Apropos of the current WGA-ATA conflict (What? You thought we’d forgotten about it? No such luck), an analysis of what happened, how, and why, from a source that doesn’t even have a horse in this race. (Who’d a’thunk?)
by David Dayen
Hollywood is smoldering this week, after the 13,000 members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) prepared to fire their agents, the upshot of the termination of a 43-year-old agreement between the union and the Association of Talent Agents trade group. On Saturday, the WGA ordered members to part ways with agents who didn’t subscribe to a revised code of conduct, which rank-and-file writers approved with 95.3 percent support. The form lettersinforming agents of their firing, which well-known writers have been posting on Twitter, will be delivered later this week.
This isn’t a strike or lockout; as much as you might like your favorite television shows to pause to catch up on your DVR, they will in all likelihood continue with minimal disruption. But the battle between writers and agents represents another example of the monopolization and financialization of our economy, and how organized, unified workers can fight back. While the lead antagonists on the stage are talent agents, the villains behind the scenes are private equity firms.