Writers Guild of America
Emmys: Writers Guild Calls for Reinstatement of Variety Writing Award in Primetime Telecast
The Writers Guild of America is escalating its pressure on the Television Academy after the organization removed the outstanding writing for a variety series/special award from the Emmys telecast. On Tuesday the union sent a letter from major variety series and specials hosts and a petition signed by more than 1,400 members to Television Academy […]
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Sean Graham Named New Writers Guild West General Counsel After Tony Segall Departs
Longtime Writers Guild of America West general counsel Tony Segall is retiring from the position, the union announced to members on Monday. As Segall steps into an outside counsel role, in-house WGA West lawyer Sean Graham, currently the director of the union’s agency department, will ascend to the general counsel position. In addition, Jonah J. […]
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Emmys: TV Academy Slammed by Writers Guild for Moving Variety Writing Award Off Primetime Telecast
The TV Academy is being slammed by the Writers Guild of America for apparently making the decision to remove the presentation of the outstanding writing for a variety series/special award from the Primetime Emmys telecast that will take place on Jan. 15, 2024. In a missive sent on Tuesday to members of the WGA East and […]
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Pushkin Industries’ Podcast Workers Form Union
Workers at the powerhouse audio production company behind podcasts The Happiness Lab and The Dream, Pushkin Industries, have unionized after management voluntarily recognized their bargaining unit. A group of producers, editors and engineers are joining the Writers Guild of America East after a card check conducted by a third party found that the majority of […]
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“It’s a Dead End”: TV Writers Assistants Lose Hope for Post-Strike Career Advancement
Although landing any Hollywood gig will always be a challenge, those who work as writers assistants and in other support staff roles within the television-writing ecosystem have found this moment particularly dire. The writers strike is over, and rooms for broadcast hits have reopened, but few jobs in this space have surfaced since then, and […]
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1,000-Plus Writers Guild East Members Sign Open Letter Calling for AI Protections for Journalists
Natasha Lyonne, Adam McKay, Robert Carlock and over 1,000 Writers Guild of America East members have signed a petition calling on digital media companies to “work collaboratively” with their journalists on artificial intelligence guardrails. The group of signatories, which also includes Patricia Cornwell, Mary Harron, Tom Fontana and Soo Hugh, also asks in the statement […]
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Guest Column: Oscar-Winning Documentarian Slams Writers Guild for “Lack of Courage and Moral Clarity” in Refusing to Condemn Hamas
“The Board of Directors has worked exhaustively to consider the great diversity of opinions among our members on this issue… the Board’s viewpoints are varied, and we found consensus out of reach. For these reasons, we have decided not to comment publicly.” After more than two weeks of silence, Writers Guild of America West president […]
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Writers Guild East Explains Why It Hasn’t Made a Statement on Israel and Gaza
The Writers Guild of America East is offering an explanation for why it hasn’t made a statement about Hamas’ attack on Israel, while also emphasizing that it stands against antisemitism and Islamophobia, amid criticism of the WGA’s silence. In a message sent to members on Monday, union officers noted that a recent restructuring of the […]
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Screenwriters Guild of Israel Calls Out Writers Guild for Silence Over Hamas Attack in Israel
The Screenwriters of Guild of Israel has sharply criticized the Writers Guild of America for failing to weigh in on the Oct. 7 attacks by the Hamas terrorist organization in southern Israel, which led to the deaths of around 1,400 people, mostly civilians. “Your silence is loud and clear and completely contrasted by the loud […]
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Why the Writers Guild Hasn’t Weighed In On Israel
An estimated 75 members of the Writers Guild of America met Friday afternoon for a 90-minute Zoom meeting that served as an outlet for their collective disappointment about their union’s silence after Hamas’ attack on Israel. Showrunners including Hank Steinberg (Without a Trace), Howard Gordon (Homeland), Joel Fields (The Americans) and Marc Guggenheim (Legends of […]
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Writers Guild Ratifies Strike-Ending Contract With Studios
It’s officially over: The Writers Guild of America has ratified the three-year contract deal that ended the second-longest strike in the union’s history. Ninety-nine percent of union members voted to support the contract in a vote that ended on Monday; the WGA says of the 8,525 valid votes cast there were 8,435 “yes” votes and […]
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Gov. Gavin Newsom Vetoes WGA and SAG-AFTRA Backed-Bill to Give Unemployment Checks to Striking Workers
California Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill Saturday that would have given unemployment benefits to workers on strike. Newsom said he rejected the bill, which was backed by the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA, because the fund that the state uses to pay unemployment benefits is projected to be nearly $20 billion in debt […]
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