Options short from strikes

    Andrea Johnson, junior, Rebekah Clark, junior, and Caroline Remtz, sophomore, now have more free time Thursday nights at nine. People around the country would normally turn on their televisions to watch “Grey’s Anatomy” at this time. However, with the writers strike entering its tenth week, many shows are slowly ending or going on hiatus.
    Johnson describes the group’s “Grey’s Anatomy” nights.
 “We had a group of about eight to nine regular viewers with a few others that would tag along,” said Johnson. “We would go to the Bell Hall common room at 8:30 and bake some cookies.”
    When the show started, a hush would come over the room.
    “Usually newcomers asked questions, so we made the only rule no talking until commercials,” Johnson said.
    Clark knows the importance of that rule.
    “People would get yelled at for talking,” said Clark. “If a cell phone rang, it had to be answered outside the room.”
    The writers’ strike involves members of the Writers’ Guild fighting for some key issues in their contracts. One facet of the writers’ strike is about new media. All online downloads, internet streaming and other on-demand programming is what new media essentially is all about. Clark thinks that eventually one of the two sides will have to break.
    “People are not going to want to watch reality TV and reruns all the time,” Clark said.
    Reality television is taking over the market. Networks like the CW, with shows such as “America’s Next Top Model” and “Beauty and the Geek,” and Fox, with hit show “American Idol,” are suffering a little less than some of the other networks that relied on sitcoms and hour-long dramas. Remtz, who also likes the show “24,” is not that concerned with the strike.
    “I mainly just watch the news,” said Remtz. “I don’t really see the strike affecting me.”
    The “Grey’s Anatomy” group will still try and meet on Thursday nights, but some of the luster is now gone. Johnson believes the writers have a good point in the strike.
    “I agree with what they are doing, but it is a big inconvenience to all of us,” said Johnson. “I don’t like reality shows, so I hope the issue is resolved quickly.”
    In the meantime, some independent corporations, Worldwide Pants, United Artists and The Weinstein Company, are signing agreements with the Writers Guild to allow guild writers to continue working with those companies. Many are hopeful that this action could help end the strike.
    Hayley Ferrell, junior, is annoyed with the amount of reality TV caused by the strike.
    “I want to be able to choose between reality and regular TV,” Ferrell said. “In the meantime, I am going to watch “Late Night “with Conan O’Brien.”
    Several late night shows have returned to airwaves without their writers.
    “I can’t tell a difference in the programs,” said Ferrell. “Conan makes a lot of jokes about the writers needing to return.”

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Jan 18 2008. Filed under Features. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry