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Viewers : Unite, support the writers, and make this strike over soon!

By fred | November 9, 2007

Whether you’re a TVoholic, a TV addict, obsessed with TV or only a (regular) TV viewer, whether there are dozens of series you watch every week and couldn’t live for, or you only follow a couple, as long as you do watch (and love) TV, I can only assume that you are supporting the writers.

Some people are trying to portray them as overly rich people demanding even more money, but the facts are very different. What they basically want is to be able to survive in the years to come, what this is about is all the writers who need residuals in order to make a living. A residual isn’t a handout or an allowance, it’s not a lottery or an annuity from a slip and fall accident at a casino.

A residual is a deferred payment against the lifetime value of a script. A residual is what allow writers to earn money for their work as long as the given work does generate money, a residual is what allow writers to earn money while unemployed at times, and at any given time many writers are unemployed, that’s how the job works.

Somehow studios seems to consider writers as close to nothing, but we viewers know they are of high importance, we know that Lost would be nowhere without his amazing writing staff, with know that the brilliance of Hugh Laurie’s acting on House couldn’t exists without writers, because acting a blank page doesn’t get you nowhere. We do know that The Office is not a documentary, and that it wouldn’t work or make us laugh as much without its writers, we do know that McDreamy would mean nothing without a writers.

Because we do watch TV, we do like it, and we do know better.

And here’s the thing : it’s all about us, in the end. Because in the end, if no one watches a show, it gets canceled. Because networks don’t make enough money out of it, and for them it’s all about money. Always.

That money comes from us. It’s because we watch TV, that they make money. And that is why we, that is why you - viewers - have a real power. If you want to support the writers, if you want to let the studio know that you love your scripted TV series more than a stupid clip show of some boring reality TV, if you want your shows back you need to let studios and networks know about it.

If you do enjoy TV, regardless of the amount of TV you watch a week, if you do like your TV series, whatever those may be, then you need to do one thing : go on strike !

Just made the decision and join the strike. Showrunners are putting their shows at risk not because they like it, not because they don’t care, it breaks their hearts to have to resort to this, but it needs to be done. Writers, showrunners, actors, they’re all fighting for the good of television, and that’s something we, viewers, have to fight for as well.

So let’s make that decision, and go on strike.

Viewers must go on strike as well. From now on, and until the strike is officially over and writers got what they ask for, we will NOT ever watch anything but new scripted TV series. The few that they have left.

Reality TV, clip shows, reruns, games, we will not watch any of that. Not anymore.

Because we want to see the end of Grey’s Anatomy season, because we want a full uninterrupted season of Lost, because we want another day of Jack Bauer’s life, because we want Scrubs to end the way it should, because we want to see where Grissom and Sara’s relationship will eventually go, because we need to know more about the pie maker, because we love TV, good TV, we are now on strike.

The fact of the matter is that the more successful the “alternatives” network come up with will be, the more it hurts the writers, and our cause for good television as well.

If the millions and millions of people watching Desperate Housewives, House, NCIS and all scripted shows on TV simply stop watching TV, networks would feel it. If the numbers drop, if the money does not keep coming, if we go on strike, they will go back to the table and negotiate.

So let’s make this happen!

Posted in Comedy, Drama, News, Sci-Fi