, i.e. go back to work on Jan. 7th. I have no problem that he’s a loyal employee; I just wish he’d admit it.
“they are punks. cowards. rats. always have been, always will be. and what goes around always comes around…”
And what basis do you have for that statement?
Girldreams wrote: Yeah, but wasn’t TDS the first show to be unionized on Comedy Central? Stewart deserves some credit for that.
Dear Girldreams, nothing could be further from the truth. And if anything is performed on TDS that violates strike rules, don’t be surprised to see people come forward and talk.
All these returning shows are NOT going to be bad, unwatchable shows. America will be entertained because the hosts are entertainers. Also, the hosts are going to do everything in their power to put on the best “writer-less” shows as possible, and believe it or not, they will be good enough for viewers, and advertisers.
Yes, it’s from Variety, and yes, I know that’s basically public enemy #2 (after the AMPTP, obvs) but frankly any search combos with ‘Daily Show’ and ‘Writers Guild’ are understandably cluttered with strike-related links, which is why I had to link to the less-than-satisfactory previous article.
“I would also like to thank Jon Stewart, who stood by his writers and insisted they be properly compensated and treated fairly.”
And negotiated by the writers themselves? Hardly seems like they were shaking in their boots in fear of Big Bad Jon to me.
They’re rats because they’re going back to work while their writers are still on strike. Jon Stewart is a member of WGA. He should be on strike. I know it’s not pleasant to acknowledge, but
JON STEWART IS A SCAB. There’s no making excuses for the man. He’s a WGA member; he should be out picketing. If the WGA makes excuses for him, they’re no better than the AMPTP. Let’s call a spade a spade, people. Steawart and Colbert could have shown some integrity and hung tough, but they didn’t want to lose their paychecks for too long. It’s always the [i]wealthy[/i] ones who break ranks with the strikers first. Writers without money are still striking.
Stewart and Colbert are rats. If you’re honest with yourself, you already know this.
You can spin this however you want… but Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert just stabbed their WGA writers in the back. This is a MAJOR blow to the strike. And how on earth is Colbert going to do a show without writers? Have you ever seen him improvise? He’s awful… Good luck you scabs!
Well, guys, you can claim what you want about Stewart’s attitude towards his writers and the WGA, but members of the WGA itself have lauded Stewart’s efforts to support the unionization of his writers more than once. Tom Schulman, a WGA official, even wrote a prominently featured letter to Vanity Fair on the subject just last year. And in that “little known Internet blog,” Patric Verrone certainly sounded much more positive about Stewart’s efforts than you’re acknowledging. So, are you saying they’re phonies who are sugarcoating the facts?
Why do I get the impression there are going to be fewer comedians/comedy writers out of work in the next few weeks?
Regarding TV: with the exception of one or two great shows that come across every decade, TV is about as fresh and tasty as that moldy Mandarin orange I found at the back of my fridge. You heard one Leno/Letterman/Conan/Kimmel/Stewart monologue or seen one episode of According to Jim — you’ve seen ‘em all. Bunch of overpaid talking heads with too many cars. Three-quarters of the reason I watch CNN is because they have good looking reporters (love you Paula Zahn); that coupled with the fact I’m breaking the Guiness Record for ‘most days gone without sex’. It’s certainly not for the quality of the writing.
In 20 years TV and theatres won’t even exist anyway (and ‘internet’ will be drastically different) so let’s get a good deal going so everyone can make some more money in these dying mediums — squeeze the lemon for some more drops, so to speak.
Bill, I was not a witness to anything whatsoever in regard to The Daily Show, nor do I have any inside dope on Jon Stewart as a human being or a boss. But to be fair, when I read your comment on bowlofpetunia’s link I thought some obscure blogger had decided, out of nowhere, that Stewart supported his writers joining the WGA. When I followed the link, however, I saw that the quote was from the President of the WGAe, who might be expected to know something about the negotiation process. I checked elsewhere online and found the same quote, in what looks like the same press release from the WGA. The release was apparently made available online through Fishbowl NY, which is a fairly well-informed source of general NY media info. And I’m not entirely sure why someone, back in 2006, would have made up this release, nor why they were never called on their pointless hoax. It sounds like a real press release, to me. I can’t speak for what was in the mind of the WGAe president, but it does rather look as though he said the words.
Also, I can’t help thinking that if Stewart’s writers truly feared they might be fired, it would be perfectly reasonable to assume they thought *Comedy Central* might fire them, or as reasonable as it is to assume they were afraid of Stewart, since no other evidence has been presented. Writers are, ultimately, hired by studios, not by the person running the show (in terms of who pays them and who their contracts are with). (Except in the case of Worldwide Pants, I gather, since Letterman owns the show.) Presumably, since none of the writers were there, none of them could say more specifically where they thought the danger was.
And since Stewart wouldn’t be paying the writers out of his own pocket — the studio would — I’m not sure why he would care if their salaries went up. It would, of course, affect the budget for the show, but if CC wanted the same quality show, once the WGA rules kicked in, they’d have to pony up.
Again, I have no inside information about any of this. But I wanted to be fair to the earlier commenter.
quote:
“Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert just stabbed their WGA writers in the back.”
More like the WGA negs have shot themsevles in the foot by granting waivers to a select few. Makes the whole effort look weaker. Stewart and Colbert are not scabs, and if the WGA leadership keeps up the name calling and insulting video skits they will lose any allies the might have had. I can see it now; “sure I called you a scab jerk back during the strike but hey we’re pals now, right?”
Hey Bowman Booster,
One of those late night hosts you mention is definitely not pro writer, and has in fact been investigated by the WGA at least twice in the past 15 years for using enormous amounts of material on air that he bought from non guild members.
Now on to more important matters: do picketers at the Oscars go black tie?
Watcher:
1) As a general rule, I would take anything any official says in a press release with a grain of salt. No reason for the WGAe to antagonize Stewart once the deal was done.
2) Stewart owns most of Busboy which produces The Daily Show for Comedy Central. The fact the the writers salaries shot up b/c of WGA membership does not mean that Comedy Central necessarily pays a bigger license fee for the show. So, it impacts his business. Also, he may have not wanted to show organized because even back then people knew a 2007 strike was pretty likely.