As the Hollywood writers themselves predicted, the strike has been going on for months and months. The New York Times has an entire section devoted to the action initiated by the Writers Guild of America. The big boys are back on air and we are ecstatic to see Colbert and Letterman kicking it again. What about the rest of the pack?
According to Reuters, advertisers and advertising companies will take a fall too. They reported that the entire economy of Los Angeles will suffer a $190 million loss if the Golden Globes and the Oscars fail to launch because there's no one to write them. That's the economy of an entire city.
Pop star Robbie Williams, estimating a contract with EMI (EMI.L – 264.50 p) worth $156.6 million, changed his recording plans after Terra Firma (TII-P.V) bought the record label. He doesn't trust their taste in music, so to speak. He's thinking of going on strike, too. Rock band Radiohead is doing fine after leaving EMI, selling their own album online with a pay-what-you-wish policy.
Not enough money has been going into the right pockets. It's the age old mentality: I want superb quality without having to pay the price for it. Perhaps the executives think that the writers or artists can't do anything without them. That might be true, but the writers and artists are the reason the executives have their jobs in the first place.
If the script is good, the film will be good if everyone just does a decent job making it. If the script is bad, not a thing can be done to make it good again. Should the companies realize that creative talent is irreplaceable and cannot be churned out in factories, perhaps they will start to accommodate that talent accordingly. Only then will all the lonely souls out there again find solace in hugging the television after a hard day's night.
Disclosure: I haven't even heard of Terra Firma before this…and I don't care for Robbie, but I do love Radiohead. They are on my "to see before I die" list. I do not own any shares at EMI Group plc.