Jon Steward and Stephen Colbert break the lines

So, on January 7th, The Daily Show and the Colbert Report will resume, regardless of the state of negotiations in the writers' strike. That's unexpected.

A Comedy Central spokesman declined to say whether it had pursued a deal with the guild.

• Jon Steward relies on his status as a major media figure on the side of the people. Who are largely laborers. Making an explicit anti-labor move is very bad for his brand. As Comedy Central is largely built on the success of the Daily Show, Viacom is risking the whole channel with this move
• Stephen Colbert is also expected to behave well, but has a different but no less central problem. How could he be unscripted? Part of his shtick is that he simply reads what's on the teleprompter cards. I'm not saying Stephen Colbert the comedian can't handle the spontaneity. I'm saying that Stephen Colbert the character can't be spontaneous and still authentically recall for us Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly and the rest.
• What they'll fill the shows with is anybody's guess, but Letterman, Leno and Conan O'Brien have this problem as well

So, well, we'll see how this goes. Negotiations themselves don't seem to be going well -- the Golden Globes and Oscars are at risk.

“[T]his is our showcase for actors, writers, directors, technicians, all of them, to the world,” [Samuel Goldwyn Jr] said. “To show ourselves as snarling people snarling at each other will accomplish nothing.”

Why can't we all just get along? You writers can continue your strike as long as you show up and work. That's all we ask. We're happy to withhold your pay until you get what you want.