SAG-AFTRA News Broadcasters’ Steering Committee Expresses Support For Striking Actors

News broadcasters aren’t on strike, but their SAG-AFTRA steering committee is standing behind the actors and performers who are. “The world is watching,” the committee said in a statement Wednesday, and urged a “quick and productive resolution to the strike.”

“This strike goes far beyond the complications of these critical contract negotiations: this is history in the making,” the SAG-AFTRA Broadcast Steering Committee said. “Our union’s news broadcasters cover history as it unfolds and are dedicated to informing the public in an accurate and objective way. That includes coverage of this strike which we strongly encourage our members to report with full transparency of their SAG-AFTRA membership.

“As broadcasters, we operate under separate contracts and are obligated to report to our jobs and work under those negotiated contracts, but we want you to know that we support you and stand with you.”

“We sit with you in local and national board meetings and together we work to move our union forward by standing strong on our common ground,” the committee said. “Many of us are in business with the same employers who operate similarly in both their news and entertainment divisions, and this is why we are so powerful as a merged team. By fighting for what we deserve as united workers, we set an example for all who labor.”

Earlier today, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the guild’s national executive director, again called on the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers to return to the bargaining table and negotiate a fair deal. “As we’ve stated publicly and privately every day since July 12, we are ready, willing and able to return to the table at any time,” he said.

On Tuesday, AMPTP president Carol Lombardini reached out to the Writers Guild and requested a meeting Friday to discuss the resumption of negotiations. The WGA has been on strike since May 2, and SAG-AFTRA since July 14.