News Expose reveals WDC control in online fan community

[andysol]

For me, the idea that people leaking inside information have an agenda is not particularly surprising. I thought that was a given as why would someone leak information about the place they work? It didn't seem likely that it was because they loved us.

I guess that part of me just always thought it was from a disgruntled employee telling them things because they were unhappy. Which I'm sure also happens. But the fact they can use these trusted insider and rapport they've built to go so deep that there are entire efforts from executives to draw narratives and oust other executives? Whoa... bombshell indeed.

Thanks, by the way, for all your summaries of this controversy! They are the clearest I have seen.

Thanks. It was either track all this down, or work. This is more fun.

Plus @MisterPenguin is in Burbank scrambling to damage control at Disney World, so someone had to summarize it.

 

[Brer Oswald]

It seems to me the only way to make things copasetic again, is for Disney to owe you one. The Bobs are watching, they feel a little sheepish, and you guys are way more important than you thought you were. You should start a new thread, come up with about 10 not too expensive, can be done efficiently, park ideas and hold a vote for the top idea. Disney will wait for the winning idea, never acknowledge it, and have it built within 2 years. Bingo, Bango, Bongo, all square. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy.

For starters, a cheaper dark ride in place of Princess Fairytale hall (Robin Hood, Mickey and the Beanstalk, something like that), a Casey Jr Train that gives you the lay of the (Fantasy) land, and a Beauty and the Beast Dark Ride in place of Enchanted Tales that is slightly less impressive than the upcoming Tokyo one.

As for Tomorrowland, hover cars in Speedway (use electro magnetic propulsion), a non shooter ride in place of Buzz, and, the Bobs will love this one, an Incredibles Dark Ride where they fight 50s Robots. That’ll add some much needed capacity into that park. People like rides, not meet and greets.

As for Epcot, the usual Figment and Dreamfinder, Horizons, yadayadayada. If you bring back those two in a new and great way, you can get away with as many other IPs as you would like. Trust me.

 

[Kman101]

that's why you should double-check the stuff you read on medium.. it's like tumblr for news

Everything should be double checked. I'm not just believing the article. For me, it confirms a lot. I feel like folks just don't want to believe it because they'd feel duped and no one wants to feel duped.

 

[Astro Blaster]

Am I the only one that doesn’t get all the talk about GE being a “failure”? It opened with most of the APs blacked out and the main ride not open. It hasn’t even opened in WDW yet, and I would guess most casual fans would go to the WDW one, not DL, and wait until both rides are open.

I’m just going based on what I see with my own eyes, I went to an AP preview last night and it was AWESOME.

 

[Brer Oswald]

Am I the only one that doesn’t get all the talk about GE being a “failure”? It opened with most of the APs blacked out and the main ride not open. It hasn’t even opened in WDW yet, and I would guess most casual fans would go to the WDW one, not DL, and wait until both rides are open.

I’m just going based on what I see with my own eyes, I went to an AP preview last night and it was AWESOME.

The opening strategy at Disneyland was most definitely a failure, but the land itself? Not a chance. It’ll have a rocky start, but once Rise is open, it’ll be the smashing success it was expected to be.

 

[pdude81]

Am I the only one that doesn’t get all the talk about GE being a “failure”? It opened with most of the APs blacked out and the main ride not open. It hasn’t even opened in WDW yet, and I would guess most casual fans would go to the WDW one, not DL, and wait until both rides are open.

I’m just going based on what I see with my own eyes, I went to an AP preview last night and it was AWESOME.

Sorry to take this way off topic, but did they make you bring your actual AP card to check in for SWGE? I have one tomorrow morning and I assumed that they would scan my MB to check eligibility along with my regular ID.

 

[VJ]

we're sitting here worrying about TP2000's involvement, but we're not ready for when TP2,000,000 invades!

(sorry, all I have left to process this is bad jokes)

stop being a troll!!!111 smh

 

[Astro Blaster]

Sorry to take this way off topic, but did they make you bring your actual AP card to check in for SWGE? I have one tomorrow morning and I assumed that they would scan my MB to check eligibility along with my regular ID.

