You are welcome to offer any viewpoint, even one opposing mine. But I have one rule. You must leave your name. There have been some pro-AMPTP comments, all by anonymous commenters. From now on I will delete them all.
I understand there are PR people from the AMPTP side trying to counter the negative press they've been given. One tactic is to offer comments on blogs.
So like I said, you want to argue on their behalf, fine. You can write two pages. But leave a legitimate name. Otherwise, you're gone.
I think that's fair. Even if it's not, it's my blog. But I still feel it's fair.
Thanks.
Perfectly fine!
ReplyDelete*Praise be to the AMPTP - the most gloriest outfit on earth*.
~Len Kevine.
The biggest downside of the internet is the cloak of anonymity that lets people do hit and run comments, saying things they never would if they had to look someone in the eye. Kudos to you for asking for names.
ReplyDeleteI love your blog, learn a lot from it, and support the writers 100%. I'm just worried about what I'm going to watch when all the networks run out of episodes!
Nom de blog: RevJen
Nom de Salon Table Talk: Jeanny
Golly, Ken, just when I was getting to know all the AMPTP trolls you go and ask them to be responsible for their words...
ReplyDeleteWell, it's as clear as it can be, the AMPTP isn't interested in negotiating. Nor are they interested in anything other than busting the union. Since SAG considers the WGA's fight their fight (as they should) as well, perhaps it's time to shut down whatever productions are still going on. A giant walk out, writers, actors, everybody.
A public boycotting of current films coming out, TV, DVD rentals and sales, the whole deal, wouldn't be a bad idea either.
And back to the picket line we go...
I'd say that's certainly fair. Of course, I'm pro-writers anyway. We're mere weeks away from the premieres of new American Gladiators, Celebrity Apprentice, and an unprecedented winter edition of Big Brother.
ReplyDeleteIf that doesn't make you long for the return of scripted television, nothing will.
C'mon Ken, let 'em post. These guys will tear them a new rectum.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching an absolutely horrible special called "Movies Rock", I have to say that the AMPTP will be wishing for the return of scripted TV soon.
Good policy, Ken. The internet is a terrible bastion for paid-to-spammers.
ReplyDelete-Gregory Harbin
hi ken,
ReplyDeleteandrew from singapore here.
do u have plans to do your sitcom seminar in asia? coz here, in singapore, you be welcomed with open arms. and u can also enjoy pepper crab, a local popular dish.
did u ever think about writing a book about sitcom writing? on craft and story telling? it be a worthy read.
i am a fan of mash, cheers, taxi, and frasier.
forgot to leave my name. mine is the one just above, labelled annoynymous. pls dont delete,ken.
ReplyDeleteThe AMPTP is just plain clumsy and obvious when it comes to PR. They've already lost the public opinion on this strike. As an outsider, I can see no reason for them to continue to withhold a fair share of the profits from the writers except for raw greed on the studios part. And as the studios get weaker without the advertising revenue they've been enjoying, their companies will be preyed upon by foreign acquisition firms, you can count on that. One man's problem with the "expense" of paying the writers is another man's "opportunity" for opening up a huge revenue stream in partnership with the writers. Duh.
ReplyDeleteRevJen said... The biggest downside of the internet is the cloak of anonymity that lets people do hit and run comments.
ReplyDeleteCouldn’t agree more. That’s why my brother and I went into the discount tire store business. First thing is, we each get a jacket with our name on it – or as we refer to them, our cloaks of nymity. Until they ran out of embroidery and the newer guys had to have their names legally changed to Members Only.
That said, I’m also for greater transparency from management -- and I’m not afraid to say it, putting my full user name here in big bold letters, just like John Hancock.
Actually, I’d like to see some management really need confidentiality, because they were posting in support of the writers. Like, a woman told me she’d be in deep sneakers with her boss if he ever found out how much she enjoyed The Colbert Report; so for confidentiality, I agreed to use only her first name. I said, "Condoleezza, don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.”
But part of me agrees with the crutnacker about letting ‘em post and hang themselves. Not only because I also graduated BU SPC, but because of the people I got to cross paths with while there.... So I asked the DEA agent if the dog sniffing my luggage really discouraged people like me from bringing drugs in through the airport. He said “Are you kidding? We want them to come through the airport. This is where we catch them.”
So maybe if we can keep the flacks tied up sending their ridiculous positions to writers' blogs where we laugh at them, they won’t have any time to blog those more gullible?
