The Girls creator and star drew criticism online Monday when The New York Times reported that 600 people signed up for open-call video auditions on the 28-year-old's website to perform as supporting acts during her 11-city book tour – slots that came without the promise of compensation.
Gawker went one step further and – in a post titled "Lena Dunham Does Not Pay" – assessed the star's annual income, the advance for her book and what she reportedly stands to make from the tour.
The resulting backlash seems to have changed Dunham's mind: She took to Twitter to reverse her position, explaining, "As an artist raised by artists, no one believes more than I do that creators should be fairly compensated for their work."
"Some good points were raised and I've ensured that all opening acts will be compensated for their time, their labor and their talents," she wrote, before taking a mild dig at Gawker's coverage.
Dunham also got some support from boyfriend Jack Antonoff, who posted an Instagram shot of the book's cover.
"this is out today and the world is a better place," he captioned the photo.
The situation is reminiscent of the 2012 hubbub surrounding musician Amanda Palmer: After raising $1.2 million on Kickstarter to fund her solo album, Palmer invited local musicians to join her tour for the album as it hit their local cities – without pay. (She offered to "feed you beer, hug/high-five you up and down … give you merch, and thank you mightily.")
After a massive Internet backlash, Palmer changed her stance and announced her intent to pay the ad-hoc supporting musicians.
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