Three Reddit and Twitter threads about AI's impact on different types of writers.

[highplainsdem]

The first two, which I ran across yesterday after seeing one of them linked to from a trending Mastodon post, are about freelance content creators, non-unionized. The third is about the stance on AI by WGA, the Writers Guild of America, whose writers might be on strike soon if the value of writers isn't respected.

I'm just going to link to these threads. I hope you'll read at least some of the replies, too.

From Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/comments/12ff5mw/it_happened_to_me_today/

https://www.reddit.com/r/freelanceWriters/comments/12aga2n/being_asked_for_a_refund_because_my_writing_was/


WGA thread on AI, Thread Reader page at https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1638643544977195008.html .

https://mobile.twitter.com/WGAWest/status/1638643544977195008

Articles on WGA's stance:

https://www.theverge.com/2023/3/22/23651804/wga-union-chatgpt-ai-tools-proposal

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2023-03-22/writers-guild-lays-sets-out-rules-against-the-use-of-ai-in-hollywood-during-new-contract-talks


Of course the possible WGA strike is about more than AI:

https://www.wgacontract2023.org/updates/bulletins/writers-are-not-keeping-up

[Nictuku]

1. Thank you for taking the time to post all those links.

I appreciate the effort!

[highplainsdem]

2. You're welcome! I thought about trying to quote/summarize each and include

some of the replies, but it would have made for an impossibly long OP.

Also thought about posting separate threads for all three, but they are all about AI harming writers. And I wanted the contrast between non-unionized freelance content creators being hurt so badly, so fast - it's been less than 4-1/2 months since OpenAI CEO Sam Altman made, unilaterally and against the wishes of some others in the company, the decision to release ChatGPT and to hell with worrying about the harm it might do - and a union fighting to minimize the harm it's doing and could do.

[tinrobot]

3. I work in entertainment, the WGA strike is mostly about streaming royalties.

AI is more of an afterthought. The language about AI is very similar to the existing language about non-union writers. If something is rewritten on a union show, a union writer needs to be involved. You can't hire a non-union writer to do it. They'll just extend that policy to AI as well.

I know quite a few writers who are already using AI to help brainstorm ideas. So AI isn't specifically the issue, it's more about who gets to use it and, more importantly, who gets credit (and royalties). The WGA doesn't want producers using AI any more than they want producers using non-union writers because it dilutes the value of the union.

[mainer]

4. I'm a member of WGA-E

and you're right, AI is just a small part of the conversation. After May 1, 11:59 PM, feature film and TV writers could well be on strike. Writers have always been screwed by the entertainment industry. While the deal makers see their profits soaring, writers' incomes have barely budged.