Saturday, January 12, 2008

Re the WGA strike and DGA negotiations with AMPTP: Will the cure be worse than the disease?

I just finished reading the reader responses to news of the DGA/AMPTP negotiations (to begin soon) on Nikki Finke's DEADLINE HOLLYWOOD DAILY blog (found at http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com).

Also, I happened to pick up the Time Warner mag ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY and saw a headline that wailed about the imperilment of the Oscar telecast.

Gilbert Cates (the auteur of the long-forgotten OH GOD! BOOK TWO) is the Director's Guild's chief negotiator with the Hollywood producing community. 

Cates is also the producer of this year's Oscar telecast.

It's safe to share WGA worries that Cates might not push too hard for favorable-and-just new-media (i.e. Internet) compensation during DGA/AMPTP negotiations.

This could mean that the DGA could easily accept a take-it-or-leave-it offer from the AMPTP.

And the WGA could be demonized for not falling into line--with most of the demonization centering around the Academy Awards telecast.

Personally, I don't think the Republic will fall if a writerless Oscar show occurs with an agreement that the WGA won't set up picket lines (the WGA has agreed not to picket on Sunday when the Hollywood Foreign Press has its Golden Globes announcement ceremony).

 

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