David Zaslav had an uncomfortable Sunday. The Warner Bros. Discovery CEO provided a beginning speech at Boston University, however it was remarkable for all the incorrect factors.
As he contemplated his profession, audience members yelled “shut up Zaslav” and “we don’t want you here.”
The issue: His speech came throughout a continuous strike by Hollywood authors, who desire much better pay, brand-new agreements for the streaming age, and defense versus content created by expert system. “Pay your writers!” was another chant directed his method.
Zaslav getting struck with a Pay Your Writers chant in Boston. This is so excellent. pic.twitter.com/00pL4ahAqZ
— Mike Scollins (@mikescollins) May 21, 2023
“Writers Guild members are on strike because companies, including Warner Bros. Discovery, refused to guarantee any level of weekly employment in episodic television, attempted to pivot late night writers to a day rate, stonewalled on free work on script revisions for screenwriters, and refused to even discuss our proposal on the existential threat AI poses to all writers,” the guild stated in a declaration later on, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Actor Sean Penn backed the authors today, stating: “There’s a lot of new concepts being tossed about including the use of A.I. It strikes me as a human obscenity for there to be pushback on that from the producers.”
“Some people will be looking for a fight,” Zaslav informed trainees, generating boos and cheers. “But don’t be the one they find it with. Focus on good people’s qualities. In my career, I’ve seen so many talented people lose opportunities or jobs because they couldn’t get along with others. You can’t choose the people you work with. Figure out what you like about a person—there’s always something—and do whatever it takes to navigate their challenges. We all have them.”
Some trainees made fun of the belief. Vanessa Barlett, a finishing elder who assisted lead an authors strike uniformity occasion at the university, informed the Hollywood Reporter: “I’m in the same college as a bunch of film and TV kids. I’m friends with a lot of people in the College of Fine Arts, people who are in the theater arts program, so having a sense of solidarity is very important to me.”
Zaslav likewise irritated audience member when he mentioned his monetary success as a legal representative, stating: “I was making good money, I was feeling really great.” That amassed boos and groans.
Zaslav later on stated in a declaration: “I am grateful to my alma mater, Boston University, for inviting me to be part of today’s commencement and for giving me an honorary degree, and, as I have often said, I am immensely supportive of writers and hope the strike is resolved soon and in a way that they feel recognizes their value.”
