Kim Kelly, Guest Columnist

Does Hollywood Know That Writers Can’t Pay Bills With ‘Love’?

Streaming has created a residuals problem. And that’s why there’s a strike.

May 17, 2023 at 11:00 AM UTC

Kim Kelly is a freelance journalist and activist, as well as the author of "Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor." Her work has appeared in Teen Vogue, Fast Company, the Nation, Rolling Stone, Esquire and the Philadelphia Inquirer. She is a member and councilperson for the Writers Guild of America, East.

Writers need to be fairly compensated for their work.
Photographer: Bloomberg/Bloomberg

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Everyone seems to realize that the Writers Guild of America strike is a big, big deal — everyone except the Hollywood executives at the heart of the conflict. Case in point: Warner Bros. Discovery's CEO, David Zaslav, popped up on CNBC to reassure fellow studio bosses that relief was just around the corner. He insisted that "a love for the business and the love for working" would prevail.

Clinging to that fantasy shows how disconnected he is from the workforce plugging away in his content factory. It also highlights how problematic the conversation around creative work has become. Having fun while working — a rarity for many — shouldn't trump being well and properly compensated.