I sat down this week with California Gov. Gavin Newsom for a wide-ranging conversation at the Milken Institute’s annual conference in Los Angeles.
The conversation happened on the same day that television and film writers represented by the Writers Guild of America went on strike after its members failed to reach a contract agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
(Comcast, the corporation that owns our parent company NBCUniversal, is one of the entertainment companies represented by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. And some editorial employees of the NBCUniversal News Group are represented by the Writers Guild of America.)
Concerns over pay disparity in the streaming era and the potential impact of artificial intelligence on the entertainment industry drove the WGA members to unanimously authorize a strike as contract negotiations stalled. Meanwhile, the trade alliance representing the major studios insisted that its offer included increased compensation for writers and better streaming residuals — and is likely fearful of an outcome like the 2007-2008 writers’ strike that lasted 100 days and cost California’s economy an estimated $2.1 billion and thousands of jobs.
When asked, Newsom said that if both sides were interested, his administration would intervene to assist the negotiations.
“It has profound consequences, direct and indirect. Every single one of us will be impacted by this. And we’re very concerned about what’s going on because both sides are dug in,” he said. “I have to say, I’m sensitive to the concerns of the writers on this. Very. In terms of what streaming is doing, the next conversation of what AI is doing in this space. This is a very real and existential moment. And I’m very hopeful that we can extend this not beyond 100 days of the last strike, that we can extend this no more than a few weeks.”
We also talked about another issue California is facing: homelessness. Part of Newsom’s administration’s response to the crisis has been to sue two cities (Huntington Beach and Elk Grove) for violating the state’s fair housing laws.
“We’re dealing with our original sin, which has everything to do with this issue. And that’s the issue of affordability, particularly housing and housing production and the lack thereof in this state,” he said. “It’s Econ 101. It’s not even that damn complicated, but at the end of the day, we own this, and I recognize the seriousness of this issue.”
Newsom also called out his fellow governors in states like Texas over how they are handling the gun violence epidemic.
Newsom also called out his fellow governors in states like Texas over how they are handling the gun violence epidemic. He is angry that both sides cannot come together to deal with the “No. 1 killer of kids in America” — and that his Republican colleagues blame many mass shootings on mental health.
“The No. 1 killer is guns and the best response from the other side is, ‘Well, it’s a mental health crisis’ and then they cut mental health,” he said. “I mean, this is outrageous.”
Throughout the conversation, Gov. Newsom was passionate and angry at times. His animation stemmed from his feeling that America as a whole is facing a very consequential moment.
“I think for a lot of us, in the last half-century we’ve enjoyed a life that we’ve frankly taken for granted with an expansion of rights: voting rights, civil rights, LGBTQ rights, marriage equality, contraceptive rights, abortion rights. There’s been a nationalization of rights. Now, a rights regression is happening on our watch, and I can’t sit by passively,” he said.
“I feel accountable, and I feel the need to call it out. I feel the need to go on the offense and not consistently be on the defense.”
Stephanie Ruhle
Stephanie Ruhle is host of “The 11th Hour” at 11 p.m. ET on MSNBC and senior business analyst for NBC News.