Daily Beast - "Workers Reveal Disney Is Covering Up Its COVID Cases"

Astro Blaster

Well-Known Member
FWIW, I talked to three separate WDW CMs last week and they all said the only CMs that had confirmed cases of covid were contractors in Disney Springs around when that area first opened.

Disney is like the mafia when it comes to information so who knows but from being there and going into all of the parks and various hotels, it certainly seems like they are doing all they can at the moment.
 

champdisney

Well-Known Member
Wouldn’t surprise me if the article was made just for clicks.

Just like it wouldn’t surprise me if Disney has been covering their tracks during these COVID Times.

Nothing surprises me.
 

Giss Neric

Well-Known Member
I didn't even click the website/article. They are all click baits. There are tons on that on Twitter. They will create a shocking headline but when you click the link the headline is barely talked about in DETAIL.
 

Chomama

Well-Known Member
I mean I am not really surprised but I am not really seeing the scandal either. All
Schools have the “closer than 6 feet, for longer than 15 mins” rule. They are trying to make reasonable decisions given a ton of conflicting information, priorities and parents’ opinions. Do I like it? Not really. But I also understand that a line has to be drawn somewhere and with covid a lot of those lines are somewhat arbitrary. It’s true for everything we do right now, unless you are staying home 100% of the time. Anyway, I would be shocked if Disney didn’t have cases and clusters. It’s a huge operation. If those don’t become major outbreaks then they are handling it reasonably well. Publix doesn’t send an all users email every time a cashier gets covid right? That doesn’t mean they don’t handle as best as they see fit.
 

_caleb

Well-Known Member
a line has to be drawn somewhere and with covid a lot of those lines are somewhat arbitrary.
It shouldn’t be this way, but it is.

If Disney has a CM who contracts the virus, they have to tell any workers who may have been exposed (ethically, if not legally). Good policy would be to then have those exposed CMs quarantine for 14 days. But both Disney and the CMs have incentive not to quarantine. This article (and Twitter posts like it) provide some pressure for Disney to set a policy that prioritizes public health and enforce that policy (rather than leaving it up to individual departments/managers) across the board.

And I agree that any workplace is going to have cases. It’s how they deal with those cases that matter. Not informing CMs that they may have been exposed (if that is actually what’s happening) is not the right way to manage this.
 

Chomama

Well-Known Member
It shouldn’t be this way, but it is.

If Disney has a CM who contracts the virus, they have to tell any workers who may have been exposed (ethically, if not legally). Good policy would be to then have those exposed CMs quarantine for 14 days. But both Disney and the CMs have incentive not to quarantine. This article (and Twitter posts like it) provide some pressure for Disney to set a policy that prioritizes public health and enforce that policy (rather than leaving it up to individual departments/managers) across the board.

And I agree that any workplace is going to have cases. It’s how they deal with those cases that matter. Not informing CMs that they may have been exposed (if that is actually what’s happening) is not the right way to manage this.

Agree with everything you said. I do think they need a universal policy on what and when to tell employees. I guess I am just saying I’m not surprised that they seem not to given the issues in schools and administration not answering these types of questions. Obviously Disney should know better and their employees deserve better (so do our teachers and students). I am not saying I agree at all with Disney. I’m just not surprised and I don’t really think many CMs would be either
 

HarperRose

Well-Known Member
Just saying, we're seeing snippets of texts in the article, who knows how many employees this "reporter" talked to before finding the four exchanges that they wanted to write this story. They have a clear agenda, which I put in bold and underlined, for your convenience.

Here's a key transaction...

Disney Employee: "I know there been 6 positive cases and at least 6 on quarantine but just makes me think the ones that will continue to come positive."
Reporter: "Yeah, and if those Covid positive people will even say anything about it once the r positive, the whole thing is just a train wreck. Disney doesn't want to test because it would show just how many of u r getting sick & they'd have to close - which is what we're trying to achieve. Is there any other info u think we should know & include in the next letter to the governor? Again, u are NOT being mentioned & nothing is tied to any disney cast member that is supplying info All is sent under my wife's name"

They don't show a further response. Furthermore, they flat out say that they have a bias against Disney and want to close down the resort. That is their mission.

