Since May of 2023, writers, actors, animators, and many other people in the entertainment industry have been on strike. Massive companies including Apple, Warner Brothers, Amazon, Universal, Netflix, Sony, Disney, NBC, and more have been targeted and greatly affected by the strikes. Production of shows and movies has been considerably slowed by these strikes, and revenue for major companies affected has decreased immensely. But the protests are incredibly important to a massive amount of people in the industry, and are happening as an effort to make progress for the work life of actors.
Being in the know about these strikes is important. After all, it affects nearly every new movie or show you may be looking forward to enjoying. One reason the protests happened in the first place is because of performers being replaced by A.I. This technology is a very controversial topic for artists and performers, because it is programmed to steal others’ work, and has therefore become a very real threat in stealing jobs, especially since a computer program does not require to be paid. On top of this, another reason for the strike is that the treatment of performers has been consistently unsatisfactory for years, primarily for animators, writers, and actors playing small roles. These workers are essential for shows, movies, plays, and more to go right and make money, but the people in these positions often never get the recognition or the payment they deserve.
The goal of the strikes were to negotiate more limitations on A.I. and to achieve higher wages for the workers that deserve it. Unfortunately, the companies have not yet agreed to meet the strikers´ terms, after long, tireless protests for months on end. Finding a compromise when it comes to protests can be difficult, but it has been an excessive amount of time since the protests began, and a large amount of workers are participating in the strikes. The strikes have cost the economy of California billions, and are still projected to last for a while.
To conclude, the strikes happened because of mistreatment in the industry, and controversy with companies working with AI. A multitude of people in the entertainment industry are underpaid and underappreciated, and these strikes are important because the workers could get the compensation they deserve. However, the strikes have been a huge detriment, costing the economy billions of dollars, and slowing production of tons of highly anticipated shows and movies. One can only hope that the companies will meet the strikers´ terms soon, but unfortunately, it is unlikely that these strikes will come to a conclusion by the end of the year.
Sources:
–https://www.vox.com/money/2023/8/22/23840473/writers-strike-actors-wga-sag-workers-economy-impact
–https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/05/media/warner-bros-discovery-strike-impact/index.html
–https://www.businessinsider.com/why-sag-aftra-actors-wga-writers-unions-strike-hollywood
