WGA West President Meredith Stiehm Calls On Studios To Sue AI Companies, Takes Aim At Trump At Guild Awards: “We Do Not Cower In The Face Of Bullies”

deadline.com:

WGA West President Meredith Stiehm sought to reassure members that the guild is doing its best to work in their favor during her speech at Saturday night’s guild awards.

Not only did she once speak out against the use of writers’ work to train AI systems, she also took a jab at the Trump administration, declaring: “We do not cower in the face of bullies.” “As a president is being puppeted by the richest man in the world, working very hard to hurt vulnerable people, the lawlessness, the heartlessness is outrageous,” she said. “People are understandably fearful, and I can only speak for our community here.

We’re just one small union in one state, but I want to say to our members, the guild’s values have not changed. We believe in labor, in freedom of speech, civil rights, inclusion and equity.” She vowed to “protect and push back politically,” reminding members that the union has already endured four years of Donald Trump in the Oval Office.

Hollywood has been through a difficult few years, and writers in particular have faced incredible hardship. On the heels of the devastating wildfires, which kicked off a year that writers hoped might bring reprieve after years of work stoppages and a massive production contraction, Stiehm said the union is working hard to “make these projects here in Los Angeles.” The WGA and SAG-AFTRA embarked on dual strikes in 2023 that hinged on AI protections, and, unsurprisingly, Stiehm also addressed that in the room at the Beverly Hilton on Saturday.