They were checking AP cards but not sure if it was 100% required. I brought everything just in case, because if I couldn’t get into the land...I don’t even know

 

[pdude81]

They were checking AP cards but not sure if it was 100% required. I brought everything just in case, because if I couldn’t get into the land...I don’t even know

Thanks. This is mind boggling to me. It's like when a job asks for your social security card to prove your SSN. They go and look everything up in the computer anyway so why the name and numbers on a piece of cardboard

 

[britain]

You do realize that Marni's posts basically mirror what "Al Lutz" (in quotation on purpose now) used to do? I mean, just like Al, Marni drops insider information AND and cleverly blends these drops with the advocacy of a very particular point of view from within the company. That's exactly what Al appears to have done: he broadcast the views of particular subset while presenting "himself" as merely an unbiased middleman trying to advocate for what's best for the fans..... AND it appears to have worked brilliantly for those that enabled him.

NOT trying to start a feud with Marni as I enjoy his drops as much as anyone else here, and I don't know (and will never meet) Marni. Just trying to point out how similar the situation is....

Whoa whoa, are you mixing Martin up with someone else? Martin doesn't do that at all. Al writes up columns, points fingers, shouts his opinions - and gets (or got) ad revenue for his blog. Martin posts here, not on a blog - he's getting nothing out of this. He drops crumbs. And the only times he puts his opinion into it is with a "sigh" or "I'd prefer they don't". He's not a tabloid publisher.

 

[Astro Blaster]

Thanks. This is mind boggling to me. It's like when a job asks for your social security card to prove your SSN. They go and look everything up in the computer anyway so why the name and numbers on a piece of cardboard

I also had to keep showing them my annual pass for the merch discount...during the AP preview of the land

 

[andysol]

Al writes up columns, points fingers, shouts his opinions - and gets (or got) ad revenue for his blog.

Which can't be stated enough. He is as stand up as they come. He could have profited from it and chose not to.

 

[smile]

I think it's now clear that the reaction is NOT what they hoped it would be, and it's not going to be what they desired/expected from their $2B investment. It's not a "Potter Swatter" and likely won't be because the IP and the execution aren't at Potter levels. They know this based on surveys and guest reaction.

as if there wasn't enough pressure on the bad robot

 

[NormC]

Marni drops insider information AND and cleverly blends these drops with the advocacy of a very particular point of view from within the company.

No, Martin drops his information with his own point of view as a fan, not from anyone within the company.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I'm 100% sure it's Troy Porter. I have undeniable proof he is. I'd share it, but it would expose his current address and phone number, which I'm clearly not going to do. But its 100% Troy Porter.

He clearly lied in his post saying "TP" is for "Theme Parks" as he's been lying about that for years now to keep his anonymity. Now, I understand wanting to keep your anonymity, and that's fine. For myself, I personally don't care, but I understand it.

But he lied. Not only did he lie about "Theme Parks" being what TP stood for, but he threw out a brilliant bluff in saying "I almost posted my name and address to prove I'm not him". OK... so he lied. That's undeniable also. So why?

Just trying to keep his info confidential?
Is he a source to Micechat and @photomatt didn't realize he was until another author messaged him, hence the instant withdrawal?
Most damning- is the article true?

Regarding the confidential information/name being out there- that ship has sailed. We know @TP2000 is Troy Parker. We know it. So if he's a Disney source, he isn't anymore. If he's a ghostwriter for Al and a plant for Disney, he isn't anymore. The cover is blown. It's over.

All of this could be cleared up if anyone involved had integrity. But they don't.

How does the timeline work though?

 

[Kman101]

Am I the only one that doesn’t get all the talk about GE being a “failure”? It opened with most of the APs blacked out and the main ride not open. It hasn’t even opened in WDW yet, and I would guess most casual fans would go to the WDW one, not DL, and wait until both rides are open.

I’m just going based on what I see with my own eyes, I went to an AP preview last night and it was AWESOME.

Because the idea of it being a "failure" is more manipulation. Anyone could easily post a photo of a nearly empty area with just one or two people. I saw a live stream Sunday and GE in Disneyland was far from empty. Perception is everything.

No one wanted to listen as I reminded folks that APs, Castmembers, etc. were blocked out. Now we see the crowds once again descending on Disneyland.

Another problem very few talk about is that signage to the land doesn't really exist so the entry ways aren't as obvious, apparently, supposedly.

The land itself just doesn't necessarily "fit" Disneyland. It'd have been better in a third park with Marvel and other properties. Maybe a Port-esque concept. The land as designed feels more like it belongs in DHS. And it's Florida. I can pretty much guarantee the land won't be a 'failure' in Florida.

