I just wanted to issue a semi-public 'thank you' to the people at MTV Networks who have respected our (Street Team members) choice to speak out on how we've been treated.
In the last two days, I know several of us have received personal phone calls from Ian Rowe (Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Public Affairs for MTV), who was sincerely sorry for the way things turned out. I also received the money owed to me yesterday, and today had a UPS mailer slid under my door with another [undisclosed] amount of money...I think we struck a nerve.
I know there are also people still in 1515 who think we were out of line (deleted us from FB, threatened our references with them, etc). And maybe the reason they're defensive is because they realize they have lied to us...these are some of the same peopl who told us our checks were in the mail months ago and all year long told us one thing when something else was completely obvious. If you've got something to be defensive about, maybe you're in the wrong.
But the fact that there are still some at 1515 who have a sense of accountability and humanity is nice, I think, for all of us to see. I hope laid off staff and freelancers who haven't received checks receive the same treatment (even though for some it may come to late).
I also wish Viacom/MTV the best in it's future endeavors. Lately it seems like a ship going down, but I wouldn't have put the last three years of my life into them if I don't believe they have great potential. I hope they treat they're employees AND non-employees better, I hope they take a clue from the public that their programming hasn't been working, and they need to make some drastic changes. I don't know if those changes need to involve large amounts of money being given to people like Diddy and Donald Trump to produce new shows, but hopefully it works out for them.
With that all being said, Thank You MTV, for getting me my money. And thank you Ian Rowe for being a true kind person and listening to us.
The last few years [and this year especially] haven't been easy, but it's been a trip, and though I may be broke, the experiences I've had and relationships I've built can never be taken away from me.
Merry Christmas to all, and to all...I'm starting my own damn business!