The Irony Of The Writers Guild Strike

We’re into week 6 of their strike now.  Have you really noticed a difference in your TV watching behavior?  Has it impacted you in such a way where your life is feeling like there’s a void without your favorite TV shows?  Or do you just not care, and find your entertainment elsewhere… like the Internet or DVDs?

I’m willing to bet that the last question is pretty close to hitting the mark.  For me it really doesn’t make a difference;  all I ever get to watch on the tube is something geared towards people under the age of 5 so it’s not like I really knew what was going on with current TV.  Frankly, I’m glad I missed 3 years of grown up television.  From the sounds of it, it was crap for the most part.

Self Defeating

One of the biggest motivators behind this strike is how the Internet is a growing and sometimes preferred medium for watching TV and movies and how the money isn’t being generated back into their hands.  Lack of commercials and USER CONTROL over when and how it will be watched really is appealing if you think about it.  I know I like that concept;  a little power given back to the public is a good thing in my book.  More and more people are getting on board with this medium every day, and it’s getting easier for people to create and publish their own media, freely available to the masses.

But what I think is the most self defeating caveat to this whole thing is what could happen when choices are taken away.  If nothings on the tube, people will go online to pass the time and get their fix.  The Writers Guild is fueling their own enemy’s ability to thrive while slowly galvanizing the TV audience.  Most people won’t look into why they’re striking, they’ll instead see them as the squeaky wheel and the cause of all their favorite TV shows going into reruns.

Changing Of The Guard

Back in the 90’s I remember reading somewhere that the Internet is a fad and is the new ham radio.  Dismissive views were said about TV back in the day too.  TV overtook radio broadcasts as the home entertainment favorite.  Internet is poised to do the same to TV.   I’m fine with this.  In fact, I couldn’t be more thrilled with the aspect of it.  I’m sick of TV and I know I’m far from alone on that one.

Reality shows that are nowhere near reality, American Idol misrepresenting musical talent by pushing image over substance, cable news channels overflowing with opinion versus actual news, MTV never playing music… it’s ridiculous.  This is what it looks like when the audience is given very little control over what they’re really interested in.

Conclusion

This strike could go on until the end of time for all I care.  I got net access, so I’ll be fine.  My 3 year old shows more interest in playing on the computer than watching TV so that might be an indication that the changing of the guard is inevitable anyways.  Whatever happens for the Writers Guild, it won’t really make much of a difference in the lives of many of us.

People crave information in order to learn, laugh, share ideals and more.  Current TV doesn’t offer the convenience to do any of that.  They just offer formats and a controlled structure in which we are allowed to take it all in,  between self promotion and advertiser bombardments.  I guess most of this post wasn’t entirely about the strike, but in a roundabout way it was.  They’re part of the TV machine, and they have a huge say in regards to what we watch.  Maybe that’s what the real issue is here;  we’re deciding for them.

This entry was posted on Monday, December 17th, 2007 at 12:28 pm and is filed under Marketing, whateva. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.