The Writers Guild.
"Merciful God! Please open Your eyes and look; these Vampires are completely turning black into white~" Franklin, an executive of the Writers Guild, was filled with anger.
Te-Shawn Williams, the Executive Secretary-General of the Writers Guild, shook his head and said, "We have greatly underestimated their power in the media!"
Media?
The people around them, while angry, couldn't help but feel a sense of helplessness in their hearts.
"Whether it was the great strike of the 70s or the one in 1988, we were able to lead a group of screenwriters through arduous struggle to gain more rights from the capitalists. Now it's 1999, and as many as 48% of the screenwriters on the West Coast of America are unemployed, with many so poor they can only receive government relief. However, I never expected that our strength in the media would be so vulnerable," Te-Shawn sighed.
Media power mainly includes newspapers, magazines, television, radio, the Internet... In the 70s and 80s, the American media was in a period of contention among various powers, and at that time, there were many forces the Writers Guild could utilize.
However... times have changed!
Aside from the nascent Internet, traditional media forces such as newspapers, magazines, television, and radio have all completed integration, giving birth to a few giants.
Disney Group, Time Warner Group, News Corporation, and Viacom Group are even known as the 'Four Kings of American Media'.
In the tier below, there are also media forces with multiple channels like Sony Columbia and Universal;
Kyle's Golden Dawn Media Group is also a standout among the media forces that have risen in recent years;
The integrated media power is owned and controlled by a few people, almost cutting off the Writers Guild's communication channels.
"Exactly."
An executive of the Writers Guild said in a deep voice, "I had originally negotiated an interview and report on the strike with the editor-in-chief of the New York Times, but just yesterday, I received notice that they unilaterally canceled it."
Another middle-aged man chimed in, "TV stations like NBC, CBS, ABB, and TNT used to have a few reports reflecting our true situation, but now? They're all gone! Instead, they attack us over and over again,"
saying we use violence for no reason!"
For a moment, many people fell silent!
A scholar's rebellion never succeeds even in ten years.
After a long time.
The silence was broken~
"We don't even have a way to speak out, and those bastards in the Producers Alliance won't talk to us now. What's the point of striking anymore!" the head of the Writers Guild's personnel department shouted.
As his voice fell, another person added, "In the past few days, many screenwriters have reported that several film and television companies have directly dismissed many screenwriters for various reasons, as many as 50 people."
Dismissed!
There was no doubt that many of the screenwriters participating in the strike were being divided!
By winning over some and weeding out others, they directly hooked many screenwriters who were in poor economic situations.
As a result, in just a few days, many screenwriters who had previously participated in the strike left the ranks, and some even went so far as to cancel their registration with the Writers Guild.
It was a sign that they were going their separate ways!
For a moment, many high-level figures in the Writers Guild panicked.
Bang!!!
Secretary-General Te-Shawn gritted his teeth and said, "Damn it! They possess such immense power and resources that it makes our actions extremely difficult."
...A few days later.
Out of the 11,000 screenwriters participating in the strike, less than 5,000 remained due to the relentless efforts of the Producers Alliance... On a certain street, two men in their 30s were having an argument.
Scott Lang shouted at the haggard man in front of him, questioning loudly, "Barrett, you're a shameless traitor! We agreed before to participate in the strike together and show those heartless capitalists that we low-level screenwriters have the power to overthrow them, but... why did you back down?!"
"Man, I have to eat! My whole family depends on me for support!" Barrett gritted his teeth.
"Hmph!"
Scott Lang cursed, "You've been completely corrupted by the money they threw at you. You have no backbone at all; you're not like a warrior at all."
At this point, the suppressed anger in Barrett's heart, who had been getting scolded, immediately exploded.
"Yes, yes, yes, you're capable, you're a warrior, and I'm a piece of trash!"
"But you have to understand, if I continue to participate in the strike and stay mixed up with you guys, I won't have a job! No job means no income. Are you going to let my whole family starve?"
"It sounds nice, you have backbone?"
"But why don't you mention that you're a multi-millionaire? Man, I'm poor, I need to eat!"
Barrett's words shot out rapidly like a machine gun.
Undoubtedly, this conversation came to nothing.
Scenes of disputes like this have been played out countless times recently.
The divisive actions taken by the Producers Alliance dealt a heavy blow to the screenwriters' strike...
December 14th.
The Hollywood Producers Alliance held its second meeting since the start of the strike.
Compared to the previous one, the attendees had many more smiles on their faces, and the atmosphere was quite lively.
"Making trouble?"
Harvey Weinstein, President of Miramax Films, smiled and said, "They've been beaten into a rout. Let them try to cause trouble again."
Shea, President of New Line Cinema, nodded and said, "We should have been this tough with them long ago. Think back to the great strike of 1988; there were two of them, one for 78 days and one for 74 days, totaling 152 days, which caused us immense losses. Back then, it was because we weren't united, were indecisive, and were too polite to them that they were able to shit on our heads. As for now, heh..."
In his words, Shea was full of disdain for the low-level screenwriters.
Everyone present chimed in as well.
The atmosphere was excellent.
After a while, Kyle appeared.
"Everyone, don't be too careless. Even if this matter is resolved perfectly, such major strike events won't be eliminated in the future," Kyle reminded them.
From December 2007 to 2008, the screenwriters came out to cause trouble again!
Not only that, the Screen Actors Guild and the Directors Guild, and even the Broadcasters Association, all joined the great strike, which lasted for a full 100 days and caused even greater damage!
Where there is oppression, there is resistance.
This is a law caused by the unequal distribution of wealth.
In his previous life, Kyle would have sympathized with those participating in the strike. But now, as a vested interest at the top of the Hollywood industry chain, Kyle naturally chose to act against his conscience!
The meeting progressed quickly and ended in over three hours, reaching a series of consensuses.
1. Appropriately increase the price for screenwriters to write scripts.
The minimum price for a script was increased from $27,000 to $38,000.
2. For screenwriters not registered with the Writers Guild, improve benefits; suppress or dismiss screenwriters who are registered with the Writers Guild.
Goal: Reduce the proportion of screenwriters owned by the Hollywood Writers Guild from the current 89% to 50%, striving to achieve the goal of cutting the ground from under them.
3. The Producers Alliance raised up to $32 million in funds to compensate the screenwriters, aiming to settle things as quickly as possible so the Christmas season could proceed smoothly.
"How ruthless!"
A carrot in one hand, a big stick in the other.
Kyle thought to himself, "No wonder the industry-wide strike around 2007 and 2008 was so intense; it turns out they were suppressed too hard by the Producers Alliance in 1999!"
In this strike event, the Producers Alliance emerged victorious with a very tough stance!