A misguided tactic with its heart in the right place

Writer and trade unionist Jonathan Tasini has fought and won battles on behalf of freelance journalists in the past. But his lawsuit against Arianna Huffington and AOL, launched yesterday, seems as likely to alienate current supporters of unpaid Huffington Post bloggers as it does to get more people on their side. Tasini is asking for […]

Posted on April 13, 2011 at 10:58 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , , ,

Freelance court interpreters consider unionizing

Ottawa-area freelance court interpreters, who provide an essential service in court cases involving non-English-speaking individuals, are continuing a work stoppage that began in February and are considering joining a union, according to this story from the Lawyers Weekly. Those involved in the group action, with the backing of the Court Interpreters Association of Ontario, are […]

Posted on April 7, 2011 at 9:18 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , ,

Not just for laughs

The story of a group of comedians gigging at the Comedy Store in the ’70s is being compared to the battle for fair compensation currently being fought by unpaid Huffington Post writers. After working for free for six years, the comics — including Jay Leno and David Letterman — were tired of watching the club’s […]

Posted on April 6, 2011 at 11:59 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , ,

Asking Arianna for change

Open letters to publications’ management are a last-ditch tactic to right wrongs and spur change—but as we’ve seen recently, they can be effective. Now, adding his voice to many others asking the Huffington Post to reconsider its approach to compensating writers, comes Bernie Lunzer, president of the Newspaper Guild-CWA, with an open letter to Arianna […]

Posted on March 30, 2011 at 9:41 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , , , ,

Freelance court interpreters take action (updated)

In most cases, if a journalist makes an error, the consequences are little more than embarrassment and a correction. But court interpreters go to work knowing that their mistakes could send someone an innocent person to jail or set a guilty defendent free. It’s a high-pressure role, and a group of freelance court interpreters in […]

Posted on March 22, 2011 at 6:15 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , ,

Newspaper Guild-CWA advocating on behalf of unpaid HuffPo writers

Poynter.org has posted a press release from the Newspaper Guild-CWA in which it asks writers who contribute work to the Huffington Post for free to cease doing so until the company agrees to start compensating them. The Guild’s request follows the Huffington’s Post‘s recent $350 million buyout by AOL, and it’s not the first call […]

Posted on March 17, 2011 at 6:29 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , , ,

Union asks freelancers to stand with Metroland staffers

Metroland newspapers in the Ottawa area are running ads looking for freelancers to fill the pages of its newspapers, as staff reporters at the Kanata Kourier-Standard, Ottawa This Week and other Metroland papers enter their first negotiations to establish a union.

Posted on March 9, 2011 at 8:35 am by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , ,

German freelancers say “Ja” to minimum pay rates

Freelance journalists may be the lone wolves of the media world, but many are starting to form packs, too. Look at Germany: freelancers there are biting back against “all rights” contracts and establishing fair pay models.

Posted on March 8, 2011 at 12:04 pm by editor · LEAVE A COMMENT · Tagged with: , , , , , ,