Could they have talked to employees that said "I like my job and I'm happy to be back at work"? Something tells me that if they got those responses, they wouldn't have been reported in this article because it goes against their stated agenda of closing the resort.

It's clear to me that some employees have been concerned for months, including in Florida, as unions have verified such concerns. That's not new information. There have also been people that have gone on record saying that they want to return to work because they're hurting financially. There's lots and lots of stories going on right now.

Disney knowingly sending someone who tested positive to back to work while still positive would be news, but this does not say that they did that. If someone did return back positive, did Disney know? You can see someone says that they tested positive and that Disney wanted them to return ("tonight", so they hadn't yet returned - according to the text), but did Disney know that the person tested positive?

Something tells me that the reporter did not reach out to Disney for the answer. Wonder why.

Is it Disney that is covering up information or is this reporter covering up information? They're seemingly focused on one team and reaching out to seemingly every source but the company itself.
What you bolded and underlined was not written by a reporter. It was a text message from a CM to another CM.
 

_caleb

Well-Known Member
Just saying, we're seeing snippets of texts in the article, who knows how many employees this "reporter" talked to before finding the four exchanges that they wanted to write this story. They have a clear agenda, which I put in bold and underlined, for your convenience.

Here's a key transaction...

Disney Employee: "I know there been 6 positive cases and at least 6 on quarantine but just makes me think the ones that will continue to come positive."
Reporter: "Yeah, and if those Covid positive people will even say anything about it once the r positive, the whole thing is just a train wreck. Disney doesn't want to test because it would show just how many of u r getting sick & they'd have to close - which is what we're trying to achieve. Is there any other info u think we should know & include in the next letter to the governor? Again, u are NOT being mentioned & nothing is tied to any disney cast member that is supplying info All is sent under my wife's name"

They don't show a further response. Furthermore, they flat out say that they have a bias against Disney and want to close down the resort. That is their mission.

Could they have talked to employees that said "I like my job and I'm happy to be back at work"? Something tells me that if they got those responses, they wouldn't have been reported in this article because it goes against their stated agenda of closing the resort.

It's clear to me that some employees have been concerned for months, including in Florida, as unions have verified such concerns. That's not new information. There have also been people that have gone on record saying that they want to return to work because they're hurting financially. There's lots and lots of stories going on right now.

Disney knowingly sending someone who tested positive to back to work while still positive would be news, but this does not say that they did that. If someone did return back positive, did Disney know? You can see someone says that they tested positive and that Disney wanted them to return ("tonight", so they hadn't yet returned - according to the text), but did Disney know that the person tested positive?

Something tells me that the reporter did not reach out to Disney for the answer. Wonder why.

Is it Disney that is covering up information or is this reporter covering up information? They're seemingly focused on one team and reaching out to seemingly every source but the company itself.
Bruh. The text messages were not between a CM and the Daily Beast reporter, they were between two CMs/CM spouses:

“In an extensive thread of text messages sent between late July and mid August, all of which were reviewed by The Daily Beast, three workers discussed positive cases on the Horticulture Irrigation team and their fear of going into work.“

EDIT: @HarperRose already said this.
 
Last edited:

_caleb

Well-Known Member
That was pretty clearly a reporter talking and not a CM.

By the way, you are being rude (talking about the reading comprehension comment).
I’m sorry for being rude. I did not intend that. I will edit the comment to remove that line.
 

Chi84

Premium Member
I've read it. It's a CM talking to a reporter.

Here it is again, unedited.
"Yeah, and if those Covid positive people will even say anything about it once the r positive, the whole thing is just a train wreck. Disney doesn't want to test because it would show just how many of u r getting sick & they'd have to close - which is what we're trying to achieve. Is there any other info u think we should know & include in the next letter to the governor? Again, u are NOT being mentioned & nothing is tied to any disney cast member that is supplying info All is sent under my wife's name"

Now, let me take it apart.

