The question facing the SAG membership, now that we have two “Go-along-too-get-along’s,” Ken Howard and Roberta Reardon (who have demonstrated that they are firmly in the back pocket of the AMPTP) at the helm of our unions--what next? 
AFTRA president, Roberta Reardon, who according to IMDb has NEVER acted in a TV show or movie, has already shown her eagerness to sell out actors. This was demonstrated when she and her AFTRA cohorts stepped in during SAG negotiations and gave up everything that SAG negotiators were fighting for, from union-only signatories on new media, to no residual giveaways.
On, the other hand, not only did Ken Howard, and his USAN/UFS gang, support Ms. Reardon in her SAG “negotiating busting” tactics, but they joined in with union busting celebrities like Tom Hanks, Matt Damon, Sally Field, Alec Baldwin and others with their AMPTP aiding rhetoric, public announcing SAG members lack of resolve to strike.
And, then when NY’s USAN board, under the leadership of former SAG President Richard Masur, undermined SAG negotiations under SAG NED Doug Allen and President Alan Rosenberg, by publicly announcing that the SAG negotiators were being “unrealistic” with their “unattainable” demands, (which they never identified,) UFS’er Ken Howard never challenged their negotiating busting-action, choosing to stand silently by, in tacit support.
Now, whether, Mr. Howard is a front for Masur, or just a stooge for both USAN/UFS/AFTRA leadership, there is little doubt he lacks the credentials, cajones or knowledge to lead the Screen Actors Guild.
When challenged to a live debate by SAG Presidential Candidate Anne-Marie Johnson, Ken Howard refused, instead wanting to give written responses to members emailed questions. 
You think, maybe some one else rather than Ken might have been answering those questions? 
But no matter, the fact is that we have two union leaders, who have shown in the past that they will not stand up to either the AMPTP or the ATA--and both have been big Merger advocates.
Ms. Reardon was part of the AFTRA leadership that bypassed AFTRA members, and gave ATA agents the right to be their employers for a half-million dollar payoff. And Mr. Howard was one of the Restore Respect/USAN/CFU supporters who also tried to give ATA agents a hundred percent ownership role in shows we worked in.
Firstly, as far as the AMPTP is concerned, we can expect early negotiations which will take place late in (October) 2010. They will most likely be jointly negotiated by SAG and AFTRA, but, but that ain’t necessarily a done deal, now that AFTRA’s predatory leadership has learned just how successful they can be by undercutting SAG contracts and screwing actors.
There was a time that AFTRA was afraid to poach SAG shows, either directly, or indirectly, because they feared a backlash by SAG members against them. But now that they have found out that they can undercut actors minimums and giveaway their residuals with little more than a whimper from SAG’s membership—and, in fact, get support for their actor--sellout from SAG’s high-profile producer members, they will, most likely, become more embolden to the point that they may decide to go it alone in an overall grab of all television programs. This while desperate SAG actors get in the AFTRA Join line with their initiation fees in hand lamenting the fact that they have no choice.
This leads, more and more, to the fact that we may have reached a point where AFTRA no longer wants a merger. AFTRA’s President Reardon has already made it clear that she will not accept a merger that does not include non-actor broadcasters. And though, not directly articulated by Ms. Reardon, but currently an AFTRA policy, it has been made clear by Merger advocates on Internet actor bulletin boards, that these broadcasters would NOT have to abide by Rule One, and, therefore, would be able to continue to work NON-UNION in any new merged union—as they currently do under AFTRA—even though actors would still be bound by Rule One.
As, to bringing the ATA back into the SAG fold that is highly unlikely since they have learned that they can reject SAG edicts with impunity and make their own rules as they go along. Should our current weak-kneed leadership make a deal with the ATA agents, it would be more likely that the agents would bring us into the fold, more or less, under their control and guidance.
Let’s face, it because of ineffective, weak leadership, SAG is on the verge of being little more than its current president Ken Howard—a front. A front for the AMPTP and ATA, who will most likely be pulling the strings from this point forward.
And who will the membership blame as their ability to make a living continues to decline? I guess we'll just have to wait and see on that one. One thing we can rest assured of, it won’t be THEMSELVES.
A.L. Miller SW Editor & Chief 
| Home
| Contact
| Links
| Subscribe
| Classics
| Archive
| Search
| Watchdog Goodies
Now that SAG and AFTRA presidents are firmly in the back pocket of the AMPTP; What Next 
|