Disney Crowd Sizes ‘Shockingly Low’ Amid Backlash (Connecting the Dots: Bob Iger, Walt Disney Company, ABC & Soros Funding, All Networking)
The
Epoch Times
By
Tom Ozimek
July
10, 2023Updated: July 11, 2023
Walt Disney World crowd sizes over the July 4th long
weekend were “shockingly” thin, according to tracking data provider Touring
Plans, which predicted that the low-attendance trend seems poised to continue
amid ongoing conservative backlash to what some describe as a woke agenda.
Disney
has been embroiled in a legal and political fight with Florida governor Ron
DeSantis which was triggered by the company’s opposition to a bill that bans
discussing sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third
grade.
The
company has also faced streaming losses and its stock was recently downgraded
in part due to fears of lower attendance at its Disney World and Disneyland
theme parks.
While
Disney executives have said they expect weaker performance from their U.S.
theme parks this year, the recent attendance numbers suggest reality could be
even worse than pessimistic predictions.
“This
is not normal. These are not peak summer crowds. These are shockingly
low crowds,” wrote Becky Gandillion of Touring Plans in a blog post in
which she detailed some of the dismal data.
‘Absolutely
Crazy’
Touring
Plans uses a 10-point scale to measure crowd size. The latest data show that
June 27–29 scored a six on each of the days at Disney’s theme parks on average.
This was followed by a crowd level five on June 30.
The
numbers then plunged to a reading of two on July 1, rising to a three on July 2
and a four on July 3.
Some
individual theme parks saw worse numbers than the average, with the EPCOT theme
park at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida notching a crowd level one on July
1.
“This
is madness in a chart. We have a park at a crowd level eight and a park at
crowd level one just three days apart,” Gandillion wrote in commentary on the
data. “We almost never see that, outside of party season at Magic Kingdom.”
“The
crowds on July 1 and 2 look more like Labor Day than July 4th. This is
absolutely crazy,” she added.
The
unusually hot weather on some of the days may have been partly to blame, with a
larger share of locals likely opting to stay home.
However,
Touring Plans believes that Disney will continue to see sparse crowds going
forward.
“Let’s
face it. If this weekend didn’t turn crowds around at Walt Disney World …
crowds aren’t going to turn around,” Gandillion wrote. “All signs point to this
continuing in the short and long term.”
Disney
did not return a request for comment from The Epoch Times.
Stock
Downgrade Amid Backlash
Recent
weeks have seen Disney’s stock hit with a downgrade amid fears of sluggish
growth.
Investment
company KeyBanc Capital Markets recently lowered Disney’s rating
from overweight to sector weight.
“While
Disney appears less expensive versus its historical average, we believe the
stock is unlikely to work until a number of items have line of sight to being
resolved,” analyst Brandon Nispel wrote, Barron’s reported.
Mr.
Nispel touched on several areas of concern for Disney in the note, including
sluggish subscriber growth, sagging content sales, and concerns over stagnating
crowd sized at its U.S. theme parks.
As
of July 10, Disney’s stock stood at about $88. Even after it brought back CEO Bob
Iger in
recent months, the company’s stock remains far below its early 2021 peak of
$200 per share.
While
Mr. Nispel made no mention of Disney’s wading into social issues, some
consumers and conservative influencers have called for a boycott amid the
company’s stance on a Florida law that prohibits teachers from instructing
young children on transgender issues and sexuality.
Disney
Embroiled in Controversy
Disney
became embroiled in controversy when it pushed back against the introduction of
Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill.
In
March 2022, Florida lawmakers passed HB 1557, or the Parental Rights in
Education act, which was signed into law by Mr. DeSantis on March 28 of
that year.
The
same day Mr. DeSantis signed the bill, Disney waded into the
controversy, a statement that was highly critical of the measure and
saying it was the company’s objective to have it repealed.
“Florida’s
HB 1557, also known as the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill, should never have passed and
should never have been signed into law,” the statement reads.
