[8] The first President was screenwriter Richard L. Breen, followed by: Edmund L. Hartmann, Curtis Kenyon, Ken Englund, Charles Schnee, James R. Webb, Nate Monaster, Christopher Knopf, Michael Blankfort, Melville Shavelson, Ranald MacDougall, John Furia Jr., David W. Rintels, Daniel Taradash, Frank Pierson, Ernest Lehman, George Kirgo, Del Reisman, Brad Radnitz, Daniel Petrie Jr., John Wells, Victoria Riskin, Charles D. Holland, Patric M. Verrone, Christopher Keyser, Howard A. Rodman and David A. Goodman.

The Screen Writers Guild (SWG) was formed in 1921 by a group of ten screenwriters in Hollywood angered over wage reductions announced by the major film studios.

From March to August 1988, WGAW members were on strike against the major American television networks in a dispute over residuals from repeat airings and foreign/home video use of scripted shows and made-for-TV movies.

The 22-week strike crippled American broadcast television and drove millions of viewers, disgusted with the lack of new scripted programming, to cable channels and home video, a blow to ratings and revenues from which, some industry watchers argue, the networks have never fully recovered.

[11] In 2004, Victoria Riskin resigned as WGAW President after being accused by her opponent Eric Hughes during the 2003 election of using a sham writing contract to maintain her membership status.

"[16] During the week following its lawsuit filing; en masse, over 7,000 Guild members fired their talent agents, as "not just drastically out-earning them, but preventing them from receiving better pay.

"[16] WGA president David A. Goodman was then quoted as stating to NPR "that in a period of unprecedented profits and growth of our business ... writers themselves are actually earning less".

[19] The Guild also expressed concern the 1988 strike showed that lack of representation in the genre would weaken their future bargaining position.

[20] Studio executives maintained that these employees were primarily editors, not writers, and that the shows needed to appear to be unscripted in order for viewers to feel they were "real.

"[21] As part of this campaign, on September 20, 2006, the WGAW held a Los Angeles unity rally in support of the America's Next Top Model writers' strike.

"[23] On November 2, 2007, the Guild again went on strike, this time over writers' share of revenues from DVD releases and from Internet, cellphone shows, and other new media uses of programs and films written by members.

[27] On April 22, 2023, the SAG-AFTRA National Board voted unanimously to pass a resolution in support of WGA negotiations with the AMPTP.