Florida Resident Disney Vloggers on YouTube

[esskay]

I've never understoon the obsession with Pete. He's always slated everything Disney do, comes across as bored, condesending and an all round nasty piece of work. You don't love disney if you dedicate your entire life to telling everyone how awful their parks are, how terrible the food is, how annoying the cast members are. Mental that someone like that would be running a place like wdwinfo.

The only part of this whole thing thats been surprising was that he was stupid enough to try and put $900k of expenses on a company card.

 

[LeighM]

I've never understoon the obsession with Pete. He's always slated everything Disney do, comes across as bored, condesending and an all round nasty piece of work. You don't love disney if you dedicate your entire life to telling everyone how awful their parks are, how terrible the food is, how annoying the cast members are. Mental that someone like that would be running a place like wdwinfo.

The only part of this whole thing thats been surprising was that he was stupid enough to try and put $900k of expenses on a company card.

The one thing I did like about Pete was his honesty about Disney. Most Disney fan sites think Disney can do no wrong with any of their changes and he was one of the few that would tell it like it was. I think he was just being honest about his experience and wasn't afraid to say if that experience was negative. However, with that, I never took his food reviews seriously because he was a smoker and that just changes your sense of taste. I didn't pay attention to him when he would comment on some things because he liked expensive, bougie things so that would sometimes influence his views. He said a lot of good things if you can sit thru Pete's pretentious monologues LOL.

 

[JusticeDisney]

I have to admit I enjoyed the podcasts for a while but found it odd that there was such a high rate of turnover. I also could never get the past the fact that Pete would repeat himself when he wanted to make a point just like the character in “Goodfellas” who said, “get the papers, get the papers”, lol. Pete really always seemed like a pompous egotist to me name dropping Josh D’Amaro all the time.

That is so funny that you say that! I thought it was just me who noticed the constant repetitive statements from him, lol!

 

[JIMINYCR]

Same, I really enjoyed the dis shows, especially the DCL ones. He’s opinionated but who in the Disney fan world isn’t? He’s talked a lot about relapse and counseling so I knew he had some issues but I’d never have guessed anything like he’s being accused of. Just goes to show you never really know people unless you actually know them.

People are good at hiding who they really are. We only see what they want us to see and thats just a minuscule part of them. When people watch these things they get a familiarity and feeling of closeness which gives a false sense of relationship to them. Thats what they want in order to keep you wanting to see more because youve built up[ a bond and connection to them. Thats why Petes revelation is such a shock to many. No one really knows the people they work with, associate with or even their own relatives. Our dark side is kept behind a screen and doesnt come to light until something happens that discloses it. Shock, disbelief and horror at that thing about them that we now see takes place.
Those who say hes always been creepy and they knew something was bad about the guy, disliked things about him which kept them from connecting. Theres no way they knew what he was capable of or what he was doing.
We will see how it plays out and what the results are. Surely he will have those who stand by him and those who will abandon him. There are consequences to our actions and hes going to have to deal with his bad decisions.
So many people in power think they are above reproach and can do whatever they want because no one will hold them responsible. After getting away with doing what he did to others several times and spending a few thousand $$ of company funds on himself, he just couldnt help but feel untouchable and brazen enough to continue on over time. Those who sexually harass others ( and assault others) start out slow and over time get more and more confident in doing what they do that it doesnt stop until someone steps in. Sadly in this case no one stepped in for quite some time.
Hoping those who were hurt can get some justice and start healing.

 

[LeighM]

People are good at hiding who they really are. We only see what they want us to see and thats just a minuscule part of them. When people watch these things they get a familiarity and feeling of closeness which gives a false sense of relationship to them. Thats what they want in order to keep you wanting to see more because youve built up[ a bond and connection to them. Thats why Petes revelation is such a shock to many. No one really knows the people they work with, associate with or even their own relatives. Our dark side is kept behind a screen and doesnt come to light until something happens that discloses it. Shock, disbelief and horror at that thing about them that we now see takes place.
Those who say hes always been creepy and they knew something was bad about the guy, disliked things about him which kept them from connecting. Theres no way they knew what he was capable of or what he was doing.
We will see how it plays out and what the results are. Surely he will have those who stand by him and those who will abandon him. There are consequences to our actions and hes going to have to deal with his bad decisions.
So many people in power think they are above reproach and can do whatever they want because no one will hold them responsible. After getting away with doing what he did to others several times and spending a few thousand $$ of company funds on himself, he just couldnt help but feel untouchable and brazen enough to continue on over time. Those who sexually harass others ( and assault others) start out slow and over time get more and more confident in doing what they do that it doesnt stop until someone steps in. Sadly in this case no one stepped in for quite some time.
Hoping those who were hurt can get some justice and start healing.