Disney
stated at the time that it was the company’s goal “for this law to be repealed
by the legislature or struck down in the courts.”
Supporters
of the legislation have argued that it gives parents more power to decide how
and when topics relating to LGBT issues can be introduced to their children. It
also gives parents the opportunity to sue school districts for violating the
rules set out in the legislation.
In
the wake of the controversy, Mr. DeSantis ended a decades-long deal allowing
Disney World to govern its vast Central Florida resort by itself. The
Republican governor has explained that the action was aimed at holding Disney
accountable.
“The
corporate kingdom finally comes to an end,” he said in February. “There’s a new
sheriff in town, and accountability will be the order of the day.”
Connecting
the Dots:
Robert A. Iger was
a president & COO for ABC Inc., is married to Willow Bay,
and the chairman & CEO for the Walt Disney Company.
ABC Inc. is a
subsidiary of ABC.
Willow Bay was
a news correspondent for ABC and is married to Robert A.
Iger.
Walt Disney Company is a
subsidiary of ABC Inc.
ABC News is a
subsidiary of ABC Inc.
Diane Sawyer was
an anchor for the ABC News and a director at the Robin Hood
Foundation.
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for
the Robin Hood Foundation and the International Rescue
Committee.
George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation
to Promote Open Society.
Clifford S.
Asness a leadership council member at the Robin Hood
Foundation, supported same-sex marriage in New York and is
a director at the International Rescue Committee.
Kati Marton was
the Bonn bureau chief for the ABC News and is an overseer for
the International Rescue Committee.
Colin L. Powell was
an overseer at the International Rescue Committee and an adviser
for Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
Margaret C.
Whitman was a strategic adviser for Kleiner Perkins Caufield
& Byers and an SVP for the Walt Disney Company.
International
Rescue Committee is a partner with the ONE Campaign.
Sheryl K.
Sandberg is a director at the ONE Campaign, a director at
the Walt Disney Company and was a trustee at the Brookings
Institution (think tank).
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for
the Brookings Institution (think tank).
George Soros was the chairman
for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.
John S. Chen was
a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank) and a director
at the Walt Disney Company.
Vernon E. Jordan
Jr. is , an honorary trustee at the Brookings
Institution (think tank) and a senior counsel for Akin,
Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP.
Akin,
Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP was a lobby firm for the Walt
Disney Company.
Walt Disney Company is a
subsidiary of ABC Inc.
ABC
Inc. is a subsidiary of ABC.
Willow Bay was
a news correspondent for ABC and is married to Robert A.
Iger.
Robert A. Iger is
married to Willow Bay, was the chairman & CEO for the Walt
Disney Company and a president & COO for ABC Inc.
Walt Disney
Company is a subsidiary of ABC Inc.
John S. Chen is
a director at the Walt Disney Company, a special adviser for Silver
Lake and was a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for
the Brookings Institution (think tank).
George Soros was the chairman
for the Foundation to Promote Open Society and is the founder
of Soros Fund Management.
Soros Fund
Management is a partner with the Silver Lake Kraftwerk Fund.
Silver
Lake Kraftwerk Fund is a fund for Silver Lake.
John S. Chen is
a special adviser for Silver Lake, a director at the Walt
Disney Company and was a trustee at the Brookings Institution
(think tank).
Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder
for the Brookings Institution (think tank) and the Aspen
Institute (think tank).
George Soros was the chairman for the Foundation
to Promote Open Society.
Michael D. Eisner is
a trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank) and was a chairman
& CEO for the Walt Disney Company.
Resources:
Past Research
Disney
Cartoon Teaches Children Being a Princess Is a ‘State of Mind’ (Past Research on Disney)
SUNDAY,
NOVEMBER 26, 2017
https://thesteadydrip.blogspot.com/2017/11/disney-cartoon-teaches-children-being.html
Disney
Boss Says No Political Bias at ABC News and ESPN, Complaints ‘Completely
Exaggerated’ (Past Research on Robert “Bob” Iger)
FRIDAY,
MARCH 10, 2017
No comments:
Post a Comment