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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.