The Picket Line Online: Creative Labor, Digital Activism, and the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America Strike

Abstract

During the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike, feature and television writers turned to the digital sphere as a tactical strategy for representation, visibility, and promotion. While the growing interest in digital distribution was the impetus for this strike, it was also the medium that enabled writers to successfully communicate with each other, with the media industry, and with the general public. This article examines three major strategies deployed by WGA leadership during the strike that revitalized the Guild and facilitated their ability to work as a unified front during their labor struggle with the multinational corporations that control creative production in Hollywood.