Hollywood Writers Vote to Strike

Studios stockpiling content in preparation for possible walkout
By Jane Yager,  Newser Staff
Posted Oct 20, 2007 6:20 AM CDT
Hollywood Writers Vote to Strike
Mykle Parker holds her 14-month-old son Max, center, as they join pickets supporting a strike by writers for the reality show, "America's Next Top Model," in Los Angeles, in this Aug. 4, 2006 file photo. Hollywood studios are speeding production on movies and TV shows, preparing for a possible strike...   (Associated Press)

Hollywood writers are headed for the picket line if they don't reach a deal with the studios by Oct. 31. Members of the film and TV writers' union voted by a 90% margin to authorize a strike if the standoff isn't resolved, the first such strike vote since 1988, the Los Angeles Times reports. At issue is the writers' belief that they are being shortchanged on home video sales and web distribution.

Contract talks between studios and the Writers Guild of America have been unusually contentious. In anticipation of a possible strike, studios have sped production of films and TV shows, stockpiled pilots for next year and lined up reality shows that don't require writers. The last writers' strike, in 1988, cost the entertainment industry $500M. (More Hollywood stories.)

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