The thing that really bothers me is that Dustin couldn't have been the first person he supposedly drugged and raped (I say supposedly because I wasn't there and don't know the truth, however, I do believe what Dustin, Sean, and Charles have shared). I'm trying to remember the timeframe - Pete was in his late 40s/early 50s when this occurred? Seems a little late to become a predator like that. Makes me wonder if more people are going to come forward now that other people are starting to share their stories. I feel sooooo sorry for Pete's mother though. She's in her 90s now and I can't imagine what's happening behind closed doors. If only Pete had ever stopped and thought to himself "what would my mother say if I do this action?"

 

[JIMINYCR]

The thing that really bothers me is that Dustin couldn't have been the first person he supposedly drugged and raped (I say supposedly because I wasn't there and don't know the truth, however, I do believe what Dustin, Sean, and Charles have shared). I'm trying to remember the timeframe - Pete was in his late 40s/early 50s when this occurred? Seems a little late to become a predator like that. Makes me wonder if more people are going to come forward now that other people are starting to share their stories. I feel sooooo sorry for Pete's mother though. She's in her 90s now and I can't imagine what's happening behind closed doors. If only Pete had ever stopped and thought to himself "what would my mother say if I do this action?"

Theres no age when a predator starts. And they aren’t stopped by what their mother thinks or what anyone else thinks. They aren’t planning to be caught so that thought doesn’t enter their mind. They think no one will ever bring them and their actions to light. They only want to fulfill their sexual desire or fantasy along with feeling the power over someone else. More people may come forward as this case proceeds but many victims feel shame, guilt and pain which keeps them from doing so for many years… if they ever do at all.
The money aspect is easily proven by the paper trail. The other things may take more time to build a case and those victims to get justice.

 

[Ayla]

The thing that really bothers me is that Dustin couldn't have been the first person he supposedly drugged and raped (I say supposedly because I wasn't there and don't know the truth, however, I do believe what Dustin, Sean, and Charles have shared). I'm trying to remember the timeframe - Pete was in his late 40s/early 50s when this occurred? Seems a little late to become a predator like that. Makes me wonder if more people are going to come forward now that other people are starting to share their stories. I feel sooooo sorry for Pete's mother though. She's in her 90s now and I can't imagine what's happening behind closed doors. If only Pete had ever stopped and thought to himself "what would my mother say if I do this action?"

I doubt his mother will ever know, unless he's criminally charged.

 

[JIMINYCR]

I doubt his mother will ever know, unless he's criminally charged.

Dont know about that, unless shes got dementia which I havent heard. People just love to pass on bad news, especially news thats juicy and ripe with vicious details. Someones going to let it out that Petes in trouble. Its going to hurt bad when she hears what her sons been up to.

 

[OrlandoRising]

've never understoon the obsession with Pete. He's always slated everything Disney do, comes across as bored, condesending and an all round nasty piece of work. You don't love disney if you dedicate your entire life to telling everyone how awful their parks are, how terrible the food is, how annoying the cast members are. Mental that someone like that would be running a place like wdwinfo.

The only part of this whole thing thats been surprising was that he was stupid enough to try and put $900k of expenses on a company card.

Without getting into the allegations against Pete -- I've already written an article on that-- I think his following was due to him being one of the earliest Disney commentators AND someone who would criticize the company. So if you started consuming Disney-related content at a time when that was in its infancy in the 2000s, he was seen as one of the few honest ones.

But he had pretty clearly became jaded in recent years, to put it mildly. I always saw The DIS as being very focused on higher-end aspects of Disney -- DVC, Cruise Line, and signature dining -- at the expense of talking about rides and attractions, which I think is what the majority of Disney guests care about. That is, unless you're a local like them, and then you're talking to a smaller audience rather than most Disney guests.

 

[Vegas Disney Fan]

Without getting into the allegations against Pete -- I've already written an article on that-- I think his following was due to him being one of the earliest Disney commentators AND someone who would criticize the company. So if you started consuming Disney-related content at a time when that was in its infancy in the 2000s, he was seen as one of the few honest ones.

