WGA East Wins Voluntary Recognition at Static Media
NEW YORK, NY (August 7, 2026) – Management at Static Media voluntarily recognized the Writers Guild of America East (WGAE) as the collective bargaining representatives of the staff’s full-time editors, writers and reporters.
A card-check conducted by an independent third-party confirmed that an overwhelming majority of the 58-member bargaining unit signed cards in favor of the union.
Static Media includes the brands BGR, Chowhound, Cuteness, Engadget, Explore, /Film, Food Republic, Foodie, Garden Guides, Glam, Grunge, Health Digest, House Digest, Hunker, Islands, Jalopnik, Looper, Mashed, Money Digest, Nicki Swift, Outdoor Guide, PlanetWare, Sciencing, SlashGear, SVG, Tasting Table, The Daily Meal, The List, TheTakeout, TVLine, Women.com, and Wrestling Inc.
The Static Media Organizing Committee said, “In the wake of ongoing industry-wide cuts in journalism and with human-driven writing at risk, we have joined with the WGAE to build a more sustainable future at Static Media. Unions have driven social progress and income parity for decades, and we are proud to join in solidarity with the Jalopnik union as well as our thousands of unionized colleagues across the industry.”
“We’re so excited the editorial team at Static Media will be joining their Jalopnik colleagues as members of the WGAE,” said Sara David, Vice President of the WGAE’s Online Media Sector. “Journalists need workplace protections as urgently as ever. We look forward to working with Static Media to secure a strong first union contract.”
In addition to Static Media, the WGA East’s Online Media sector represents workers at Bustle Digital Group, Civic News Group, Committee to Protect Journalists, Fast Company & Inc., Financial Times Specialists, Future PLC, Futuro Media, Gizmodo Media USA, HuffPost, Jalopnik at Static Media, Hearst Magazines, Inc., Jewish Currents, NowThis, Onion Inc., Salon, Scientific American, Slate, Talking Points Memo, The Intercept, The Root, Vox Media and VICE.
ABOUT THE WRITERS GUILD OF AMERICA EAST
The Writers Guild of America East, AFL-CIO, is a labor union of more than 7,500 members working in film, television, news, podcasts and online media. The Guild negotiates and administers contracts that protect the creative and economic rights of its members; conducts programs, seminars and events on issues of interest to writers; and presents writers’ views to various bodies of government. For more information on the Writers Guild of America East, visit wgaeast.org.
