Writers’ Strike: The Show Must Go On

As reported in the Soap Opera Digest January 8, 2008 issue, December 17 was “Daytime Day” for the writers’ strike. Writers Guild of America members, including soap scribes, prime-time writers, and soap actors from the New York shows, bundled up and came out in the freezing cold to walk the picket line in front of the Time Warner Center in support for the WGA. In Los Angeles, stars walked the picket line in front of the CBS studios. Associate Head Writer Tom Casiello from DAYS served as a strike captain for the day, where he explained how “we all want to get back to work, to tell the stories we were telling before this started.” Although DAYS has enough scripts to air throughout January, depending on how long the strike lasts, there’s no guarantee whether the original scripts for the show will air throughout February sweeps. However, DAYS, along with the other daytime soaps, will go on.

According to an article by the Los Angeles Times, one soap writer has made the agonizing decision to stop picketing and return to work. Most daytime soap writers are still on the picket lines, but others have quietly decided to return to work, fearing their jobs or the future of soaps. Some soap writers are taking advantage of financial core status, which means that writers can still work and collect benefits, but no longer have a stake in voting as members of the WGA.

In the meantime, DAYS will continue to air throughout the Writers’ Strike, even though other scribes may write for the time being. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see if the 2008 DAYS previews indeed happen or will be re-written.