Candidate for Council, Online Media Sector (i)
I was appointed to Council last year after our incredible Online Media Vice President Sara David joined the officers, and I’m proud to run for election to represent online media this year.
Currently, I’m a senior reporter at Jezebel, a feminist news website owned by G/O Media. But my first encounter with WGAE was helping to organize Fusion, a good website that no longer exists. I loved working with my colleagues to organize that newsroom. Sadly, my job was eliminated in a mass layoff and newsroom sale before we could secure a contract, but because of the courageous work of original Gawker Union employees (who the company was being merged with), we got severance. It was my first brush with media layoffs. The weeks of cushion negotiated by my union members made it possible to start five years of full-time freelancing.
I knew when I joined Jezebel to cover the fall of Roe v. Wade that I had to get intimately involved with WGAE. I joined the bargaining committee for Gizmodo Media Group’s (GMG) third contract. Because management’s offers were unacceptable for our members, we organized the first open-ended strike in digital media history. I was a strike captain for our remote workers, figuring out ways to bring workers from across the country to the picket line. We won equitable wages and guaranteed annual raises, severance and parental leave, and strengthened editorial independence. That strike and that contract will forever be a highlight of my journalism career.
Joining WGAE council was a natural extension of my work on the bargaining and labor/management committee. I’m so proud of our work in the last year, and am eager to support all sectors as we move into a critical year with at least a dozen contracts up for negotiations, not to mention the MBA.
If elected, I will:
- Attend biweekly Industry-Wide Organizing Committee meetings to hear directly from members about what they need and how the union can better support them
- Help to create better communication systems for Online Media members, including unaffiliated members
- Prioritize diversity, equity and inclusion among council members, guild staff and union members by advocating for relevant training and resources
- Continue to build support for film/television/streaming colleagues and broadcast members among our Online Media members
- Support new organizing in all sectors by continuing to serve on the Organizing Committee
* (i) denotes incumbent
