WGA STRIKE UPDATE: Daily Show and Colbert Report to Return January 7
Comedy Central shows are latest late-nighters to announce return amid ongoing writers' strike
By Ben Grossman -- Broadcasting & Cable, 12/20/2007 12:38:00 PM
Comedy Central’s The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report are the latest of the late-night shows to announce their return amid the ongoing writers strike. Both shows will be back on the air, without writers, on January 7.
"We would like to return to work with our writers. If we cannot, we would like to express our ambivalence, but without our writers we are unable to express something as nuanced as ambivalence,” read a statement from the network attributed to hosts Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert.
“We continue to hold out hope for a swift resolution to the current stalemate that will enable the shows to be complete again,” the network said in a statement.
The shows will return the week following the January 2 resumption of NBC’s late night shows hosted by Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien and ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live. All three shows will return without writers.
David Letterman’s Worldwide Pants is expecting to meet Friday with the Writers Guild of America in hopes of negotiating a side deal to allow the CBS shows hosted by Letterman and Craig Ferguson to return as soon as January 2, but with writers.
For full coverage of the strike, click here.
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It is simply wrong to accuse the WGA of writing off workers in jobs such as editors. They established a support fund precisely to help workers in IA Local 700 and others get through this. And one of the many reasons why there is no settlement now is that AMPTP is insisting that the WGA agree to not honor future picket lines by IATSE or SAG - and the writers are refusing to abandon those other workers. I am a UAW member, not WGA. But I can see why WGA has to hold firm on those issues. If a fair settlement about New Media is not reached by the writers now, it won't be reached by the other unions in the near future. And the longer run will be an erosion of living standards for WGA, SAG, IATSE. I don't doubt that Jennifer S worked hard to afford a nice condo in a gated community somewhere - but part of why her hard work paid off with a home was because IA Local 700 fought hard for decent pay.
Michael A. Shea - 1/4/2008 3:10:00 PM EST -
First of all, unless you are a Neilson family a boycott is an action of no consequence.
Secondly, as a single mother who is now jobless in a very difficult time due to the writer's strike (crew member, not a writer) I'd like to say that I am one of the countless victims of the strike who know the breadth of the debate and yet feel an undue hardship that is not being publicized.
At the end of this strike, which will now most likely force studios to cancel this season and resume in several months, here is what the end result will be.
a) writer's won't get what they wanted, possibly a small portion if they are lucky.
b) studios will lose money but gain it all back when viewership is at an all time high next season (starved viewers)
c) I will most likely be homeless (do you know how hard I've worked to be a home owner?!), most definitely hungry, and be still desparately trying to make ends meet with non-industry jobs that don't pay me enough because my decade of experience and expertise are not applicable.
So when the WGA does settle and they get what they want it will be of great consequence to thousands of non-writers who are suffering. They have a deal on the table right now that gives them some of what they want. The WGA is saying that I am an acceptable cost of their war. The studios will continue to be greedy and are no doubt to blame for not compensating writers (they ARE business people) but there are other ways of getting what you want, and individual writers ARE able to negotiate fair terms- the really talented ones set the precedent. At the end of the bargaining what is the net worth the writer's will receive? How about just one writer?
SO I ASK YOU, IS IT ALL WORTH IT? I hope for each and every writer's sake that they feel it was 100% worth it, because it will be an disregard and show of utter disrespect to every crew member out there that is caught in this battle, finding themselves jobless in this holiday season, struggling just to make it.
Jennifer S - 12/23/2007 2:18:00 PM EST -
*** BOYCOTT THE DAILY SHOW AND COLBERT REPORT ***
While I deeply enjoy the satire and wit of The Daily Show and Colbert Report, I am saddened and disappointed that Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are crossing the picket lines. They are, first and foremost, excellent writers. They have multiple Emmy awards for their comedy writing skills. Instead of returning to the set, they should be returning to the negotitating table and the picket lines.
We, the viewers and consumers, have power to force Sumner Redstone and the rest of the AMPTP back into good faith negotiations. If we withhould our viewership from the commercials that fund the AMPTP, then the advertisers will pressure Viacom to resolve the strike. This strike is about money, and we should use our economic clout to press for the outcome we want.
** BOYCOTT **
Pygar Sixty - 12/23/2007 8:16:00 AM EST -
Letterman is afraid to return without his writers, Colbert is naturally funny, Letterman is not.
fly - 12/22/2007 12:43:00 PM EST
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