3 Guild Leaders Pan TV Ratings Proposal

Taking their first public stance on the issue, the presidents of three of the most powerful creative guilds in Hollywood strongly opposed plans to change TV ratings guidelines and threatened to go to court to defend their 1st Amendment rights.

“The time has now come for us to speak out with the united voice of the creative community to oppose in the strongest possible terms the modifications [of TV ratings] currently under discussion in Washington,” Directors Guild of America President Jack Shea, Writers Guild of America West President Brad Radnitz and Screen Actors Guild President Richard Masur said in a joint statement released Wednesday night.

It was not immediately clear what impact the groups’ stance will have on the ratings negotiations. The major TV networks and Hollywood studios are under enormous pressure from Capitol Hill to add ratings symbols for sex, language and violence to their controversial guidelines--or face legislation forcing such ratings upon them.

“There are powerful forces--including Congress’ regulatory power to impact on the TV industry’s bottom line--that are moving the industry toward changing the ratings,” one industry executive said. “I don’t know that this move, at this time, by the guilds, is going to stop that.”

But other executives said they thought the guilds’ stance might embolden NBC and other networks, who remain opposed to changing the ratings on 1st Amendment grounds.

“NBC doesn’t want to do this, although they’re still at the table, and there are other networks who don’t think we should make the deal the groups are offering,” one industry executive said. “This is the first time in a long time that we’ve heard from the people who actually make the TV shows. Hopefully, that will help the industry lobbyists hold firm.”

The guild presidents said they had been excluded from recent negotiations between children’s advocacy groups and TV industry representatives.

“We want it known that what has come about has been without our approval and without our input,” Radnitz said.

“We are very concerned about a coercive climate where a ratings system that has not been given a chance to work is being changed . . . without any guarantees from congressmen and the children’s groups that there won’t be further legislation,” Masur said. “We’re not going to be party to any agreement until we see its implications for the creative community.”

Industry executives said the children’s groups and Congress still must agree to a moratorium on supporting legislation before agreement on ratings can be reached. The two sides come back to the table on Monday.

Industry representatives--including lobbyists from the four major TV networks, Motion Picture Assn. of America President Jack Valenti, National Assn. of Broadcasters President Eddie Fritts and National Cable Television Assn. of America President Decker Anstrom--have been negotiating with children’s advocacy groups for the last three weeks.

Although the guilds have been represented on the committee that created the TV ratings, the three guild presidents said they had been apprised only recently that the negotiators were close to adding the symbols.

“It appears that we’re being asked to stand by silently while the deal is done,” the Directors Guild’s Shea said.

Valenti, who briefed the guilds’ presidents earlier this week after they raised their 1st Amendment concerns, could not be reached for comment Wednesday night.