The Hollywood writers’ strike is over — and they won big

Here’s what’s coming in the WGA’s new contract. vox.com/culture CULTURE   The Hollywood writers’ strike is over! After 146 days of withholding work, the WGA has reached an agreement with studios — and [according to Alissa Wilkinson and Emily Stewart](, they got just about everything they were looking for. On the list of asks: better streaming residuals, higher minimum wage, bigger writers’ rooms — and, crucially, a guarantee that studios won’t use AI to cut writers or their pay. One thing to think about as we move forward: The WGA was also looking for more transparency from streaming services about viewership rates and financial metrics, which the studios pushed back against hard. A lot of industry observers speculated that this might be because [those streaming services aren’t actually making any money](, and they don’t want the rest of us to know it. If the WGA got Netflix et al to agree to open their books to the world, things could get very interesting. At this point, however, the exact language of the new contract is still confidential. Check out Alissa and Emily’s coverage of the whole story with all the details [here](. —[Constance Grady](, senior correspondent The Hollywood writers’ strike is over — and they won big [image of lower half of a person holding a picket sign that says ''WRITERS GUILD ON STRIKE!'']( Sarah Reingewirtz/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images Hollywood’s longest and most costly labor strike has ended. Late in the day on Sunday, September 24 — after 146 days of labor stoppage, the longest strike in Hollywood history by a long shot — the Writers Guild of America (WGA), which represents Hollywood’s writers, and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), an association of Hollywood’s largest studios and production companies, announced that an agreement had been reached. On Tuesday, September 26, the union’s leadership announced that they’d voted to end the strike and recommended the membership vote in favor of ratifying the contract. //link.vox.com/click/32861166.24510/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudm94LmNvbS9jdWx0dXJlLzIwMjMvOS8yNC8yMzg4ODY3My93Z2Etc3RyaWtlLWVuZC1zYWctYWZ0cmEtY29udHJhY3Q_dWVpZD0zYTUwN2ZmNWZmMzc1YmEzY2FlOTIxZDM1MzEzYjdjZA/6094319a7418d377a33af3d5F45b4c372The strike officially ended in the wee hours of Wednesday, September 27, and [the union’s membership will begin their vote on Monday](, October 2. For many, this moment is one for celebration. President Joe Biden, who is set to join striking auto workers on their picket line on Tuesday, issued a statement applauding the writers’ tentative deal. “There simply is no substitute for employers and employees coming together to negotiate in good faith toward an agreement that makes a business stronger and secures the pay, benefits, and dignity that workers deserve,” he said. Following the leadership’s vote to end the strike and recommend that the membership ratify the contract, the WGA released details of the new agreement via a simplified memorandum of agreement (MOA). “We can say, with great pride, that this deal is exceptional — with meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership,” they announced. The exact language of the contract is yet to be released. [But from the WGA summary](, it appears the union was successful in its effort. The MOA includes increases to minimum wage and compensation, increased pension and health fund rates, improvements to terms for length of employment and size of writing teams (which had been shrinking drastically in recent years), and better residuals (which are like royalties), including foreign streaming residuals. The MOA also lays out terms for artificial intelligence, with an agreement that doesn’t prevent writers or productions from making use of generative AI but prohibits using software to reduce or eliminate writers and their pay. [Read the full story »](  [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( How the fight between tech founders and influencers shaped the internet In Taylor Lorenz’s new book, extremely online women get their due. [Read the full story »]( The movies to watch for this fall It’s a great time to be at the movies. [Read the full story »](   Support our work We aim to explain what we buy, why we buy it, and why it matters. Support our mission by making a gift today. [Give](   More good stuff to read today - [The cinematic glory of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s game-day date]( - [Two young missionaries made headlines. 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