Ken, with his bully pulpit here, is trying to intimidate and muscle around the poor shlubs in the AMPTP. It's a bit sad, really. I mean, where can those guys go to spread the word about management's side? They certainly can't expect a fair shake from the MSM. Even though the studios own Big Media, we all know the MSM is just a bunch of pinkos taking marching orders from the Unions, the DNC, and Oprah. Nope. The AMPTP's only outlets are blog comments, photocopied pamphlets, and the third stall door in the men's room at the El Monte bus station.
ReplyDeleteAnd now they've lost blog comments. Thanks a lot, Ken. Way to shut down the lines of communication. I heard they were going to post their counter-proposals when they finished polishing them. They stayed until *6:45* on Thursday evening, slaving over those. Now where can they publish them?
Joking aside, the AMPTP is sloppier at astroturfing than Microsoft. And that's pretty damn sloppy.
I totally agree!
ReplyDeleteAnonymous.
It's ironic that the AMPTP even cares about the internets and the power of bloggers. Busting thru everywhere, trying to add comments or slander, change the story and cheat the facts. I thought the Internet was all unproven territory.
ReplyDeleteTo Nick, Les and all their 9-5ers: Why bother, guys?
Unbelievable. After all that I STILL had to delete a guy who listed himself as anonymous.
ReplyDeleteJesus, how hard is it to comprehend? The guys dodging bulls on the teeter totters could absorb this information.
Maybe you need to enable comment moderation here?
ReplyDeleteuh, no, I _understand_ what you're saying, I'm just not going to stop voicing my opinion voluntarily because some asshole on the internet doesn't like it. There's a difference.
ReplyDeleteUpfront i'll make it clear that I like the blog, fully support the striking writers and over the years have loved a lot of what you write Ken.
ReplyDeleteThat said, what's a legitimate name ? Do you mean a real, full name as used in the real world ? Or do you mean e.g. "revjen" or "mike" which are essentially anonymous but not actually labelled anonymous ?
There was a time when the net was seen as a leveller, a place people could post opinions which readers could then take or leave based on their merit rather than who was posting or whether they (for whatever reason) hid behind a cloak of anonymity. Times change it seems.
ANON 12/10/07, 5:36 a.m.: That said, what's a legitimate name ? Do you mean a real, full name as used in the real world ? Or do you mean e.g. "revjen" or "mike" which are essentially anonymous but not actually labelled anonymous?
ReplyDeleteI'd think a pseudonym, particularly of someone who's a regular poster here and elsewhere, will get more legitimacy than anonymous. At least I can follow the thread of the thinking of "a buck short", e.g., whereas I don't know WHICH anonymous is which.
The AMPTP have managed to behave worse even than I expected they would. And I'm a pessimist, so my expectations were pretty low to begin with.
ReplyDeleteAs an avid tv viewer (anything but reality) I'm not looking forward to January and all the reality shows.
Is it so hard to do the right thing AMPTP????!!!! Apparently they're not human....
I'm not a writer and don't even live in CA or NY, so I'm the 'public'. The folks treating the writers so badly aren't going to get a lot of sympathy from the average american in my opinion. They're a bunch of sharks.
A fan in Dallas TX
Please don't encourage people to post for 2 pages. Some will take you up on it.
ReplyDeleteSo you can leave an anonymous comment if you are on the writers' side. If not, you must leave a name. So there are two sets of rules, depending on whether you agree or dissent.
ReplyDeleteWhat is up with you liberals, always trying to stifle speech that you don't believe in? Are you really so worried about dissenting opinions?
At this point, I'd like to put in a plug for board games and cards.
ReplyDeleteI support the writers strike, and wish them all success. And I know it's not their fault. But. Most TV really sucks right now. Entertainment AND news. Its OK to just turn it off until the companies get the message and make it better.
I prefer Monopoly, although I ve been playing a LOT of scrabble lately. Has anyone else here been doing this more often lately?
Drag out that dusty old board game and give it a go with some friends and family. Put on some coffee. Set out a crumb cake.
Experience the thrill of using all 7 letters, covering a triple-word score using J, Q, Z and X. (Yeah, I'm pretty sure there's no such a word)
Throw a Euchre party. Support your local bowling alley. They're becoming extinct, you know. In much more danger than TV writers.
Yahtzee!
Bing Bell
Ken
ReplyDeleteTotally in agreement ref the ex-divine NK, except the awfulness of Golden Compass isn't her fault - in fact, she put's in one of the more animated performances. Everything else about the movie is weird, Dakota thingummy looks like a pre-teen Blanchett or Paltrow, and I can't decide which, with a hammy Estuary accent, and who came up Eva Green's lines? I was mortally disappointed. Mind you, LOTR went thru a failed filming or two before Jackson's masterpiece, so maybe the Pullman trilogy just has to wait awhile.
Here's a show of solidarity!
ReplyDelete