WGA board set to approve strike starting Sunday at midnight

The board of directors of the Writers Guild of America is set to sign off today on a plan to stage a strike beginning Sunday at midnight.

At a 1:30 p.m Pacific Daylight Time press conference, the board is expected announce its approval of a recommendation by the guild's negotiating committee to stage the first writers strike in nearly two decades.

There is an outside chance, however, that the parties could still reach a last-minute deal over the weekend.

The vote would come a day after guild leaders declared their intention to walk out before 3,000 writers gathered at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

Guild members already voted by a 90% margin to allow their leaders to call a strike if no agreement could be reached.

Talks broke down this week, after writers and their employers failed to hash out a deal on a new contract to replace one that expired Oct. 31.

The two sides are sharply at odds over a host of issues including DVD residuals and pay for work that is distributed via the Internet.

--Richard Verrier and Claudia Eller