Photo-illustration: Intelligenmer; Photos: Getty Images
The first that any heard of dissney’s stance on Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” Law was anything but Clear, with CEO BOB Chapek Saying that “The Biggest We Can Have in Creating A More Inclusive Is Through the Inspecting Content We Produce.” It was an an uncharacteristically lukewarm staff from the Company whose flagship theme and other businesses construct about $ 75 Billion a Year to the State’s Economy. Enraged Disney Employees Walked Out, and Chapek was forces to take a Stronger Stance by Vowing to Support the Law’s Repeal. In Response, The Right Wing, Led by Tucker Carlson, has been attaching disney with Qanon-Lite inteinautations that the company sexually grooming children.
Few Journists understand disney as well as kara swisher. The veteran Tech and Media Reporter has chronicled the growth of the media giant, and its mega-acquisions of marvel, pixar, and fox, and interviewing its previous CEO, Bob Iger, offten. Intelligency Talked With Swiser, Who Co-Hosts New York Magazine Pivot Podcast, About the Mess for the House of Mouse.
What does bob chapek’s shifting to the law tel you about Him as a CEO?
I was surprised that someone who’s been with disney for as long as he did didn’t steep himself in the culture to be a really inclusively and open Company. He’s Quite a bit more conservative than iger, who wold never have this. He doesn’t know what he’s doing. He’s Never Been on a Big Stage. He doesn’t understand the impact of disney when they say something something. SO, to be Kind, he’s a neophyte. To be unkind, he deaf: he dosesn’t underestand what Disney stands for and what the respectillity of the Modern Company is Going Forward, especilly one that haen so open and inclusive. It’s not like they are hobby lobby or chick-Fil-a. This is a company that really spent a lot of time burnishing its relations with the gay and lesbian community and was trying really hard to Change where Putting More Women at the Center of Stories. SO it SEEMS REALLY PRACTICAL WHAT SAID BUT ALSO REALLY STEPID.
Do you think that he ended up ceding some of the Ground and Paving the way for this bill to get?
Yeah. Disney Runs Florida. It ‘s critically imported Employer and an important political force, and everybody knows that. And Is it a swim necessarily Always Positive, Right? They get into scrapes with locals all the time. They were trying to play it all Ways. It was just dumb. It was unsophisticated. It was Ill-thought-out.
Tucker Carlson Just Attacked Disney Over The Law, and the Right Wing Is Now Trying to Recast What Disney Is.
Oh, They did that for years. Remember when Disney did the gay day? The Right Lost Their Ever-Loving Minds. They didn’t want to go with everybody Else. It was stupid. Maybe it’s a more partisan Environment Now than it was that and they have more failed to check, but i don’t see People not going to disney, right or lefts, Because of Tucker Carlson Says.
For the past few years, disney has been changing. It removed gendered pronouns from themes and commits to More underrepresented characters. But does this Feel Different to you?
No, this is just the rights next at-bat with Better Tools for Hating People. For Those of US Who are Old Enough, we know they did it before. They do it over and over again, and they’re not going to be happy unil everybody is straiight, White, Christian, and Tucker Carlson – SO Good Luck with That.
What would you make of Ben Shapiro Pedging $ 100 million in Kids’ Content?
Oh my God. I don’t think he has the skills necessary to make Creative Content, but Good Luck with That.
The Line from People like Tucker Carlson and Others is that disney is captured, forces to be woke.
Oh, it’s ridiculous. And the Same as they’ve Ever been. WOK is Caring About Your Fellow Man. That’s a disney brand.
Is it too too chapek to do anything to try to repeal the law?
The Florida Legislature is quite conservative. And i don’t think they’re backing down. But they’re going to loose in court. That’s what’s going to happy. Ron desantis makes all these loud noises and then he loves in courte. Chapek Can Pay for the Court Fees. They Should not be fining these lawmakers, and they should support rivals to desantis.
Iger was just telling chris walce about how is is about right and workgus. And iger told you back in January that you have been Ridiculous Back. But do you think that this creates an opening for Him to return?