But he had pretty clearly became jaded in recent years, to put it mildly. I always saw The DIS as being ery focused on higher-end aspects of Disney -- DVC, Cruise Line, and signature dining -- at the expense of talking about rides and attractions, which I think is what the majority of Disney guests care about. That is, unless you're a local like them, and then you're talking to a smaller audience rather than most Disney guests.

I wonder if this is age related, we are in/approaching our 50s so rides are probably only half of what draws us to a WDW vacation now, the rest is food, drink, resorts, Disney Springs, DCL, etc, in that regard the unplugged shows were great for us.

For construction, ride reviews, and festival stuff I’d turn to other channels but for the higher end stuff like restaurants, especially DCL, I really liked the Dis.

 

[esskay]

Without getting into the allegations against Pete -- I've already written an article on that-- I think his following was due to him being one of the earliest Disney commentators AND someone who would criticize the company. So if you started consuming Disney-related content at a time when that was in its infancy in the 2000s, he was seen as one of the few honest ones.

But he had pretty clearly became jaded in recent years, to put it mildly. I always saw The DIS as being ery focused on higher-end aspects of Disney -- DVC, Cruise Line, and signature dining -- at the expense of talking about rides and attractions, which I think is what the majority of Disney guests care about. That is, unless you're a local like them, and then you're talking to a smaller audience rather than most Disney guests.

Yeah I think you've hit the nail on the head. He's always had a bit of an attitude but his earlier stuff was far less critical. I actually bumped into him in the Rose and Crown during a Dis Meet years ago with Simon Veness, this would've been around 2004 and he was generally fairly pleasent at the time, if not a bit loud.

 

[OrlandoRising]

I wonder if this is age related, we are in/approaching our 50s so rides are probably only half of what draws us to a WDW vacation now, the rest is food, drink, resorts, Disney Springs, DCL, etc, in that regard the unplugged shows were great for us.

I could see that being appealing to a certain audience in that age bracket., you're right. Making that focal point of the whole channel, which is what seemed to have happened. I think is a mistake, and made them come off as aloof and rather elitist.

There's a common problem to me among nearly all vloggers for WDW and DL: They approach the parks like local passholders who go frequently -- because they are and they do -- and that's not how the vast majority of us experience the parks. I think that leads to overemphasizing smaller additions, the new cupcakes and snacks or smaller dining changes, at the expense of the larger stuff that matters to more guests.

 

[JIMINYCR]

I could see that being appealing to a certain audience in that age bracket., you're right. Making that focal point of the whole channel, which is what seemed to have happened. I think is a mistake, and made them come off as aloof and rather elitist.

There's a common problem to me among nearly all vloggers for WDW and DL: They approach the parks like local passholders who go frequently -- because they are and they do -- and that's not how the vast majority of us experience the parks. I think that leads to overemphasizing smaller additions, the new cupcakes and snacks or smaller dining changes, at the expense of the larger stuff that matters to more guests.

As I see it they kind of have to go after the small stuff to appeal to their range of hangers on as well as the newbies. Its got to be difficult coming up with something unique that hasnt been covered by a dozen other vloggers. You can only report on attractions and resorts so many times that you run out of material. Their constant viewers have heard it all, so they are looking for newness. Those newer viewers who just discovered them can go back to hear about past topics, if they connect to the vlogger they like.
The one time only Dis goer wants info to plan their trip, those who maybe go a couple of times a year want to be updated by whats changed since their last trip.

 

[Jrb1979]

As I see it they kind of have to go after the small stuff to appeal to their range of hangers on as well as the newbies. Its got to be difficult coming up with something unique that hasnt been covered by a dozen other vloggers. You can only report on attractions and resorts so many times that you run out of material. Their constant viewers have heard it all, so they are looking for newness. Those newer viewers who just discovered them can go back to hear about past topics, if they connect to the vlogger they like.
The one time only Dis goer wants info to plan their trip, those who maybe go a couple of times a year want to be updated by whats changed since their last trip.

That's why I don't subscribe to many Disney vloggers. It gets boring seeing the same things over and over again. It's why I like Vloggers like Carpetbagger. While he does visit Disney, he also travels across the US.

 

[Indy_UK]

I need to have a clear out of my social media Disney accounts. Disney release a new cupcake and I will see 5-6 posts from different places all posting the same article.

On YouTube I find the Vloggers have all gone a bit quiet atm.

