Voiceovers And Politics

Politics has always been a tricky thing,

...and few times in our country’s history has it been more difficult (and dangerous) to navigate than right now.

Politics are everywhere in our society and the voiceover industry is no exception.

There are a bunch of definitions of politics out there, but I’m going use a very simple one from Simple Wikipedia. I didn’t even know there was such a thing!

Politics is the way that people living in groups make decisions. Politics is about making agreements between people so that they can live together in groups such as tribes, cities, or countries.

https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics

We have our own “political” groups/tribes: SAG-AFTRA and its members, The VO Agent Alliance, World Voices Organization, etc. These aren’t strictly political groups, but if you look at the above definition these groups have agreed upon a specific set of values and expect their members to adhere to those values as agents, union voice talent, and non-union voice talent respectively.

Are they right? Are they wrong? It depends on your politics.

TIP OF THE WEEK

If you have reading my blog for a while, you may have noticed that I try to be objective and straddle the line about the goings-on in the voiceover community so you can get facts and draw your own conclusions. While you may value my opinion (and I’m flattered if you do), how I feel about any particular subject does not matter.

What does matter is that you have the facts about the voiceover industry so you can build your views effectively. Politics are inherently subjective so while that may sound like a contradiction, you need facts so you can genuinely determine how you feel about a particular issue (like Pay-To-Play sites) or a cause (make all voice talents join SAG-AFTRA). If you don’t think those aren’t political issues, think again.

Being informed is everything. Not just in voiceover politics, but also in the “real” world. And hoo-boy are we learning that lesson right now…

NEWS AND NOTES

Thursday, June 18th @8PM EST: My next Marketing 201 webinar will be ‘Thriving in a Smaller Market City’. In this one-hour webinar, we’ll talk about how to build a successful voiceover business without living in a metropolitan area. This webinar caps at 25 attendees and sells out fast.

Thursday, June 25th @3PM EDT: Johnny Heller’s SPLENDIFEROUS WEBINAR #4 (BUSINESS/MARKETING). In this webinar, the indubitable Johnny Heller hosts me, Karen Commins, and Kelsey Navarro in a conversation about the business and marketing side of audiobooks. Click here to learn more and sign up!

TBA: My July Business and Money 201 webinar will be ‘Rates, Negotiating, and Billing’. In this one-hour webinar, we’ll talk about how to building a Rate Sheet, negotiating with voice seekers, and invoicing. This webinar caps at 25 attendees and sells out fast. Registration link coming soon!

TBA: My July Marketing 201 webinar will be ‘4 Words That Will Kill Your Marketing’. In this one-hour webinar, we’ll talk about how most voice actors are their own worst enemy and how to stop the cycle. This webinar caps at 25 attendees and sells out fast. Registration link coming soon!

HAPPY HAPPYS

Happy Iced Tea Day and Audiobook Month!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Tom Dheere is a voice actor who has narrated thousands of projects for hundreds of clients in over a dozen countries. He is also a voiceover business & marketing consultant known as the VOStrategist and produces the comic book “Agent 1.22”.