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Happy Thanksgiving!

I won't be posting for the weekend, as I will be visiting family in the far off land of "TehBayarea," so I leave you with warm Thanksgiving wishes. It is a time of year that demands the viewing of classic holiday entertainment like A Very Strong Bad Thanksgiving Watch and enjoy.

You might also want to watch this year's new Homestar Runner Thanksgiving special.

Huckabee on Chuck Norris on Huckabee

This blog rarely wanders into the wilderness of politics, but this Mike Huckabee ad requires sharing. I think this might be the single best campaign ad I've ever seen. Like the Mountain Dew ad (which is embedded below the Huckabee ad), it shows that Chuck isn't above poking a little fun at himself. Or as the saying goes, "Chuck Norris doesn't poke fun at himself, he scores a knockout."

An Evening with Tim Minear

As a recent Variety article points out, "there is an image war raging during the WGA strike." So far, it appears that the writers are winning with about 63% of the fans supporting the writers and only around 7% supporting the studios. This means about 30% of the people don't care, but that is a talk for another time. I don't want to get into how the underlying philosophical concepts what the writers are asking are central to the existence of modern democracy, at least not here. Ask me over a Guinness, and I might be able to ramble for a good hour about the topic.

Needless to say, the studios seem to be reacting to the lack of public support. For example NBC is showing their charitable nature and giving fans the opportunity to buy television show props with the proceeds going to charity. See how that works, you buy Steve Carell's watch from NBC and the United Way benefits. NBC makes dismantling a show a charitable act.

Hmm...maybe they don't need the writers after all, that's pretty creative.

I'm kidding about the NBC dismantling the show part. Given that some of the items are signed, I am sure that the auctions were probably already scheduled. But I am not at all surprised that NBC would use this as an opportunity to shift the PR battle in their favor.

The only way that writers, current and future, are going to get an equitable outcome from the strike is if they win the PR battle. That's why Bill Cunningham, Shawna Benson and I did a Geekerati episode with Rob Long last Monday. That's why we will be interviewing Tim Minear about the strike tomorrow night. It's important to know why the writers are striking and why those 30% who don't currently care on way or another really ought to care. It matters. We're talking about the development of a new medium here, and that means that the norms established today will be lasting.

We will also be discussing the fans who support the strike, like the organizers of fans4writers.com. If you want to know more about the strike, or if you are a participant in fans4writers, listen in (starting at 7pm) and give us a call (starting at 7:15 or so) at (646) 478-5041 to join in the conversation.

Come listen to Bill, Shawna, and me on Friday night at 7pm, as we chat with Tim Minear. Maybe he'll even discuss how this is affecting his upcoming projects (MIRACLE MAN and DOLLHOUSE), but no promises. While you're waiting, make sure you visit Tim Minear.net. You can even read the shooting script for the Firefly episode "Out of Gas." For free. Legally.

How cool is that?


If you want even more information about the strike, you can play or download the Geekerati interview with writer/producer Rob Long below.

As a Fan... I Support the WGA

I will be using some of the WGA Support Banners from Lexigeek. Feel free to use them as well.

Television Fans Unite: You Have Nothing to Lose, but Bad Television Shows.

From the one commenter to my last post, it seems I may have conveyed the opinion that I don't want internetelevision to replace television. Or that I am trying, in some other way, to stand boldly against the impending advance of "progress" like John Henry. That's not me at all. Instead, I am merely stating that "I personally refuse to watch "promotional" ads online, especially when they contain paid advertisements, watch reruns of television shows, or buy new DVDs until the writers are given a better contract."

I plan to flex my meager market dollar to take away my "sales" from the studios, until they engage in more equitable practices. If I were alone, this would be a hopeless endeavor. Thankfully, I am not.

Joining me in supporting the striking writers are the good folks at fans4writers.com. They have a concise FAQ, describing the reasons for the strike. They also list a number of ways that we, as consumers -- you know, that thing that networks need -- can help the writers.

On a side note, I should add the following. As a VIEWER of televised or streaming media (as opposed to DVD sales), you should remember that YOU ARE THE PRODUCT. You are what the studios are selling to the advertisers. You are the carrot dangled before corporate executives. You are what brings the money to the industry. If the studios cannot offer you to the corporations who advertise on their stations and websites, that matters.

WGA Strike Day 3: Update and Thoughts

As of today, internetelevision is dead to me. I am a big fan of internetelevision, or as other people call it, "the ability to watch their favorite shows on the internet." Intelevision can come as purchased iTunes downloads, ad supported streaming video, or subscription based streams and downloads. It doesn't matter, it is all dead to me. I don't care if I can watch it when, where, and how I want.

At least not anymore. The fact that television producers think of webisodes and other streaming content as "promotional" and don't want to pay a fair share to the writers who produce the material is extremely bothersome to me. If you charge to place ads within the content, it isn't promotional -- it's a show. The internet is the future of visual home entertainment. With services like iTunes, Xbox Live, and Joost, not to mention the network websites and MySpace, there is an abundance of visual entertainment I can access whenever I want and without leaving my couch. These services, and others like them, are only going to continue to grow. That is unless we as consumers stop using them, and that's what I'm doing.

