Bob Iger Bans Top Analyst and His Firm

[AEfx]

..... Oh and of course Parrotting for likes, Cant forget that's one of my specialties as well.

You might want to try that "pretending to be an insider" thing, too - 'cause I missed that one. The only thing I was ever aware you were inside of would be unmentionable outside of a gentleman's club.

 

[PhotoDave219]

You might want to try that "pretending to be an insider" thing, too - 'cause I missed that one. The only thing I was ever aware you were inside of would be unmentionable outside of a gentleman's club.

Indeed, she was quite unmentionable.

 

[AEfx]

Indeed, she was quite unmentionable.

Kind of like this Rich Greenfield's reputation. Google him and see. His linkdin, etc. Or this article from a news source I've actually heard of (sorry, I don't know what this "multichannel" site is).

This article solidified it for me - this guy IS the Jim Hill of his industry, LOL. Good for Disney for denying him an invitation.

 

[PhotoDave219]

Kind of like this Rich Greenfield's reputation. Google him and see. His linkdin, etc. Or this article from a news source I've actually heard of (sorry, I don't know what this "multichannel" site is).

This article solidified it for me - this guy IS the Jim Hill of his industry, LOL. Good for Disney for denying him an invitation.

True.... he's some sort of schmuck.

However.... Iger's pattern of behavior of late when dealing with dissenters? Pretty telling.

 

[rushtest4echo]

I'm shocked that people are shocked that this sort of thing is occurring at one of the worlds biggest media conglomerates...
WDW1974 is either:
willfully ignorant about how the business world works
or
honing his claws by hopelessly reaching with more anti-Iger drivel

Maybe it's both?

I remember the hilarious "outrage" over the Huffpo "debacle" awhile back. Does this internet warrior think that he is going to singlehandedly take out the evil Iger regime?

Again, I have plenty of areas of disagreement with Iger's methods (WDW is getting shockingly money grubbing, almost on Universal's level which is very sad). But honestly this analyst "issue" and the huffpo "issue" are so standard in the industry that I'm a bit dismayed to see anyone buy that there's anything abnormal going on here. THIS... IS... BUSINESS... Just the way that Walt or Howard Hughes or Warren Buffet or Elon Musk or Marcus Leow or Dick Kenzel or Ron Meyer or anyone else with this position would respond to criticism of this kind.

 

[AEfx]

True.... he's some sort of schmuck.

Wait, you are doing that parroting thing - I already said that he was a Jim-Hill-type. Saying he's some "sort of schmuck" is therefore redundant.

(Though, glad you brought it up so I can clarify - that was the definition of Hill I was referring to - I wasn't calling this guy a convicted criminal or anything.)

However.... Iger's pattern of behavior of late when dealing with dissenters? Pretty telling.

That he's one of the most powerful and successful men in the business industry, and has some fringe folks like Summner Redstone's blogger nephew and now this joker going after him that don't get any traction,aside from threads here?

If someone has pics of the bodies Iger has buried, or the smoking gun - I'm the first in line to see 'em - LOL. So far, though, I don't even see the spark that could make the smoke to begin with.

What's interesting to me is that quite like a deity (benevolent or not), the very ones that seem to believe most fervently in his villainy are generally the same ones who seem to ascribe nearly mythical powers on him, like he is some great Sith Lord who can mind control and bend the most powerful institutions in the world to his will.

Judging from the guy's personality, I just have a hard time thinking he has all these super-powers and ambitions to take over the world that he'd waste them on becoming CEO of the Walt Disney Company of all places.

...Unless he's after the children!

 

[ItlngrlBella]

OK, so it started with stiffling an Op-Ed by a Blogger on the HuffPo.

Then came the censoring of a respected reporter from the LA Times, who has been outright afraid to even talk about what happened -- and his organziation is ignoring it publicly.

But this takes it to a whole 'nother level:

http://www.multichannel.com/news/networks/greenfield-petitions-disney-more-access/405572

Wow, just when I thought no one had thinner skin than Trump. Iger is worse.

 

[Hakunamatata]

Wow, just when I thought no one had thinner skin than Trump. Iger is worse.

Oh I could name quite a few more with thinner skin than both.

 

[Magenta Panther]

Something interesting on the Fox News site today. I was skimming all of the online news services - Google, MSN, Fox - about the terrible tragedy in Orlando. While reading the Fox page, I noticed that down below, in the "Features and Faces" section, was a picture of Mickey and Minnie and underneath it was this blurb saying "Disney too pricey for parents?" So I thought, that's interesting, and I clicked on it. It led to a puff piece about the new hotel Disneyland is building. And I mean, puff piece. There's nothing in the article about Disney being too pricey. There isn't even anything in it about parents. Yeah, you can say "Hurr hurr, Faux News", but this kind of thing is worrying. Was there EVER an article about Disney's high park prices? Was it dropped in favor of this puff piece because...?