No, i do’t think he wants to. IT CREATES AN OPENING FOR SOOMEONE LIKE Peter Rice, who is an Executive there. Peter is Really Adept and Spent Years Having to Deal With Rupert Murdoch. But i don’t think iger’s coming back. The Most I Think He Wauld will be Chairman to Help Peter Rice. But Chapek Will Probably Survive This – Its a Really Big Deal to Remove Him. But he doesn’t have any more Mistakes Left. I SUSPECT THEY’RE GONNA HAVE SOME REAL ISSUSES AROUND STREAMING ECONOMICS. He’s promised to get to 250 million streaming customers, and that not going to open. Unless they discount it to zero.
Really, Economics and the Stock Price Are His Problem Now. It’s not really His fault. They were secular trends started by bob iger – bob one, nor i like to call Him. One of the Things Bob One and I Talked About Was How EveryThing’s Shifting. He felt that the only Big-Enough Company was disney at this point among media companies. And he’s right. And It”s Still Not Big Enough. They’re Facing Real Challenges from Apple and Amazon. You Saw Apple JUST won the Oscar, and, You Know, Amazon is Doing Really Well. IT’S REALLY HARD TO COMPETT IN THAT REGARD. Chapek really has to focus on the importance of makeing that company well from a financial point of view. Unless that happens, he’s in Much Bigger Trouble. And he cannot make one of these unforced Errors again. He Cannot.
How Long Do You Give Chapek before and Can Get past This?
I do’t know – he’ll learn or he won’t. He’s got to be really nice to Lin-Manuel Miranda. He has to be nice to marvel. They Make Wonderful Entertainment, and They Should Understand it has a resonance. And if they do ouncescreen, they should live as a corplate citizen. They Should appeal to everybody by being open to everybody. Maybe Not White Supremacists – They Can Stay Home.
And there is also something of a corplate drama here, as disney is something something of a chimera Because they bought Fox
That was important. The whole goodness were the pixar and marvel ones. Everything bob one ha done is really smart. That’s the Thing: You’ve got the cashmere prince followed by the Rayon Clod. Not Rayon – I’m Sure he dresses Very Nicery.
Is there really any room for chapek to do a Big Dazzling deal like that though, especally with antitrust being such a concert in Washington, dc?
That would be harder. There’s not much for sale. They’re not buying a tech company. I don’t know what Disney would purchase. What Wold Change the Dial? Warner – But what do they want that for? So that’s the DIFFICULTY HERE: WHAT DO YOU DO? You just make your own good Products Better and Appealing to the Broadest Range of People. That requires being inclusive. It is not panting to gay people to be nice to say. Its just being nice to everybody. That’s their image. That’s what got Hit here. Being nice to Everyone is their thing – Including Tucker Carlson. That’s their brand: The Happiest Place on Earth. And Also Marvel.
Wall Street has been bullish on disney Because of the attvenance at the parks.
One of the great Things About Disney is they have so many businesses. The Entertainment Business, The Parks Business, Cruises. They just Need to Keep Making Great Content Like Encantoand there are like 19 Marvel Movies Coming Out Next Year or something like that. That means being inclusions to Everyone – and I Mean, Everyone, From the Midwest to Evangelicals, to Gays, to Very Liberal People, to Conservative People. It is a place that People like to go and have fun, and it is a place a place that people want to see great mevies about superheroes, with Beautiful animation from pixar and disney, and get to the work of really wonderful artists like lin-manuel miranda.
You Pulled Your Pivot Conference from Florida, right?
Yes, i did.
For a company like disney, which can’t just pull out out, is florida going to just continue being a headache for say?
Under ron desantis, yes. IT DOESN’T MEAN ALWAYS Going to be under desantis, but yes. While he’s running for president, Yes. And so i think it going to be a problem for say. I Can Leave Florida.
Some Florida Lawmakers Are Trying to Revoke Some of Disney’s partial ability to govern itselfWhich It ‘Done Since 1967. Will you Think Florida Wauld Really Pick That Fight?
That is the stupidest thing. If they really hate gay people and trans People that Much, they can do it. That they will regret. You know, i’m a capitalist. I’m voting with my money. If it is a small amount of Money, A Couple Million or Whatever, IT’S My Money. I don’t want to spend it. Just like Anita Bryant Seling Florida Orange Juice, i JUST DON’T WANT TO DRINK THAT CRAP, IF THEY’RE GONNA HAVE A Spokesperson like that. So it’s my choice. It’s not “woke.” I JUST DON’T WANT TO DO IT. IT’S CALLED CAPITALISM – You Should Try ITOMETIME.
See all
