If the soap producers are members of the union, the soaps could be in trouble. Late-night shows such as Tonight and Late Show could go either way. The writers for David Letterman and Jay Leno are in the guild and would, theoretically, go on strike along with the rest of the union, thus shutting down the shows. During past strikes, however, the shows have been granted an exemption as long as they guaranteed that they would honor any future contract. However, if the union is adamant about creating a truly industrywide walkout, no exemption would be granted.
Some broadcast networks are in a better position than others to weather a strike.
Fox, for instance, has delayed premiering several new shows with the intent of presenting them in the fall. Fox also has prime-time series such as The Simpsons, King of the Hill and Futurama. Because animated shows take so long to prepare, a strike would have to go on many months before Fox runs out of new episodes. ABC also can rely on other nonscripted shows, such as newsmagazines and other reality and game shows, as well as the library of shows and movies owned by parent company Disney. CBS can air another season of Survivor shows and probably will revive Big Brother with some improvements.