Doug Leier, host of the KFGO Morning Crew, recently posted a blog that I have read a few times over. The full piece is linked right here and I encourage you to read it.
DOUG’S BLOG “So Hollywood Writers are on Strike? Life Goes On.”
I felt inclined to put out a simple rebuttal to what Doug wrote. I understand his point. He is not someone who watches a lot of TV or movies – the main point of this writers strike – but it goes deeper than just not caring about The Big Bang Theory spinoff or the latest Marvel movie.
Assuming this strike is a bunch of millionaires who want more money is a false narrative. These are people who work highly demanding jobs, often for little credit or compensation. Do you know how much the average staff writer on a sitcom makes? Roughly $60,000 – which doesn’t mean that much if you live in LA or New York City.
More importantly, they are concerned about the future of their careers. We’ve added more than a handful of streaming services, AI can write a monologue and using archives could easily make something old new again.
I guess I see these folks like any union. A group of people who are doing the work, but not reaping the benefits. Doug – you should care about this strike. You should care because the future of radio will be impacted by this strike. Getting paid once for an idea that makes millions is not only unfair, it’s dangerous. Think of a day when someone uses an app to listen to a year’s worth of The Morning Crew and then put together an audio mix of what the next episode should sound like…?!?!
While it certainly won’t happen at KFGO, we focus on live and local content – there is a a very real chance that budgets and payroll could be slashed by providing a new type of content that doesn’t require live and local staff in front of a microphone.
It starts small. It starts with apathy.
To those who are striking to achieve a better level of respect in their industry – I stand with you. I hope that you can find a quick resolution and get back to work. Your families and industry suffer every single day that you are in a picket line instead of in your writer’s room.
