In this new media universe, what does it mean to be a writer?
Is blogging writing? Is my web video monologue writing? Is an ad-libbed variety show with pre-planned guests writing?
As the Writers Guild of America strike continues, writers around the country are asking these questions. Yesterday, Ed Champion went to WGA President Michael Winship to ask what was writing and what wasn't writing on Jon Stewart's Daily Show. His answer was complex:
"Well, the rules are pretty specific about things that he can and cannot do. He cannot write questions in advance for interviews, for example. He cannot write the monologues, as I said. He cannot write any kind of sketch material for the show...But if he has a guest on the air whose book he has read and he asks questions off the top of his head, that is not struck work."
The whole strike depends on the definition of "writing." There's no standard industry price to pay a writer for a blog post, a web video, or a podcast. As these forms multiply, it's becoming harder and harder for writers to get a fair-wage
Don't take these questions for granted. Should Jon Stewart's show be on the air without writers?