Nixon then, unity now
Investigative reporter Thomas Peele once believed that supporting union efforts posed a conflict of interest to reporters. In this moving essay comparing his hardworking father’s life to his own, Peele reexamines that view.
Why #newsmatters
Quality journalism is one of the pillars of democracy. But the profit-driven ownership of Digital First Media, the second-largest chain of print and online news organizations in the United States, threatens to undermine our ability to fulfill our mission. Guild members at a dozen union publications throughout the DFM empire …
Friedrichs v. CTA and the case for fair share
Friedrichs v. CTA is about wealthy special interests that want to shift the balance of economic power in their favor, and make it even more difficult for working people to come together, speak up collectively, get ahead and help create an economy that works for everyone, and serve their communities in the best way possible.
Hedge fund milking DFM papers dry, but workers won’t quit
Nearly 1,000 employees at a dozen DFM papers have gone years without raises — in some cases, a decade — while many have had to live with actual cuts in earnings and benefits.
Digital First Media workers launch coordinated contract campaign
Today is the launch of a national, coordinated campaign to win fair contracts with wage increases for the nearly 1,000 Guild-represented employees of Digital First Media.
Unionizing the digital media revolution
A revolution is taking place in digital media. Workers at the companies that produce the material you read during work, share on Facebook, and comment about on Twitter are unionizing, and changing the Internet landscape.
The radical roots of the great grape strike
Fifty years ago the great grape strike started in Delano, when Filipino pickers walked out of the fields on September 8, 1965. Mexican workers joined them two weeks later. The strike went on for five years, until all California table grape growers were forced to sign contracts in 1970.
Guardian US staff votes unanimously to join News Media Guild
The staff of the Guardian US voted unanimously (45-0) Wednesday to unionize under the the Guild’s wire service local, the News Media Guild. In a statement, Guardian staff said, “We would like to thank the News Media Guild and the Communications Workers of America for their invaluable help, advice and …
Our Local’s Sara Steffens elected Sec-Treas of CWA
Former Bay Area newspaper reporter Sara Steffens was elected secretary-treasurer Monday of the Communications Workers of America, second in command at one of the biggest labor unions in the country.
Dori J. Maynard, diversity advocate in journalism, dies at 56
Dori J. Maynard, a journalist who was at the forefront of the campaign to make the American news media a more accurate mirror of American diversity, died on Tuesday at her home in Oakland, Calif. She was 56. The cause was lung cancer, her mother, Liz Rosen, said. At her …