"For a long time everyone and their cousin wanted to work in the industry. We could afford to pay low, offer no benefits and make the interns do all sorts of stuff and still get 100 applicants for one position," explains Henry Descale, head of Human Resources for AOL-Time Warner. "But now the shoe's on the other foot. I have to almost beg for interns. It's really embarrassing, because the few interns we do get will become tight-fisted Executives one day and they never remember who I am."

There is a different attitude these days regarding the advantages of unpaid internships. They used to be seen as a way of getting your foot in the door for a future job. But in such a growing economy, many college students don't seem to be worrying about their job prospects.

"Look, I am not working for some manic executive-type, getting them coffee, answering phones and all that other bullshit for free!" says University of Maryland junior Tony DiSante, "It's just not worth it. What do I care about working at Dreamworks when I can get a paid job to sit on my ass at my cousin's internet company?"

"Internships are for those go-go-go types. You know, run around, kiss ass, please everybody and then try to sweet-talk your way into the business. That's just not me. I don't know anyone like that -- it's kind of out of fashion," says Raj Napthouri, a Communications major at San Diego State, adding, "It's all about the cheddar."

Indeed, there is more of an appreciation of capitalism and the importance of money in today's collegiate atmosphere. Students are more affluent, less impressed with the glitter and gossip of the media business, and have been scared away by reports from older siblings who have suffered through internships.

"I did three fucking internships that actually cost me money. What did I get out of it in return? Nothing. They are a total waste of time and I highly recommend against it," says Frank Korvalis, now a graphic designer making $65,000 a year with Grey Advertising.

"It's true. The myth of the 'necessity' of internships has faded. We may have to introduce a monthly stipend," laments Descale, "or worse yet, re-instate part-time benefits."

The intern drought has sent major companies like AOL-Time Warner, MTV Networks, Disney Co. and Sony Pictures scrambling for ways to keep up the flow of free interns. Executives have long known that interns lead to cheap Temp labor and the fear is that the shortage will imperil the penny-Temp programs that make up the backbone of most media companies.

Temporary workers save big companies a lot of money in directly-related costs like benefits, and more importantly, as a workforce that doesn't count negatively to a company's cost-benefit analysis. Wall Street looks disfavorably on a company with a high 'head count' of employees but interns and Temps are not counted as employees, meaning media companies can expect better stock earnings if they employ more of them. But the numbers continue to shrink and now Human Resources executives have been forced to think up new schemes of enticement.

"We are going to start an "Intern of the Week" program here at Sony Pictures, rewarding good, proper interns with company-wide recognition," explains Laura Cohen, Vice-President of Human Resources, "additionally, we are going to promise all of our interns and Temps the opportunity to be part of a very large crowd scene in one of our lesser-known releases. We hope that the word filters down to colleges that Sony Pictures is a fun place to work."

But industry-watchers doubt the thin efforts by companies will make the grade. The fact is, today's students aren't as caught up with the fame game and would rather spend a summer working at an ice cream store in Twin Falls than take an unpaid internship in Los Angeles or New York amongst a competitive gaggle of brownosers.

It remains to be seen if media companies can re-ignite the lust in prospective interns. But the problem continues and the signs don't look so good.

Already Wall Street has pushed down the stock prices of companies that have purportedly offered even a few benefits to their Temp workforce. And more ominously, a recent survey conducted by Harper's magazine found that 82% of former media interns were "very unhappy" with their experience and would not do it again. That number appears to be rising every day.

Says Anna Coldham, now a senior at New York University, "I worked at MTV doing an internship and got majorly dissed. Those people are such competitive, cliquey fuckers over there, man. Fuck that shit."

*** LOOK BELOW! NEW SECTIONS! ***

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