 

[WDW1974]

The ridiculing of WDW1974 is a classic brand-fan anger response -- a compulsive acting-out of anger triggered by the perception that the fan's "braligion" (brand-religion) is being insulted or attacked. It's similar to the anger that sports team fanatics, political partisans and religious zealots experience when they feel that the object of their loyalty and devotion is being insulted. Ignoring the insult isn't an option -- the brand fan is compelled to protect the object of his devotion by attacking the source of the insult.

It's literally a brain thing. Brand loyalty and religious devotion are generated by the same areas of the brain:

The results of the [MRI] scans... prove that incredible devotion and loyalty to a brand or a religion emanate from the same parts of the human brain. ...When any person shows incredible loyalty to a brand or product to the point of devotion, it stimulates the same parts of the brain.

The other takeaway from the documentary and the test is that the most successful companies are the ones that manage to find a way to trigger those parts of the brain. Once a brand or company gets there, there’s no going back, and the devotee is hooked on the products and the culture. It could very well be the key to building a brand that becomes a household name.
​

​

Thanks. And you are correct. Disney is a religion to many of its fans, many people you interact with online base their own self-worth on a BRAND. And UNI has developed that as well.

But between some people pushing to have the thread (successfully) buried here and the mass murder in Orlando this morning, I'm not sure how much time I'm going to devote to this thread. If it's four people going back and forth, then I'm going to let it die and just bring it up on another thread ... or seven!

 

[WDW1974]

You're not the only one who thinks Iger is behaving unprofessionally. Back in December, Iger's response caused murmurs among those who closely follow financial news and, in at least one case, lead to an unusual public commentary by Eric Jackson, Managing Director at Ader Investment Management:

Disney's CEO Bob Iger Needs to Talk Straight; Here's Why
By Eric Jackson

After Star Wars had a record opening, Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney (DIS) went on Bloomberg TV last Monday to take a bow. And he was allowed to, mostly.

Iger was asked, however, about an unnamed analyst -- in fact it was Rich Greenfield of BTIG -- who had recently turned negative on the stock and downgraded it to a $90 price target on Friday Dec. 18.

The call looks smart now. Disney was down 4.5% in the week following the release of the new blockbuster that will likely pass Avatar as the biggest grossing film ever.

Iger's comments about Greenfield -- who was never mentioned by name by either him or the TV hosts -- were odd, as he suggested that the analyst had been consistently wrong before on his Disney calls. Therefore, why should anyone believe him now? Iger asked rhetorically: "Where's the accountability for these analyst guys?"

Greenfield's calls on Disney's stock, in fact, have been pretty accurate, as he tweeted out later in the day.

I'm no Greenfield apologist. He hasn't always been right. I remember seeing him on Squawk Box after the August media massacre and he was challenged by Joe Kernan about being negative on Disney. Greenfield advised not shorting Disney then. That might have been a right call then on timing and valuation, but it's the call he's now made in December.

But, let's face it, Iger lashing out at Greenfield irrationally makes him look bad and Greenfield look good. Just what is Iger worried about?

Greenfield's points apparently are hitting the mark. That was demonstrated by Iger's reaction and lack of details in responding to his critics with any specifics about how and when they will go direct to consumer without upsetting his cable and satellite partners.

It would be nice to see Iger have to answer some specific questions about just how he will respond to the issues facing his business. It's not enough to just make statements about a mature business like it will still grow well in the future.​

So true. But if Richie didn't have both great points on Disney's performance and a platform for them, then Iger wouldn't have spanked him. Iger only goes after voices of consequence.

 

[WDW1974]

He isn't inconsequential. He makes sure of that by injecting himself into the story. He is one of, if not the most quoted analyst on the street. The combination of his beat (media/entertainment) and his big mouth made him so. I just don't see where he's respected.

If the WSJ is telling you to take a walk, that says something.

As far as Dis having a roll in the THR piece you're probably right, but they were far from the only ones. He's an unpopular figure. Not only because of his sell calls either.

Edit to add...

If Dis had done this to literally any other analyst, there would be smoke here. But not cooperating with a guy like Greenfield hardly matters. If Iger stops cooperating with major financial analysts and institutions which who aren't him, then we have something.

In other words because the guy like self promotion, he is the issue? ... I didn't say he was popular. I said he was respected. And I know people who have worked closely with him. (I actually had a bad personal interaction with him and still am standing up for him because I believe Disney is giving him horse-bleep treatment.)

And I dunno ... I look at it like he isn't afraid to give his opinions and his opinions are the only major ones not marching to Iger's tune, so he 's getting cut off.

 

[WDW1974]

Can you point to me what rule, statute, law, or regulation specifies that Disney must bow down and give free stuff to anyone who has the title of "analyst"?

