Disney CMs calling guests " Friends"?

[LittleBuford]

Ultimately, it isn't up to you or me what WDW employees say.

Agreed! It’s Disney’s call, and they’ve made their choice.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

You think CMs are free to address guests however they want?

No need to be obtuse.

Since looking at this thread though, I've thinking back to my most recent visit. At many attractions/podiums, CM's simply said, "How many in your party?" Not "Foks/friends, how many in your party?" (They didn't use either.)

As soon as any CM knew our name, like guards, hotel staff, and podium CM's, staff addressed us by our last name. They might say, "The Smith party/family."

At many attractions, they tended to address people with something appropriate to the attraction. At the Haunted Mansion, for example, nobody called us friends. (That would totally go against the theming of the attraction.) CM's tell us, "Drag your bodies to the center of the room."

I am inclined to think they might have used friends on Toy Story Mania, because that would fit the theming of the land.

At the exit of Dinosaur, a CM can be heard saying, "...To your right..Folks, please..." i can't quite make out exactly what she says, but the word "folks" is clearly audible around the 4:25 mark:

In the 2022 audio for Slinky, One CM simply says, "Please pull up on your lap bar...Please pull up on your lap bar for me." another CM uses, "Sir" at a little after 1:05.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

the MK fireworks start with, "Tonight we gather in a most enchanted kingdom." The earlier 2021 version started with, "Tonight we gather in a most enchanted place.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Dear reader,

Dear reader?

DEAR READER??!!!1!

How dare you presume such intimacy with me that you should presume I know how to read!!!

 

[Goofyernmost]

I’m not really sure how to respond to all this except to say that I do indeed read these posts very carefully and that I do not agree that there is such a thing as “a universal language that means the same thing to everybody”. If there were, there would be nothing to discuss in this thread.

For heaves sake, universal language is meant in the sense of English speaking people or people that have made the effort to learn it. Universal language was indeed the wrong word to use. Perhaps the rules of the English language that allows everyone to understand what is being said, meant and agreed upon to help us understand each other. Do you see what happened when I used the wrong word to state my case. You either misunderstood what I was trying to say or just decided to jump on it because it was the wrong word. Ironically like calling complete singular strangers friend. It may have been close, but it still was wrong of me to use and by doing so, caused confusion.

 

[LittleBuford]

For heaves sake, universal language is meant in the sense of English speaking people or people that have made the effort to learn it.

That’s precisely what I understood you to be saying and what I was responding to. My point was that even native speakers of English seem not to agree on the meaning and appropriate usage of even as innocuous a word as “friend”.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Well, if we can't even speak our native language properly how can we be expected to do any thing else in a correct manner?

 

[LittleBuford]

Well, if we can't even speak our native language properly how can we be expected to do any thing else in a correct manner?

It’s not a question of speaking properly or improperly, though. Nothing we’re debating here relates to issues of grammar or standard usage; depending on who is posting, the discussion boils down to matters of taste and/or politics. What you regard as incorrect usage has never been deemed incorrect by any usage guide or dictionary. To give an example of my own, I really dislike what is now the generally used and understood sense of “beg the question” (the phrase originally, and still technically, means something else), but I long ago accepted that my personal feelings on the matter don’t equate to a generally applicable judgement. It still irks me every time I read or hear it, but that’s really my problem.

 

[The Mom]

Argumentative posts have been deleted.

 

[Spirit of Adventure]

Back on topic... We mostly quite liked the use of 'friend' on our recent trip, although very much depended on who used it and in what context. Spoken in the early morning from a cheery CM made it a very sweet start to the day.. Late in evening after a long day but prior to MK Fireworks when the CMs are herding crowds and getting wound up with guests pushing past them so when you ask a CM a question you get a 'this way... friend' through gritted teeth was very No Country for Old Men and just sounded sarcastic.

I get that it must be a tough gig though for the CMs at those times, so saying 'friend' may not roll off the tongue quite so easily

 

[Chi84]

We’ve been here a couple of days now and have yet to hear our first “friend(s).”

 

[mkt]

Argumentative posts have been deleted.

Thank you friend!

 

[AndyS2992]

We’ve been here a couple of days now and have yet to hear our first “friend(s).”

Lucky you, it begins to grate very quickly

 

[Chi84]

Lucky you, it begins to grate very quickly

Probably not for me

 

[The Colonel]

Friends, Romans, countrymen; all acceptable salutations.

What they really think: consumers, revenue streams, legacy guests, etc.

If it's 9 oclock in Epcot and you're giving me a free pretzel before you close down your booth. Then you are my true friend.

 

[MickeyLuv'r]

What is the relevance of posting this paper?

If/when CMs address a guest as “friend,” that doesn’t mean they’re trying to get you to be their friend.

If CMs started calling everyone “boss” (as in, ”How are you doing, boss?” or, “Sure thing, boss! One $9 churro coming right up!”), would you post research about workplace attitudes of American employees toward their bosses?

I'm guessing you didn't read any of it, because there is a serious body of sociology devoted to the subject.

Sociologists have defined friendship very carefully. I thought that was relevant to a discussion on the meaning of the word friend.

The youth interviewed for the article, depend on reciprocation. I mean, they really depend on it.

"Many students emphasized that friends defend each other against harm, and phrases like “someone who sticks up for me” or “would never hurt me” almost always came up. These definitions occasionally included physical violence, as when one boy (Kirk) defined friend as someone who “will defend you when you’re getting bullied” and another boy (Thacyrus) defined a friend as someone “who would take a bullet for you. Like have your back like every time.”3

The bolded phrase is not hyperbole. It is a concern many youth live with every day. I have seen this firsthand.

 

[MisterPenguin]

Sociologists have defined friendship very carefully. I thought that was relevant to a discussion on the meaning of the word friend.

It's interesting for that definition of friend, but, like for many words, it has more than one definition.

 

[BuddyThomas]

Guys. Last night a CM called my son "little buddy" and I got offended.

Is there a safe space where I can cry and get some mint tea?

I’m the only little Buddy around here.

 

[crazy4disney]

Agreed! It’s Disney’s call, and they’ve made their choice.

I assure you plenty of castmembers are NOT following Disney’s call… im guessing this probably get deleted like last nights similar comment but hey why not try again

 

[LittleBuford]

I assure you plenty of castmembers are NOT following Disney’s call… im guessing this probably get deleted like last nights similar comment but hey why not try again

I was agreeing with the point that posters here have no say in what terminology is used. The policy is set by Disney; whether CMs follow it or not is another matter.