I will not visit a network website, or link to one, until the Writer's strike is over. I will not download any episodes from iTunes. I will not purchase a DVD. I will not watch any reruns, or reality TV, that the network runs during the strike.

I will support the writers, without whom I would not have the visual entertainment I enjoy.

Writers are some of the hardest working people in Hollywood, and they receive the least credit. Like Joss Whedon, I was appalled when I read the description, provided by Joss, of the striking writers in the NY Times. They described the writers as:

“All the trappings of a union protest were there… …But instead of hard hats and work boots, those at the barricades wore arty glasses and fancy scarves.”

I've met a couple of writers, one of whom I interviewed on Monday, and I've yet to see one in "arty classes and fancy scarves." I think the writer was mistaking a memory of Tom Baker as Dr. Who for the writer's strike.

For a look at what the writers really look like, here's a video of the writers of The Office as they spell out their complaints. Watch the video and visit UnitedHollywood.com.



If you want even more information about the strike, you can play or download my interview with writer/producer Rob Long below.

The WGA Strike and the Geek Perspective

Last night, television writer/producer Rob Long hung out with me and the rest of the geeks at Geekerati to discuss the current WGA strike. In addition to covering the expected questions like, "why the strike is happening" and "how will this affect the current television season," Rob discussed the ways new technology are going to change the ways we interact with visual entertainment. He discussed the need for writers to get their foot into the door when it comes to receiving their fair share of the "digital dollar" and what the digital future will look like.

You can listen to the episode by pressing pressing the play button below.




Or you can download the episode directly at the Geekerati website or on iTunes.

Rob Long is a writer and producer in Hollywood. He began his career writing on TV's long-running "Cheers," and served as co-executive producer in its final season. During his time on the series, “Cheers” received two Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globe awards. His most recent television series were "George and Leo," starring Bob Newhart and Judd Hirsh, “Love & Money,” on CBS, and “Men, Women & Dogs,” on the WB Network – all three of which he created with his writing partner, Dan Staley. Their production company, Staley/Long Productions, was based at Paramount Studios from 1993 to 2001, and is currently based at ABC Studios. In addition, he and his partner have served as creative consultants on numerous programs. Mr. Long has been twice nominated for an Emmy Award, and has received a Writers Guild of America award.

He has co-written several feature film scripts, including “Just a Shot Away,” currently in pre-production with a France-based production company.

His first book, Conversations with My Agent, chronicled his early career in television. It was published in the UK by Faber & Faber, in the US by Dutton, and in France by Actes Sud. His second book, Set up, Joke, Set Up, Joke, was published in November 2005 by Bloomsbury. He is also a co-founding partner in Madison Road Entertainment, an integrated advertising production company.

He is a contributing editor of National Review, Newsweek International, and the Los Angeles Times and writes occasionally for the Wall Street Journal and the BBC Radio Times (UK). His weekly radio commentary, “Martini Shot,” is broadcast on the Los Angeles public radio station KCRW, and is distributed nationally. It’s also podcast in iTunes, and can be found here: http://www.kcrw.com/show/ma

In addition to his work in television, film, and politics, Mr. Long is also a new media entrepreneur. His limited partnership venture, Yurth.com, is a fast-growing video site that combines videos, entertainment, news, and information all in a dynamic map-based interface. It can be found at Yurth.com.

He speaks often in front of trade, political, and community groups, including National Review Institute, CATO Institute, the Wednesday Morning Club, the Los Angeles Public Library Foundation, and the “Conversations/Design” Series on topics ranging from Hollywood and politics, screenwriting, contemporary media, and “how to break into the entertainment industry.”

Mr. Long graduated from Yale University, and spent two years at UCLA School of Film, Theater and Television, where he occasionally serves as an Adjunct Professor of Screenwriting. He serves as co-president on the Board of Directors of My Friend’s Place, an agency for homeless teens in Hollywood and is on the board of the American Cinema Foundation. He’s also an active and passionate member of the Southern Foodways Alliance.

WGA Strike update.

It appears that the Strike is on and that it will start in earnest on Monday!

Anne Thompson, over at Thompson on Hollywood, has a good quick analysis of what this means for us as consumers of entertainment. In short, won't affect movies much...but television will be severely affected due to a lack of material.

How long after the strike has ended will the lack of material last? After all, no one says that the writers can't "think" about new ideas while they are on strike, but they do say that they shouldn't WRITE anything.

As the WGA phrases it, "Pencils down means pencils down". Read that list of names, it's impressive and filled with the shows you and I watch. Everything from this season's borderline Chuck to critically acclaimed shows like The Wire are represented. Not to mention The Jay Leno Show.

Does this mean that Jay Leno's jokes will get worse during the strike?

God save us and pray the strike ends quickly.