Last week, I reported on my disdain and disappointment that several Warner Brothers film executives had been tapped to give commencement speeches at universities with significant film/TV industry programs. David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros Discovery, was one such executive. Zaslav spoke at Boston University's commencement on Sunday, May 21, seemingly oblivious to the crowd of several hundred protestors picketing outside of the event in support of the ongoing Writer's Guild strike. Someone even flew an airplane with a "David Zaslav — Pay your writers!" banner over the event!
But the graduating students at BU weren't prepared to let Zaslav off so easy, either. They interrupted his pandering, generic speech from the very start with raucous "boos!" and chants of "Pay your writers." Truly, it's a beautiful sight to behold:
(Also, yes, it was very sunny in Boston yesterday — but jfc, does that guy look like a douchebag in those sunglasses)
In this particular clip, Zaslav is sharing some advice that he once received from GE/NBC CEO Jack Welch, who told him that, "Some people will be looking for a fight, but don't be the one they find it with. Focus on people's good qualities." While Zaslav never explicitly acknowledged the ongoing labor negotiations during his speech, this line in particular certainly seemed like a pointed commentary on the situation.