And many fanbois of the franchise are too busy whining that you can't meet Luke. You never could. He was only at Star Wars Weekends. They need to get over that it isn't Hoth or Tatooine and appreciate the land Disney built. We all beg for ORIGINAL CONTENT and then they do and they get ripped apart.

I think it was the best choice to go with a new planet. I mean, I feel like we live in a strange world when that's now a problem, lol.

And back to the "expose"

I mean, why are folks not seeing that the latest "Lutz" column read like a TP2000 post? Maybe TP just cleverly copies the style but nah. It's him and it was. That doesn't mean the real Al doesn't exist and didn't write columns. The man is battling Parkinson's apparently, why would he waste his time on writing a scathing article against Chapek and SWLand? And then TP2000 ran to the Disneyland forum and, using bold font face, proudly announced "Al Lutz's" return. I mean, if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck ... it's a duck, folks.

But it doesn't matter to me really, I like TP and his posts and I don't really care if he did ghostwrite for Al Lutz. Not like we haven't had ghostwriters in our history

None of this is *that* unbelievable.

 

[pdude81]

I also had to keep showing them my annual pass for the merch discount...during the AP preview of the land

Actually I just looked in MDE on my phone and they have them in there too. I happen to be DVC so before each trip I put a pdf on my home screen so I can always show that card. I really hate having to carry this stuff around when they spent billions on a system to track my every move and dollar.

 

[disneyflush]

Another problem very few talk about is that signage to the land doesn't really exist so the entry ways aren't as obvious, apparently, supposedly.

So a non-zero number of people visiting Disneyland at this time aren't able to visit GE because they can't find it in the park due to inefficient signage.

 

[Astro Blaster]

Because the idea of it being a "failure" is more manipulation. Anyone could easily post a photo of a nearly empty area with just one or two people. I saw a live stream Sunday and GE in Disneyland was far from empty. Perception is everything.

No one wanted to listen as I reminded folks that APs, Castmembers, etc. were blocked out. Now we see the crowds once again descending on Disneyland.

Another problem very few talk about is that signage to the land doesn't really exist so the entry ways aren't as obvious, apparently, supposedly.

The land itself just doesn't necessarily "fit" Disneyland. It'd have been better in a third park with Marvel and other properties. Maybe a Port-esque concept. The land as designed feels more like it belongs in DHS. And it's Florida. I can pretty much guarantee the land won't be a 'failure' in Florida.

And many fanbois of the franchise are too busy whining that you can't meet Luke. You never could. He was only at Star Wars Weekends. They need to get over that it isn't Hoth or Tatooine and appreciate the land Disney built. We all beg for ORIGINAL CONTENT and then they do and they get ripped apart.

I think it was the best choice to go with a new planet. I mean, I feel like we live in a strange world when that's now a problem, lol.

And back to the "expose"

I mean, why are folks not seeing that the latest "Lutz" column read like a TP2000 post? Maybe TP just cleverly copies the style but nah. It's him and it was. That doesn't mean the real Al doesn't exist and didn't write columns. The man is battling Parkinson's apparently, why would he waste his time on writing a scathing article against Chapek and SWLand? And then TP2000 ran to the Disneyland forum and, using bold font face, proudly announced "Al Lutz's" return. I mean, if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck ... it's a duck, folks.

Very good point about the original content. While based on a powerhouse IP, Batuu and Black Spire Outpost are very original.

If one thing struck me as odd - while I understand why they did it, since we’re just supposed to be walking around a random planet and all - would be the lack of background music. It’s a staple of both Star Wars and Disney Parks, and I would’ve loved to hear some John Williams as I was walking around.

 

[Kman101]

So a non-zero number of people visiting Disneyland at this time aren't able to visit GE because they can't find it in the park due to inefficient signage.

That's what Micechat (I believe it was them but I could be wrong) claimed (and yes, I believe it; I overhear crazy things from tourists anytime I'm in the parks and I hear lots of castmember stories. I mean, folks look for Potter in Hollywood Studios .... so yes, it is believable they can't find the land and don't open a park map to figure it out)

I don't quite agree but it is plausible. I buy it more that APs and cast that were blocked out are a lot bigger of a portion of the crowd than folks realize. And that seems to be true now that they're unblocked.