"many of u r getting sick". U R, not "us", if these were two employees on the same team, it would be "us". It's also written much more polished. The employee is def not as well polished, which makes sense that the journalist would write more clearly and talk more.

"they'd have to close - which is what we're trying to achieve". Who is "we're"? The Horticulture team is trying to close down their own company?

"Is there any other info u think we should know". Two CM's are talking, right? Why is one saying "we" and why don't they already "know"? It's a reporter. That's why.

"nothing is tied to any disney cast member that is supplying info All is sent under my wife's name". Info for what? A "news" article? I don't know a lot of people that talk like this unless it's strictly for a news piece. A journalist would be sure to make that point, a CM having a chat with another CM? Probably not.

These are not two CM's from the Horticulture team talking together, but a reporter trying to make a story that can get Disney closed.

"they'd have to close - which is what we're trying to achieve". If I had to guess, the author of this article is not the person swaying these texts, but this person clearly isn't your average horticultural CM.
I didn’t interpret any of that as being a reporter. The “you” instead of “us” could simply have referred to CMs in different locations or jobs. It looks like the person texting is the CM spouse of Alicia, the person being interviewed. The article says Alicia sent a letter to the governor and the person texting is asking another CM for any additional information that could be included in the next letter, which would be sent out under the texter’s wife’s (Alicia’s) name. I don’t see any support for the idea that the person texting is a reporter.
 

Chi84

Premium Member
I explained why I came to that conclusion, from the different, more polished response. To the "you guys" (paraphrased) instead of "us", to the whole journalist language towards the end. These do not appear to be coworkers of the same Horticulture team. Anyone is most definitely free to disagree. To each their own.

It is a bit convenient that it made "news" and we're talking about it, but the person is just a member of the Horticulture team and separates themselves from the person they are talking to. Someone had to report something or it wouldn't be in the article.

We can come to our own conclusions, but the ultimate point is that there is a clearly stated biased mission from "Alicia’s husband" and I've seen enough to come to the conclusion that this is not honest reporting.

There's a clearly stated mission to this.
Oh I do agree that the CM doing the texting clearly states an agenda to force Disney to close. That’s why letters to the governor were being sent. I believe that bears on the credibility of the claims being made.
 

Jrb1979

Well-Known Member
Oh I do agree that the CM doing the texting clearly states an agenda to force Disney to close. That’s why letters to the governor were being sent. I believe that bears on the credibility of the claims being made.
Even if there is a so called agenda as most of you think, I'm sure there have been cases of CM's at Disney that got Covid. Regardless of the company, employees getting it shouldn't be swept under a rug. All I will say is the Disney apologists are strong in this thread.
 

CJR

Well-Known Member
All I will say is the Disney apologists are strong in this thread.

I'm a Disney fan, but apologist?

If I see something credible, I will be happy to criticize, as I have done many times since I joined WDWMagic nearly two decades ago.

The real issue is that this is weak sauce from a biased and agenda driven individual. No actual revealing, just speculation.
 

Chi84

Premium Member
Even if there is a so called agenda as most of you think, I'm sure there have been cases of CM's at Disney that got Covid. Regardless of the company, employees getting it shouldn't be swept under a rug. All I will say is the Disney apologists are strong in this thread.
People have been stating reasons supporting their opinion that the article doesn’t seem credible. It’s fine to disagree based on your own reasoning, but how does labeling other posters “Disney apologists” add anything of value to the discussion?
 

Animaniac93-98

Well-Known Member
People have been stating reasons supporting their opinion that the article doesn’t seem credible. It’s fine to disagree based on your own reasoning, but how does labeling other posters “Disney apologists” add anything of value to the discussion?

There is no "discussion" in this thread.

Just the usual crying over "fake news", COVID denials and assuming the best from Disney management.
 

_caleb

Well-Known Member
I've read it. It's a CM talking to a reporter.