I keep hearing hyperbole about how this (the more you look into him, the more of a joke you realize he is) person is being denied something that some folks are acting like he has some constitutional right to.

If it's just "how it's done" - that's not a good enough reason. As I said, no one needs a free trip to Shanghai to schmooze and vacation to analyze the financials.

I think focusing on him not getting invited to the SDL opening was simply bush league crap by Bob and Zenia, but I want to make it clear that Richie doesn't need this. The guy is filthy rich. Not sure of an exact number, but he's worth a lot closer to $100 million than he is to $1 million just to give some idea.

This is simply about having all the other analysts, who all are fawning over DIS and marching in lockstep with Burbank's narrative, invited and not having him because he hurt Bob's feelings.

Rich (and his company) could send him over to SDL for a month in the top suite at one of the best hotels ... it isn't like a whining blogger in O-Town who gets shut out of a junket.

 

[WDW1974]

There is a forum for Disney business topics...
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/forums/disney-co-news-discussion.31/

Yes. And it's a place where threads go to die ... considering that top Disney news winds up in N&R (everything from a new movie coming out to an exec switching titles to something opening at another park or resort), I like to put newsworthy topics where people might see them and comment. I'd venture to say that 95% of members here have never even visited this forum.
But if people want to talk, I'll check it ...

 

[flynnibus]

Yes. And it's a place where threads go to die ... considering that top Disney news winds up in N&R (everything from a new movie coming out to an exec switching titles to something opening at another park or resort), I like to put newsworthy topics where people might see them and comment. I'd venture to say that 95% of members here have never even visited this forum.
But if people want to talk, I'll check it ...

We don't get to put threads where we think they will be the hottest.. that defeats the entire purpose. Besides, the latest posts feeds, new posts lists, user profiles, watched threads, and more all ignore forum boundaries. Forum boundaries don't kill threads... lack of interest does.

 

[WDW1974]

Well said. Other differences (among many) in the business models of the respective Disney Companies are that Walt fostered a team of creatives who constantly raised the bar on theme park innovation; Bob promotes financiers and consumer product gurus who use the parks as marketing malls. Walt played to the audience and respected the customer; Bob plays to Wall Street and uses the customer as a faceless cash cow. Walt invented; Bob copies.

You have to understand that one of the way the kewl kidz play today is to attack Walt (DIS by the way loves this ... even if they'd never say it, of course). If you think Walt was anything like Bob, I'd invite you to speak to people who knew him, who worked for him, who followed him ... and compare.

 

[WDW1974]

I think many here just want to kill the messenger.

Always have. Always will.

Except when I leave. Then, I am missed. I am even baited by some (unsuccessfully) into coming back when I don't have the time or interest.

 

[WDW1974]

in a very simplified way... yes

Analysts want to ask questions and engage in dialog to try to extract MORE insight from the company and people... so they can try to influence what is disclosed... but they aren't going to get a 'scoop' on non-released material information. That only comes from them getting info from outside the company, or getting people to leak more details then they should. It's why analysts will tour the trade show floor at industry events and strike up conversations with people they KNOW are not the media team... trying to extract whatever bits they can.

and lets not forget a lot can be taken from how people handle themselves. Its pretty telling when you can see the person feel uneasy delivering the corporate line.. vs passionately believing it.

Exactly. So cutting an analyst and his company off entirely, when said analyst 'covers' your company, greatly affects his ability to do his job. ... It's much the same as when Disney pulls the credential of a reporter it doesn't like (as it did with Hugo Martin of the LAT recently). Sure, he can still do his job, but he's at a great disadvantage ... Disney doesn't even have to email him press releases (I do wonder if as a publicly traded company there are issues ... but ...) They can, in essence, freeze out people they don't like.

 

[WDW1974]

Except this is the guy's profession.. This is not trivial when you consider China is such a growth potential for TWDC as a whole. Seeing and interacting with the parties involved is not just missing out on the cool kid's birthday party.

^^^THIS! ... Iger is saying in interviews that this is the biggest event in the company's history (or maybe most important ... not sure and don't want to be nailed for it ... the point was he was over the top in talking the import of the opening!) and for what it means for the company's future. Obviously, you are an analyst you want an invite and the opportunities that are being afforded all of your cronies. This isn't Tom Amity crying a river because he wasn't on Disney's Awakenings Party event list.

 

[WDW1974]

Well, that's generally what one does when one is ostracized due to their behavior in one industry. If you read a bit about this guy, he's basically the Jim Hill of "analysts".

I wouldn't ever use that comparison on anyone ... even on some of the lowlifes here. ... This guy is controversial because he stirs it up, not because he makes it up, has done jail time for stealing and committing fraud against the very company he 'covers' and is to this day very ethically challenged. Greenfield is simply a boorish, big-mouthed, self-promoter. He knows his stuff though. That's why DIS targeted him.