Certainly won’t be going back to The Dis though. Tone deaf and you can obviously see they are trying to just sweep this whole ordeal under the mat and move on like nothings happened

 

[Phil12]

The DIS forums were started by Pete back about 1996 or 1997. Over the years, the moderation became rather heavy and Webmaster Alex one night in 2008 decided to ban over 100 members. Those members left the DIS and instead went to the UNDIS (i.e. The Disney Troublemakers Club). That made Webmaster Alex angry so he attempted to create a redirect to deal with the members he had kicked off the site. If those members attempted to login again to the DIS, they would be redirected to other "objectionable" locations on the world wide web. However, Webmaster Alex was not well skilled and instead his redirect sent ALL members to The Disney Troublemakers Club. The DIS has never been the same since. Most sane members left.

 

[LeighM]

As I see it they kind of have to go after the small stuff to appeal to their range of hangers on as well as the newbies. Its got to be difficult coming up with something unique that hasnt been covered by a dozen other vloggers. You can only report on attractions and resorts so many times that you run out of material. Their constant viewers have heard it all, so they are looking for newness. Those newer viewers who just discovered them can go back to hear about past topics, if they connect to the vlogger they like.
The one time only Dis goer wants info to plan their trip, those who maybe go a couple of times a year want to be updated by whats changed since their last trip.

I still enjoy watching All Ears, Mammoth Club, DFB, and Super Enthused. They all cover the same new things but they all seem to enjoy what they're doing. I can watch All Ears and watch their challenges, which breaks up the monotony of the other channels, as well as their dining and resort reviews. Molly with Mammoth Club teaches the best way to tour the parks, use Genie+ etc. I like Super Enthused because she doesn't focus on herself eating when she does food reviews - and she does a few things other than Disney and Universal. I used to really enjoy watching videos from The Dis, even their DVC, AbD, and DCL videos. I almost bought DVC years ago on the resale market (back when it would've been grandfathered in with the same perks as direct) but the price increases no longer make it feasible. And I would love to do DCL and AbD one day so I find them worthy to watch. But The Dis had a Pete problem the last few years. I was obvious that Pete was being more "something" - he was more negative, belittling his employees, and becoming more and more flashy and gaudy. As Pete was changing, it was obvious things were happening with the others - high turnover, no love for the parks, etc. They were there doing their job but there was no enjoyment. And that was coming thru very clearly in their videos. The last few dining reviews from Craig, Ryno, and Erica have some of that fun back.

 

[Indy_UK]

I think no matter what the Dis do, they’re going to get left behind other channels. Everyone else is doing short bite sized clips in the parks for TikTok and Instagram.

Most don’t want to commit to 60 minute podcast of waffle these days.

Also I’m sorry but Craig, Erika and Rymo aren’t exactly the most exciting people to watch.

 

[OrlandoRising]

Most don’t want to commit to 60 minute podcast of waffle these days.

There's an audience for that content if it's delivered in an entertaining manner. When most shows turned into a rant about the good old days or felt like a prolonged plug for the travel agency....not so much.

 

[JIMINYCR]

I still enjoy watching All Ears, Mammoth Club, DFB, and Super Enthused. They all cover the same new things but they all seem to enjoy what they're doing. I can watch All Ears and watch their challenges, which breaks up the monotony of the other channels, as well as their dining and resort reviews. Molly with Mammoth Club teaches the best way to tour the parks, use Genie+ etc. I like Super Enthused because she doesn't focus on herself eating when she does food reviews - and she does a few things other than Disney and Universal. I used to really enjoy watching videos from The Dis, even their DVC, AbD, and DCL videos. I almost bought DVC years ago on the resale market (back when it would've been grandfathered in with the same perks as direct) but the price increases no longer make it feasible. And I would love to do DCL and AbD one day so I find them worthy to watch. But The Dis had a Pete problem the last few years. I was obvious that Pete was being more "something" - he was more negative, belittling his employees, and becoming more and more flashy and gaudy. As Pete was changing, it was obvious things were happening with the others - high turnover, no love for the parks, etc. They were there doing their job but there was no enjoyment. And that was coming thru very clearly in their videos. The last few dining reviews from Craig, Ryno, and Erica have some of that fun back.

Craig and Ryno were always ones I looked forward to watching, enjoying their content and approach to various things. All Ears remains a fav of. mine too. I think Pete got to be too into who he was and lost touch with what he was doing in the beginning which built his following.