Here it is again, unedited.
"Yeah, and if those Covid positive people will even say anything about it once the r positive, the whole thing is just a train wreck. Disney doesn't want to test because it would show just how many of u r getting sick & they'd have to close - which is what we're trying to achieve. Is there any other info u think we should know & include in the next letter to the governor? Again, u are NOT being mentioned & nothing is tied to any disney cast member that is supplying info All is sent under my wife's name"
Not exactly unedited- the text was not bold or underlined in the original message.
Now, let me take it apart.

"many of u r getting sick". U R, not "us", if these were two employees on the same team, it would be "us". It's also written much more polished. The employee is def not as well polished, which makes sense that the journalist would write more clearly and talk more.
Nobody claimed that the two Disney employees are both on the same team, just that they are both CMs. The article said,
“In an extensive thread of text messages sent between late July and mid August, all of which were reviewed by The Daily Beast, three workers discussed positive cases on the Horticulture Irrigation team and their fear of going into work.”

That’s 3 Disney employees (from different teams) discussing positive COVID cases on the Horticulture team.

"they'd have to close - which is what we're trying to achieve". Who is "we're"? The Horticulture team is trying to close down their own company?
Not the Horticulture team, but employees who had heard of positive cases on the Horticulture team. ”We” is the CM and his wife (“Alicia,” as mentioned in the article). They want the parks to close because CMs don’t feel safe going to work (alleging that coworkers are coming to work after testing positive).

"Is there any other info u think we should know". Two CM's are talking, right? Why is one saying "we" and why don't they already "know"? It's a reporter. That's why.
“We”- his wife and he- are writing a letter to Governor Newsom in an attempt to blow the whistle on Disney and get him to close the parks/Downtown Disney completely (not just to guests, but also CMs). The CM and his wife are asking another CM from a different team if he has any more info they should include in this letter.

"nothing is tied to any disney cast member that is supplying info All is sent under my wife's name". Info for what? A "news" article? I don't know a lot of people that talk like this unless it's strictly for a news piece. A journalist would be sure to make that point, a CM having a chat with another CM? Probably not.
Not for a news article, for a letter to Governor Newsom. Again, the article makes it clear that “Alicia” had already sent a message to the Governor:

“On July 8, 10 days after the cast members returned to work and one day before the district opened, she wrote messages to both the City of Anaheim and California Governor Gavin Newsom, flagging the danger on behalf of several cast members.“

and was going to send another:

”On behalf of her spouse, Alicia sent five messages to Governor Newsom’s office, to all of his social media accounts, and through his online comment portal.“

This is also in the actual text message, which you transcribed above:
1E4A3600-FB38-456F-98D1-4013CD3CE9CC.jpeg


The assurance of anonymity is out of concern that Disney would hear about the scheme to blow the whistle. The article mentions that CMs are contractually prohibited from speaking to the press, so they plan to send the letter to the governor in the wife’s name.
These are not two CM's from the Horticulture team talking with each other, but a reporter trying to make a story that can get Disney closed.

"they'd have to close - which is what we're trying to achieve". If I had to guess, the author of this article is not the person swaying these texts, but this person clearly isn't your average horticultural CM.
Again, nowhere does it say that these are two Horticulture team members, they are Disney employees from different teams.

Anyone is most definitely free to disagree. To each their own.
This isn’t really a “to each their own” sort of thing. It’s an article that followed the basic rules of grammar and journalism to communicate a story: that some CMs are claiming that Disney isn’t notifying them of positive COVID cases. Your misreading of the article and the opinion you based on that misreading is spreading misinformation.

Someone had to report something or it wouldn't be in the article.

There's a clearly stated mission to this.
Right. The wife of the CM spoke to the reporter at The Daily Beast and showed the reporter the text threads. The “clearly stated mission” is the CM and his wife trying to avoid getting coronavirus but not lose his job.

None of this is meant to be rude. It is intended to correct your misunderstanding so that we can discuss what the article actually says.
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom