FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 26, 2008

Writers Guild Members Overwhelmingly Ratify New Contract

This was sent today to WGA members from Presidents Verrone and Winship:

To Our Fellow Members:

On Tuesday, members of the Writers Guilds East and West voted by a 92.5% margin to lift the restraining order that was invoked on November 5th. The strike is over.

Writing can resume immediately. If you were employed when the strike began, you should plan to report to work on Wednesday. If you're not

Michael Winship, president of Writers Guild of America East, sent this message to East members today.

Fellow Members of the Writers Guild of America, East:

A very Happy New Year to you all. In spite of our current turmoil, I hope you’ve been able to find some time to enjoy and appreciate the holiday season with friends and loved ones.

I hit the wall the Friday before Christmas, momentarily

From tonight's captains' bulletin:

To cast your ballot in person: Vote at the Writers Guild Theater, 135 S. Doheny Drive 90211. Tuesday, February 12, 2008 from 2:00 pm - 6:00 pm.

If members can't cast a ballot in person: Proxy ballots are available. To vote by proxy, download this form and fax to 323-421-9177. Proxies must be faxed in by Tuesday February 12, by 2 pm, or dropped off at the WGAW

The WGA Negotiating Committee, on behalf of the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) and the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), today issued the following statement regarding Contract 2007 negotiations:

“The Writers Guilds met today with the AMPTP and discussed issues of jurisdiction for original content for the Internet, Reality TV, Animation, and Basic Cable. The talks also were focused on contract enforcement. For the last two days, we have had substantive discussions of the issues important to writers, the first time this has occurred in this negotiation. However, we are still waiting for the AMPTP to respond to all of our proposals, including Internet streaming of theatrical and television product and digital downloads. Bargaining resumes tomorrow at 10 a.m.”

This was released by the WGA today:

WRITERS GUILDS REACH INTERIM AGREEMENTS WITH
INTERMEDIA AND THE FILM DEPARTMENT

Los Angeles – The Writers Guild of America, West and the Writers Guild of America, East are pleased to announce they have reached interim agreements with The Film Department and Intermedia. The Guilds continue to sign agreements with companies that value the essential role writers

Here's the press release that just went out:

THE WEINSTEIN COMPANY AND THE WRITERS GUILD OF AMERICA ANNOUNCE INDEPENDENT AGREEMENT

NEW YORK, NY and LOS ANGELES, CA – (January 11, 2008) – The Weinstein Company (TWC) and the Writers Guild of America (WGA) announced today that they have signed a comprehensive independent agreement. While the details are not being disclosed, the deal addresses the

(Breaking news from the WGA - the AMPTP has agreed to come back to the table on November 26th. Now, let's hope they are prepared to make a fair deal. This is progress. Everyone wants to go back to work. Everyone wants fair compensation for their work.)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 16, 2007

The following letter was sent to Charles Slocum of the Guild west and Mona Mangan of the Guild east.

Dear Chuck, Mona and all WGA colleagues,

The Writers' Guild of Great Britain Executive Council met today (Monday) and members were delighted that a deal is being recommended and the strike is likely to end within the next few days.

We salute the WGA, east and west, on the unity and discipline

The following two WGA press releases were sent to media today to announce that Lionsgate and Marvel Studios have both signed interim agreements with the Writers Guild.

LIONSGATE SIGNS INTERIM AGREEMENT WITH WRITERS GUILD

LOS ANGELES – Leading independent filmed entertainment studio Lionsgate is the latest company to sign an interim agreement with the Writers Guild of America. The company is one

For clarity -- and because not everyone could get to one of the meetings last night in NY or LA -- here's a handy little FAQ for some of the questions we're hearing.

What's the 48 hour vote for again?

It's a vote on whether or not to lift the strike (which in the Constitution is called "the restraining order".) If the vote passes, writers can go back to work.

It's not a vote on the contract,

This media advisory was just sent out by the WGA:

The Writers Guild of America will hold a press conference today, Sunday, Feb. 10, 12 Noon PST, at WGAW headquarters to update the media on important developments related to contract negotiations between the WGA and the AMPTP companies.

Scheduled to appear: WGAW President Patric M. Verrone, WGAE President Michael Winship (available via phone line

(The following is a letter from the presidents.)

To Our Fellow Members:

Today, it is our pleasure to inform you that members of the Writers Guilds of America, East and West, have voted to ratify the MBA contract with 93.6% approval. With a total of 4,060 votes cast, the tally was 3,802 to 258. These numbers reaffirm the tremendous level of support and commitment our membership has continuously demonstrated over these last few crucial months.

We are also pleased to report that the trustees of our health fund voted yesterday to follow the recommendation in our strike settlement agreement to provide additional coverage and an extension of the earnings cycle for a full quarter (three months) to participants who would otherwise lose health coverage following an earnings cycle that included all or a portion of the strike period. Participants whose health coverage is paid for by points will only be charged points if they have ten or more points as of April 1, 2008.

This letter is from Phil Nutman & Jason Dolan. -JA

Dear fellow WGA members and supporters:

Further to previous discussions, we can now confirm that the Writers Guild of America members in Georgia have been formally invited to participate in next Monday's Martin Luther King Day parade and rally.

As this is the 40th anniversary of the King Day Parade, the Writers Guild of America is proud and

The Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) issued the following statement regarding the Golden Globe Awards today. So despite rumors to the contrary, it certainly does look like the Globes will be held behind a picket line.
Personally, I am still voting for the black tie pickets, and coverage on the Internet of anyone who choses to join us. Of course, since the Internet is so new-fangled and

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 23

THE DAILY SHOW WRITERS V. THE COLBERT SHOW WRITERS
will have a mock debate showdown on why America should care about the Writers' Strike. Moderated by DEE DEE MYERS (former Clinton press sec and West Wing consultant.)

THIS IS A NATIONAL EVENT HOSTED BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESSS
who are eager to hear our side of the issues.

FOLLOWING THE DEBATE MICHAEL WINSHIP WGA east

This was submitted by WGA member Michael Seitzman, who is currently blogging on Huffington Post as well.

I read news today of Writers Guild member John Ridley's decision to go Financial-Core to protest the Writers Guild strike. I was angry and dismayed and my original post on the issue was full of that vitriol. I thought an edit was in order so as not to let the message to get lost in a war of

Below is an op-ed piece from Wednesday's Los Angeles Times.

Stopping the cash flow will strengthen the writers' case, not cutting deals.

January 9, 2008

We get the impression, in this third month of the Hollywood writers strike, that morale on the picket lines and in the coffee shops isn't so hot. That's odd, given how strong the writers are looking right now.

With the downfall of the Golden

Robert J. Elisberg, who writes the regular WGA Strike Primer columns on The Huffington Post, responds below to Michael Cieply's recent article in the New York Times entitled, Writers Strike Tests Mettle of 2 Outsiders.

Last week, Michael Cieply wrote once-again about his perception of “fissures” in the Writers Guild. It’s a theme of his. Back during the 1988 WGA strike he specialized in writing

This letter was just sent out to SAG members by Doug Allen (Executive Director and Chief Negotiator) and Allen Rosenberg (President). Emphases in red are from us at UH -- LK.

Dear SAG Member:

Everyone hopes the WGA strike will end with a fair deal for the writers. There has been much speculation about the impact on the WGA strike of the tentative agreement between the Directors Guild of America

December 16, 2007

Dear Writers Guild of America Members,

I am writing to you on behalf of 120,000 proud members of Screen Actors Guild who stand with you in solidarity as your strike continues. We believe that now more than ever, we must remain strong and even more committed to achieving our common objectives. We are proud to walk shoulder-to-shoulder with you and SAG will be there for as long as it takes.

Your fight is our fight. Our National Executive Director Doug Allen and I are working around the clock with Patric Verrone and David Young to coordinate our strike support efforts. I'm sure you have seen some of the thousands of Screen Actors Guild members who've been walking the picket lines in Los Angeles, New York and around the country for the last six weeks.

The LA Times carried the story this morning of the "debate" staged by striking WGA writers, held for the benefit of politicians in the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. The writers came to educate and inform D.C., in the way that only these guys can.

A small excerpt:

On one side, in shirts, was the striking Writers Guild of America, played by "Daily Show" writers Rob Kutner, Tim

Patric Verrone and Michael Winship just sent this message to the membership. The WGA is determined to stay at the table until we have a deal. If the AMPTP wants to negotiate in good faith, and end the strike, we are at the table.

Dear Fellow Members,

Before we head into negotiations this morning, we want to give you an update on where we stand.

Voting on whether or not to lift the restraining order (legal jargon for calling off the strike) will take place in person at two meetings, one in NYC and one in LA.

If you cannot attend the meetings, you may vote by proxy. Today, there has been some confusion on what "voting by proxy" means. Faxing in a proxy vote form is NOT the same as voting. You are designating a fellow WGA member to vote

Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) President Patric M. Verrone has issued the following statement in response to the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) statement that actors will not cross WGA picket lines to appear on the Golden Globe Awards as acceptors or presenters:

We are grateful to our brothers and sisters in SAG for their continued solidarity and support.

The entire awards show season is

(This just in from the WGA... I've heard similar sentiment from friends and family all over the nation. The temperature I'm reading -- the whole country is fed up with corporate conglomerates caring only about the bottom line, and not about the welfare of their workers.)

This was submitted by WGA member Robert Eisele, who was present for both the strike in 1985 and the longer strike of 1988.

"Those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it."
-- George Santayana, 1905

In 1988, writers endured a strike of nearly six months. In 2008, we are now approaching the halfway point of the length of that strike.

Although most Guild members in ’88 stood strong

(News Release from the Writers Guild of America)

Hundreds of Screen Actors Guild Members Join Picket Lines Outside Universal Studios

on Day Nine of WGA Strike