WGA deal is cut

Actually, they're calling it a "tentative deal," subject to the response among the guild's rank-and-file at a membership meeting tonight. The two sides were hashing out last-minute details well into Friday night - the United Hollywood Web site claims that "the companies dragged their feet enshrining some of the final details in an attempt to renege on some of what they had promised." Whatever. The writers clearly have made gains, especially in the key area of Internet compensation, and there's no question that the extended strike played a big role in advancing the ball. WGA President Patric Verrone and his WGA East counterpart, Michael Winship, sent out a letter to membership early this morning.

Over these three difficult months, we shut down production of nearly all scripted content in TV and film and had a serious impact on the business of our employers in ways they did not expect and were hard pressed to deflect. Nevertheless, an ongoing struggle against seven, multinational media conglomerates, no matter how successful, is exhausting, taking an enormous personal toll on our members and countless others. As such, we believe that continuing to strike now will not bring sufficient gains to outweigh the potential risks and that the time has come to accept this contract and settle the strike.

Much has been achieved, and while this agreement is neither perfect nor perhaps all that we deserve for the countless hours of hard work and sacrifice, our strike has been a success. We activated, engaged, and involved the membership of our Guilds with a solidarity that has never before occurred. We developed a captains system and a communications structure that used the Internet to build bonds within our membership and beyond. We earned the backing of other unions and their members worldwide, the respect of elected leaders and politicians throughout the nation, and the overwhelming support of fans and the general public. Our thanks to all of them, and to the staffs at both Guilds who have worked so long and patiently to help us all.

Here's a summary of the agreement. Obvious, there's lots of media coverage on the strike and its aftermath. Yesterday, I was on Patt Morrison's program on KPCC to talk about the impact of Hollywood on the L.A. economy, and I also have a comment about the post-strike prospects on Marketplace.