Strike Claims Winter TCA
Jan. Press Tour Canceled
December 11, 2007

Due to the ongoing strike by members of the Writers Guild of America, the Television Critics Association’s January press tour has been called off.

The announcement, which was made by the TCA on Monday, was not unanticipated. Although the organization had been investigating alternatives, such an abridged version of the event, the decision was made to cancel it entirely. Among the reasons: the possibility of a boycott by creators and stars, in solidarity with the striking writers.

Although disappointing to the extent that the absence of a TCA powwow could affect publicity for new series, the shuttering of the press tour will result in substantial savings for networks, each of which typically spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to mount a day-long showcase of its programming