Just to refresh, here’s an incomplete list of the topics that the Writers Guild recently has chosen to issue statements about: George Floyd, violence against Asian Americans, Harvey Weinstein, an F.C.C. decision, and even Endeavor’s I.P.O. 

That’s why much of the town seems to be fuming at the WGA board over its refusal to say anything about the attack on Israel. WGA West president Meredith Stiehm finally responded this weekend. “Like the membership itself, the Board’s viewpoints are varied, and we found consensus out of reach,” she wrote to a group of showrunners, many of whom had signed the open letter “against terrorism in Israel.” 

What Stiehm didn’t mention, and what a recipient of her email wouldn’t be able to discern, is that she, herself, was among the board members who wanted to remain silent, according to two sources familiar with the internal debate. (Stiehm didn’t respond to my text.) Sister guilds SAG-AFTRA and the DGA—which also have members with varied views—found the words to decry the situation without taking a stand on Israel itself. But at the WGA, now there’s even an open letter to respond to the open letter…