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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

JCC Bob Iger's Responsibility to Speak

Discussion in 'Community' started by Gigoran Monk, Jan 30, 2017.

  1. Gigoran Monk

    Gigoran Monk Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Dec 2, 2016
    Sorry, Diggy, but you don't know what I do outside these forums. So you couldn't possibly judge my suitability for working on this issue. :)

    But you're likely wrong on Trump. The buzz (which I can't substantiate) is that he has been taken aback by the scale of the response from business leaders both on the SAF, and outside of it. And some staff around him may be calling on a significant pullback. He may dig his heels in, or he may not. He wants the SAF CEOs, in particular, to like him. So that's an important pressure point.

    At the very least, the huge backlash makes it much more likely that the ban will not be extended beyond the 90 days.

    Look, I'm not some young liberal kid shouting "boycott!" at everything under the sun. I am simply focused on Iger communicating to Trump that the EO is a bad idea. I think a public declaration is preferable. But if Iger is persuaded to push Trump privately, it will have been worth the effort.

    ETA: To answer your question: Yes. Disney's brand is very much centered on tolerance. Trump's EO is the very definition of intolerance. If the Disney brand were to be stained by their silence on this issue, that could have long-term consequences for them. My guess? Iger is, at this moment, seriously weighing whether or not he should speak out. Even if it's a mild statement.
     
  2. Diggy

    Diggy Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Feb 27, 2013
    Is your substantiated buzz from twitter?
     
  3. Ezio Skywalker

    Ezio Skywalker Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jan 29, 2013
    Disney was able to oppose governors advocating religious freedom legislation, iirc, by indeed threatening to not do business in their states. So a vocal opposition from Iger, if he really opposes this EO, would fit within the political beliefs of the Disney company.

    While I occasionally have faith in Disney, I remain skeptical about Iger. The company definitely has two cultures: the one respected and perhaps admired as it's practiced by cast members, and the perhaps notably less altruistic one exercised by management and ridiculed by things like South Park.
     
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  4. ShaneP

    ShaneP Ex-Mod Officio star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001

    Well it beats yours from the pint in your hand.
     
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  5. ladygrey45

    ladygrey45 Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 30, 2015
    lets be real this might come off as controversial but if they have liberals like me, and people who are in the art communities boycotting disney it would be a far greater loss than someone in the midwest... who probably sees like one movie a year and isn't very tuned into pop culture anyway, these little whiners are mad already because this saga of films has female leads/. and R1 did great let them boycott.
     
  6. Gigoran Monk

    Gigoran Monk Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Dec 2, 2016
    You misread it. I said I can't substantiate it. But to answer the question you may have been asking, no. My sources are not social media. This Administration, so far, leaks. A lot. And if you live in DC, work on national security policy, and work closely with career officials in the USG, you get rumors. And there's a saying here: In Washington, rumors are true. And generally, that's the case.
     
  7. Diggy

    Diggy Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Feb 27, 2013
    So....no.
     
  8. ShaneP

    ShaneP Ex-Mod Officio star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001

    Yes he said no twitter you drunkard! [face_laugh]
     
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  9. Gigoran Monk

    Gigoran Monk Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Dec 2, 2016
    Let me spell it out in all caps: NO.

    :)

    I knew Diggy was drunk! Thanks for confirming,
     
  10. ShaneP

    ShaneP Ex-Mod Officio star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001
    lol. :p
    I'm just giving the resident jokester a hard time. He can take it. He's Diggy.
     
  11. Ezio Skywalker

    Ezio Skywalker Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jan 29, 2013
    Racists were already boycotting Disney anyway over Finn being a lead character in TFA iirc.
     
  12. ShaneP

    ShaneP Ex-Mod Officio star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001

    :confused: And what does that have to do with this boycott? I should boycott Disney for the inability to scan direct to menu on their blu-rays past trailers.
     
  13. Diggy

    Diggy Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Feb 27, 2013
    Don't joke with this sort! You know better Shane.
     
  14. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Aug 16, 2002
    Silicon Valley relies in part on foreign-born workers including Muslims, which is why they comprise the bulk of the corporate protests-- or it's simple no-effort PR, such as Starbucks pledging to hire 10,000 refugees worldwide over the next decade or some bull****.

    The fact is, a successful boycott would need hundreds of thousands if not millions of participants, and I'm not sure that's likely to happen. Disney is everywhere in media. Liek Star Wasr? Marvel? Hulu? ABC? The list goes on and on and on.
     
  15. slidewhistle

    slidewhistle Jedi Knight star 3

    Registered:
    Jul 24, 2015
    i already saw rogue one so you can count on me, gigoran monk
     
  16. ShaneP

    ShaneP Ex-Mod Officio star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001
    I'm with you too!

    Okay not really but...
     
  17. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    Oh boy
     
  18. Ezio Skywalker

    Ezio Skywalker Jedi Master star 4

    Registered:
    Jan 29, 2013
    My films are digital so I don't have that problem.

    But it was mentioned earlier that if Iger were to oppose Trump, Disney could face a boycott such as the #boycottstarbucks trend that's popped up since their own CEO did just that.

    But how many Trumpeters do you imagine will partake in the Starbucks or potential Disney boycott? What percentage of Disney's total consumer base is that? My guess is that it's an insignificant number. And, as said before, the company has weathered nonsensical hatred-filled boycotts just recently without consequence.

    If Iger wanted to speak out against Trump, Disney would go on with business as usual. Actually, they might even do better.

    I'd even go so far as to say that the majority of their US employees are probably opposed to Trump and his EOs as well.
     
  19. ShaneP

    ShaneP Ex-Mod Officio star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Mar 26, 2001
    Well I boycott Starbucks already because their coffee is overpriced garbage.
     
  20. Jabba-wocky

    Jabba-wocky Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    May 4, 2003
    Circling back, I don't think this is quite fair. Yes, we do know that the first level of administration there seems to be some sincere sentiment. The writer's sentiments about Rogue One seemed spontaneous, for instance, and one imagines that Kathleen Kennedy and others do have some interest in promoting this. Beyond that, though?

    We should acknowledge that it's a phenomenon common to all major corporations, Disney included. They have divisions conservatives praise for producing "family friendly" content and things that outrage them the most about popular culture, like "Desperate Housewives." I doubt corporate actually cares, so long as its profitable. Star Wars is backing a more diverse vision at this particular moment. If the backlash that put Trump in power continues to grow in popularity/cultural relevance, I'd be not at all surprised to see Star Wars films that regressed, or even started to echo DW Griffith. A boycott probably can't be mustered effectively, and wouldn't necessarily help regardless, but it's not exactly like this company is some sort of beacon of goodness as opposed to having one incidentally diverse franchise.
     
  21. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    Wocky do you think your views on corporate affairs might better be guided from inside?

    What's the most important asset a company has?
     
  22. Jabba-wocky

    Jabba-wocky Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    May 4, 2003
    I wasn't aware that promoting diversity and tolerance was ever core to Disney's brand or mission. Please, though. Educate us.
     
  23. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    The answer is its reputation. And it's clearly got more to lose pissing off the mainstream than the lunatic fringe, Wocky, no?
     
  24. Jabba-wocky

    Jabba-wocky Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    May 4, 2003
    How does that contradict my point? Look back at what I actually said.
    Stated otherwise, I'm saying that if the "mainstream" is racist, Disney will be happily racist as well. There's nothing intrinsic to the fact that the last two Star Wars films have had a somewhat more cast.
     
  25. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    Except that you challenged Jello's notion that... oh. Wait. I got Wock'd.