By LYNN ELBER
LOS ANGELES (AP) - A breakthrough in contract talks has been reached between Hollywood studios and striking writers and could lead to a tentative deal as early as next week, a person close to the ongoing negotiations said Saturday.
The two sides breached the gap Friday on the thorniest issues, those concerning compensation for projects distributed via the Internet, said the person, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
Although work remains to be done on elements of the agreement, prospects for a deal appeared solid, the person said. The tentative agreement would have to be approved by a majority of guild members.
The Writers Guild of America, whose 3-month-old strike has brought the entertainment industry to a standstill, began informal talks with top media company executives Jan. 23 in an attempt to reach a new deal covering governing work for film, TV and digital media.
We can only hope that the Writers Guild holds out for all that they have coming to them. Sure, reruns are becoming a drag. But to be sure, Studios will stop at nothing to fill the void of the writers if they hold out long enough to threaten the viewers much needed attention. And the content of the programing that is forced down our eye sockets will suffer as a result.
But the power of the Unions and of the workers must be held over the Studio bank accounts to ensure that the workers value to the production chain is held to its appropriate level of import.
And it won't be long before all workers will stand together, as it should have been all along, to prove that people and nations can live and work together. Our world decays into murderous corruption when it is left to the hands of the privileged few to control international and even national rule. Power to the People.
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