“So Long, Dental Plan!” Unions, Labor Relations and Class Struggle…As Seen On TV
Edited by Shaun Richman
Subject Fields
Labor Studies, Film and Film History, American Studies, Humanities, Political Science, Popular Culture Studies, Social Sciences
Synopsis
Stories about unions and class struggle are notoriously under-represented in corporate media. Sometimes, though, storylines make it out of Hollywood writers’ rooms and onto your television screen. The purpose of this collection is to explore how labor unions, union organizing, and strikes and job actions have been portrayed in mainstream, scripted episodic television shows. How do such episodes reflect their times, and how do they shape them?
We have a contract with SUNY Press, and aim to publish in 2026. We’re looking for 10-15 articles, drawing on a number of academic disciplines, to focus on less obvious episodes and programs to critique and, most importantly, to have some fun with the project.