TV Networks prepare for possible SAG strike

by Naureen Mohammed, 2L
Law Weekly
March 3, 2009

Last year, millions of TV viewers around the world had their Must See Thursday night plans interrupted by the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike, but the ordeal may not be over. On February 22, 2009, the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) rejected what the studios referred to as their last offer and as talks come to a standstill, members of the union are considering the wisdom of going on strike.

For some freshman shows like Pushing Daisies, the 100-day-long WGA strike was a fatal decision. With only 10 or 11 episodes aired in the 2007-2008 season, they were unable to attract enough viewers and were canceled halfway through their second season. Nevertheless, writers achieved their goals, namely doubling their DVD residual rate and achieving jurisdiction over new media work. In the aftermath of the deal that was struck as both parties became exhausted and frustrated with the strike, many wondered if the months spent picketing and not receiving a paycheck were worth those gains.

Moreover, the Directors Guild, a union that has historically had bad relations with WGA, had recently negotiated a deal with the studios that is credited with dealing with issues that were relevant to writers and, according to some, may have had more to do with studio concessions than the strike itself.

Whether or not that is true, no one can doubt that studios were hurt by the months that writers spent picketing instead of working. The actual effect of the strike is in doubt; National Public Radio (NPR) estimates that Los Angeles lost $1.5 billion, but the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) puts the figure at less than $400 million. The WGA's last strike in 1988 cost the American entertainment industry $500 million.

In an effort to avoid major losses, many television studios replaced their original programming with reality shows, a move that was met with major controversy because one of the WGA's demands was that as even those shows required some scripting, the studios should only use union writers for them. Those demands were ultimately taken out of the final deal, but the WGA is still trying to organize support for them.

Writers and studio employees and executives were not the only ones who suffered the costs of the strike; audiences around the world were forced to settle for painfully repetitive reality shows, talent agencies lost a great deal of business, and film and television crews were forced to take a long vacation in the middle of the year. While some actors also wear writing hats and were therefore on the picket lines anyway, others chose to join them in an expression of support. Some, like Eva Longoria, brought pizza to share with protestors, while others grew solidarity facial hair or paid their writers out of their own pockets. After all that support, SAG may ask the WGA for similar collaboration if they decide to also strike in the near future.

However, SAG remains deeply divided over the wisdom of walking out on the job. On the one hand, many of their new media demands were similar to those that the WGA succeeded in obtaining after their strike. On the other hand, the taskforce negotiating for SAG has already given up most of those demands in favor of hammering out a deal that gives guild members $250 million more than the old one.

The most recent point of contention is the contract start date; the studios want the contract to start when it was signed, but SAG want to maintain the traditional practice of using a start date that coincides with the end of the previous agreement. Although this would mean that SAG members would have to wait until later to start gaining the benefits of the new deal, it also puts them in sync with the WGA and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, allowing all three organizations to bargain with the studios as a unified group.

As SAG's governing board rejected the studios' "final offer," many speculated that despite internal divisions, a strike was becoming a stronger possibility. While most summer films will likely be in the post-production phase by the time actors would likely walk out on their existing contracts and join picket lines, films set to come out later in the year or early in 2010 may have to be pushed back or abandoned. The 2008-2009 television season is nearly over, but next year's production may have to be started later while audiences are subjected to more reruns and reality programming in the fall.

In recent years, television networks have replaced summer reruns with original shows, such as perennial favorites Monk and Psych that are broken into two and shown during the summer and winter hiatuses. Perhaps in recognition that those shows may also be on strike this year, NBC has bought viewing rights to programming that American viewers have not yet had access to, including the British hit Merlin, which is based very loosely on the mythology of King Arthur and Camelot. Since British TV seasons tend to run for 12 or 13 episodes, these shows fit perfectly into the summer hiatus, and mainstream audiences are more likely to appreciate them than an overdose of reality programming.