By Kayla Walker

As it stands, tonight will be the season finale of my favorite television show, “The Office.” That means I have roughly 22 minutes left of Dunder Mifflin Scranton’s hijinks.

I won’t see how Angela Martin and Andy Bernard’s office romance pans out, I’ll be deprived of watching Meredith Palmer get trashed at the office Christmas party and I will be denied of seeing Stanley Hudson’s dry wit.

As much as it pains me that I will no longer spend my Thursday nights hysterically giggling in front of my TV, I can’t say that I’m angry. In fact, I am completely supportive of what’s going on in Hollywood and New York City right now.

At midnight last Monday, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike. In support, “The Office” actors-many of whom are WGA members-did not show up on set. It is rumored that star Steve Carell called in sick with a case of enlarged balls. Writers and actors Mindy Kaling, B.J. Novak and Paul Lieberstein spent their day walking the picket line with signs that said “WGA on Strike.”

In a video found on unitedhollywood.blogspot.com, Kaling, Novak and Lieberstein, along with a staff writer, explain why they are striking. It turns out that the writers received no residuals from all those “Office” episodes I downloaded from iTunes last season. Nor did they make anything from the episodes I watched streaming online when I was bored. In fact, the writers and actors never received compensation for those Webisodes featuring the accounting department that I loved so much last year.

This doesn’t make sense. As I see it, the writers and actors rendered services by writing and acting in the Webisodes, services that no one was paid for. In a sardonic twist, NBC, the company that owns “The Office” and some of my other favorite shows, were unwilling to purchase the Daytime Emmy statue that the writers won for their work on the Webisodes. How Scrooge-esque is that?

Instead, the network claims that online episodes and the Webisodes are merely promotions, despite the fact that everyone from the networks to the producers make money from the advertisements that accompany the online material.

Currently, the WGA is on strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) over two things: the WGA would like to increase the residuals they make on DVD sales from 4-cents to 8-cents and they would like to make something, nay, anything, from online content. This doesn’t seem too unreasonable. In fact, it makes sense.

Without the scripts that WGA members created, networks like NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox wouldn’t have any non-reality content. Huge hits, like “House,” “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation,” “Heroes” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” wouldn’t even exist.

Some of you might be wondering how this affects you, especially if you aren’t a fan of “The Office.” Well, in about four weeks there will be no more original scripted television on air (with few exceptions of mid-season replacements that have already wrapped filming).

If my media law class taught me anything last semester, it’s that the law is dated with regard to the Internet. It is completely fair of the WGA to be searching for updated contracts that take the Web into consideration. It’s not like the Internet is a passing fancy, and surely, in terms of media, it has become the way of the present.

Concerned about not being able to procrastinate by way of scripted television? Good. Here’s what you can do about it: stay aware, the United Hollywood blog I mentioned above is a great way to stay knowledgeable about what’s happening because it’s produced by WGA members that walk the picket lines every day. Sign the petition at the United Hollywood Web site. Write or call the networks of your favorite shows-their numbers and addresses are especially easy to find right now, as many presidents of the companies’ direct numbers were released by the WGA last week. Lastly, if you’re especially concerned about your favorite TV shows, pay attention to the commercials that run during the show (whether it’s online or broadcast live on television) and let the advertisers know you’re not happy with the AMPTP’s actions.

And hey, if you’re still feeling anxious, I’m thinking about starting an “I Mourn ‘The Office'” support group. Who’s with me?

Kayla Walker is a senior print journalism student. You may e-mail her at [email protected].