Biden calls for ‘a fair deal’ for striking screenwriters
His comments came after the White House declined to speak on the strike last week.
President Joe Biden said Monday he hopes the striking Hollywood television and screenwriters get a deal “as soon as possible,” making his first comments on the strike that began last week.
“Nights like these are a reminder of stories and the importance of treating storytellers with the dignity, respect and the value they deserve,” Biden said during remarks he delivered at a White House screening of “American Born Chinese,” an event held to mark Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. “I sincerely hope the writers’ strike in Hollywood gets resolved and the writers are given a fair deal they deserve as soon as possible.”
The strike has put members of the Writers Guild of America, a union representing 11,500 writers, in deadlock with studios and production companies over pay, the length of time for which writers are staffed on shows and movies, and the role AI will play in the future of screenwriting.
The president’s comments came after White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said last week that the administration would not comment on the issue.
“You’ve heard us say many times before, we don’t speak to an ongoing strike,” Jean-Pierre said during a White House briefing.
“But more broadly … President Biden is a strong supporter of workers’ rights to strike,” Jean-Pierre added. “Again, we encourage both sides to stay at the table.”
On Monday, Biden spoke of the importance the entertainment industry has had on America.
“This is an iconic, meaningful American industry,” he told the crowd. “And we need the writers and all the workers and everyone involved to tell the stories of our nation and the stories of all of us.”