The WGA writers strike has been going on for three weeks now, and the story has reached the college student consciousness. Hollywood writers are demanding protection from artificial intelligence and unlivable pay, and the picket lines have had a field day on social media. Even those friends of mine who don’t read the headlines have come across it on Instagram by now, so the strike has made its way into casual conversation, especially in my television class. As we train for our creative professions in film and media, we are watching our predecessors fight for a living wage, and the implications for us are hard to ignore.

This past Monday, we recorded our final television project live in the Hunter College studio. I’d written a silly little seven-minute script, a murder-mystery type thing, and my job on shooting day was behind the big switcher board, selecting which cameras went live on air. My classmates were audio operators, graphics technicians, set managers, some of them were even the talent. We all came together to make this project happen; it was intense and difficult, so much fun.

We wondered in between takes how easy it would be for AI to take over the whole thing. Artificial intelligence could write a script, turn all the sound and editing cues into an algorithm. Certainly it could layer in a green screen background faster than I ever managed to at that switcher. We got ourselves a B+ on the project. Could AI have gotten an A? We suspected it could.

That’s what the Writers Guild is worried about. My TV friends are convinced we’re facing the demise of the creative profession. That’s some classic Gen Z pessimism, it’s all part of our brand, but the last thing we want to hear during finals week is that our education is outdated and going to waste.

These worries have not been confined to the media department. As our big term papers neared their deadlines, so many professors warned against using AI to do the writing, Chat GPT in particular. At least half of my friends used it anyway. Even I kept a Chat GPT tab open while I put my research paper together; it’s great for checking dates and finding sources, though my writerly pride prevented me from copying the AI paragraphs word for word. As students, AI is undeniably helpful, so those of us in film and media have a unique dilemma before us.

One of my classmates, a fellow journalist, has managed to work Chat GPT into her weekly stories. She works in entertainment journalism interviewing celebrities and attending red carpets (she is much cooler than me), so before she attends an event, she’ll ask Chat GPT for background information on the people she’s about to meet. The AI sets her up with a bulleted list of talking points from the get-go. She just hopes Chat GPT won’t start attending premieres in her stead.

So, the writers strike means a lot to us. I have one more year of school, and then I’ll be out in the world, with only my words to market. I really hope that by then they’ve reached a deal that keeps the screenwriters employed, and leaves a few spots open for us.