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"Since when did I turn myself into a de facto spokesman for America's entertainment industry?" I asked. "Shouldn't this be the job of whoever is sent from Tinseltown?" However, I assured my peers that there is nothing to worry about. Your blockbuster movies and TV dramas will keep rolling out of the pipeline for years, I told them. The only shows that are immediately affected by the strike are television talk shows, which don't have much of an audience here. Even if they were aired in China, they would get only negligible ratings because jokes and gags based on daily news in the United States are the hardest to transcend cultural and language barriers. For the same reason, The Simpsons could never get the kind of reception here as Friends. Many in China who care about the strike subconsciously wanted me to back up their sympathy for the weak - in this case, the writers. It is something in human nature. You always take the side of the weak, a mentality conditioned by Hollywood products. Actually it's not that simple, I explained. Both the writers and the producers have a reason to hold their ground. As Hollywood movies and television shows seem to rake in endless streams of profits, writers, as the so-called "source of great stories", have a right to share in the financial success. But what about supporting actors, cinematographers, costume designers, et al? They all participated in the creation of the good story. | 
