You're Losing Yourself: How IMC Tactics Can Inform SAG-AFTRA's Artistic Fight Against AI

Few creative unions are better known than the Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), which has been a champion of entertainment artists since 1933. Known for Hollywood halting strikes, such as the 2023's 4-month anti-AI writers and actors strike, which cost the industry an estimated $6.5 billion, SAG-AFTRA has attempted to position itself as a champion of artistic rights in the newly emerging landscape of AI integration in the entertainment industry. However, as AI advances, SAG-AFTRA may be losing its power. Recent data has shown that the profit potential of integrating AI into the entertainment industry may outpace the losses from SAG-AFTRA strikes, with some experts believing that AI licensing deals between AI companies and studios would be worth at least $10 billion over the next two years. Additionally, though SAG-AFTRA’s 2023 strike garnered much attention and public support, their current anti-AI strike has met with far less notability and public appeal. Therefore, as studio incentives to pursue AI increase and public perception of AI as a threat wanes, SAG-AFTRA must find a new way to gain authority over the studios on behalf of the artists it represents. In the context of this shifting landscape, labor advocates must now ask: How can IMC tactics be leveraged to gain public support when advocating against major corporate actors, especially in the context of rapid technological change? This question can be addressed by researching and developing an effective anti-AI IMC campaign on behalf of SAG-AFTRA, with the goal of providing a blueprint and case study for other labor unions and social advocacy groups to leverage IMC techniques to gain public support for vital causes. While this research project primarily analyzes the campaign potential in the California-based entertainment industry, the research can be expanded to apply to the national and global dynamics of labor unions threatened by the use of AI. The project seeks to research and develop an effective anti-AI IMC campaign on behalf of SAG-AFTRA by analyzing existing IMC theories and strategies, and applying these concepts to the current trends surrounding AI use, SAG-AFTRA strikes, and the entertainment industry and public response to these growing issues. This can be done by courting public opinion through an Integrated Marketing and Communications campaign that uses fear-provoking, pro-human, anti-AI labor messaging such as "You're Losing Yourself" and "AI Art Is Exploitation" to communicate the danger of losing human artistry in the media consumers know and love. Based on current research, an effective IMC strategy highlighting SAG-AFTRA's fight against AI has the potential to bring their paid promotion and public appeal in competition with major studios that already use IMC techniques, providing SAG-AFTRA greater leverage when campaigning for legislative change and the power to call for mass boycotts of studios that use AI unethically.