Spirited News & Observations II -- NGE/Baxter

[nor'easter]

Some call it the 'future'.

Let the consumer of information be discerning and educated because there is no going back except by way of censorship. I would rather take my chances with a free internet than censorship.

~Freedom~

A sound editorial filter is not "censorship". It's how an effective news organization runs. Otherwise, we have information anarchy...like social media. Unfortunately, many consumers are anything but "discerning and educated". Just read all the conspiracy theory blogs...

 

[Lee]

A sound editorial filter is not "censorship". It's how an effective news organization runs. Otherwise, we have information anarchy...like social media. Unfortunately, many consumers are anything but "discerning and educated". Just read all the conspiracy theory blogs...

Yes. That.
Also, I would add, don't allow PR material, cleverly disguised as real news or as an objective viewpoint, be foisted upon an unknowing public.

 

[MattM]

Unfortunately, many consumers are anything but "discerning and educated". Just read all the conspiracy theory blogs...

That's such a small, insignificant percentage of the population though. They just have a platform now.

People are smarter than they're given credit for.

 

[Lee]

People are smarter than they're given credit for.

I wish I saw more evidence on a daily basis to support that.

 

[MattM]

I wish I saw more evidence on a daily basis to support that.

I would say to that as well, the people you come in contact with, or observe, on a daily business is such an insignificant number compared to our population that you can't really make a conclusion about them.

The ones you see may think/act differently than you, but that doesn't make them uneducated. If that's what you mean, then that's fine.

Also, that piece is about as uninteresting as an accounting debate.

 

[71jason]

It has to be broken down into category's. I will do my own, if you are middle to lower economically...you cannot afford GF without getting into debt. If you are wealthy to stinking rich you don't care what it cost as long as it supports your lifestyle and image. If you are well off, (upper middle to lower upper) you do look at the cost as well as the location because you are still working toward the wealthy and stinking rich. Then, of course there is that more illusive category that WDW74 falls into and that would be Faux 1%. No one knows what they will do or why, not even themselves.

I think everyone is greatly oversimplifying issues here. I will say two things, based only on personal observation. First, a friend of mine owns a VIP tour company--he discourages guests from staying at Disney hotels simply because the service will not be what they expect. I think the wealthy are the first to notice things like dirty carpet or having to stand in a 10-person line to check in. Second, based on my fairly extensive time in the Grand, I'd say the top two categories of guests are (1) convention-goers and (2) retirement-age hard core Disney fans.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

During the FY2013 Q1 conference call covering the Thanksgiving and Christmas 2012 period, Jay Rasulo said:

Folks are reporting the parks to be more crowded than ever but it's difficult to reconcile this with "up a hair", especially since WDW attendance declined in 2 of the last 3 years.

Possibilities:

• There has been a recent surge in attendance and Q2 numbers will be much better.
• People are staying in the parks for more hours, making them feel more crowded at any one time. IMHO, this is something to consider. As WDW continues to raise ticket prices, perhaps guests feel more of a need to stay in the parks for as long as possible to maximize what they get for their money.
• Perception is being influenced by Standby queue length. Perhaps WDW has allocated a larger percentage of ride capacity to FP, causing longer Standby lines.
• More rambunctious than normal guests make the parks feel more crowded. If I'm standing in a line, then it feels crowded. But if I'm standing in a line and someone nearby is making a raucous, the line feels more crowded because they are interfering with my personal space.
• Something else?

One 'something else' to consider: fastpass has increased the amount of traffic in the parks. People run from Splash to Space back to Pan. Before fastpass, fastpassers used to be locked in an orderly queue for 45 minutes, now they are all over the place, of that same 45 minutes they are five minutes in fastpass line and forty running about.

Meanwhile, the standbyers stand in line just as long as before fastpass, but - counter-intuitively - there are fewer of them locked up in line. Lines have emptied out into the pathways. The parks feel more crowded, and the pathways are more crowded, despite the same amount of guests and the same capacity.

 

[71jason]

Would I be mad if they made Carsland in Florida, absolutely not. However, I think that there should be a degree of uniqueness. I suppose they can do that in Florida with Carsland but I challenge them to up the ante and come up with something just as good if not better.

The problem is there are very few intellectual properties that can support an entire "land" with multiple rides, shops and restaurants. Harry Potter, Cars, Star Wars ... maybe (big maybe) Lord of the Rings. I can't think of a fifth--and no, I'm not forgetting Avatar.

In any case, Radiator Springs Racers is a strong contender for best ride in America, and I might give Cars Land the edge over WWoHP for #1 land. If you're going to clone something, clone the best.

 

[Goofyernmost]

I think everyone is greatly oversimplifying issues here. I will say two things, based only on personal observation. First, a friend of mine owns a VIP tour company--he discourages guests from staying at Disney hotels simply because the service will not be what they expect. I think the wealthy are the first to notice things like dirty carpet or having to stand in a 10-person line to check in. Second, based on my fairly extensive time in the Grand, I'd say the top two categories of guests are (1) convention-goers and (2) retirement-age hard core Disney fans.

Not meaning to be critical, just observing, based on your last statement I'd have to say that I was under-simplifying. You narrowed it down to two categories. Not saying you're not right, just, like I said, observing. I have only been in GF once and that was a monorail trip I made once to check out the interiors of the resorts, so I am hardly an expert on the place.

 

[71jason]

Not meaning to be critical, just observing, based on your last statement I'd have to say that I was under-simplifying. You narrowed it down to two categories. Not saying you're not right, just, like I said, observing. I have only been in GF once and that was a monorail trip I made once to check out the interiors of the resorts, so I am hardly an expert on the place.

Two very broad categories, but yes. I will say if there was no convention business, that hotel would certainly take a hit.

 

[ParentsOf4]

That's such a small, insignificant percentage of the population though. They just have a platform now.

People are smarter than they're given credit for.

Not based on who they've been electing in both major political parties.

 

[MattM]

Not based on who they've been electing in both major political parties.

Ha, touche!

 

[lazyboy97o]

Going back to this, because its the sort of thing '74 would want being discussed here in his absence, and its more interesting than an accounting argument....

It's not as simple as all that. This isn't a wire story, it's a blog post. Posting stories from blogs is not how USAToday does business.
A source as been in touch with me today about this, and the fact that the nation's largest (by circulation) paper has run a fluff blog piece that reads like Disney PR is not sitting too well with some of the executive staff over there.

I'm not trying to bash AJ Wolfe, she's made quite a place for herself with her very extensive Disney work.
But, when a piece like this lands on two major news sites, when its not exactly in accordance with their editorial policy....

There is more afoot.

It's hard to say much without any real new information. If anything I'm less impressed by the executives who are unaware of how their websites are being filled with content. Did this appear in the print edition of USA Today? It still just seems like an attempt to fluff up the respective websites so as to "better compete with blogs and aggregators."

 

[GoofGoof]

During the FY2013 Q1 conference call covering the Thanksgiving and Christmas 2012 period, Jay Rasulo said:

Folks are reporting the parks to be more crowded than ever but it's difficult to reconcile this with "up a hair", especially since WDW attendance declined in 2 of the last 3 years.

Possibilities:

• There has been a recent surge in attendance and Q2 numbers will be much better.
• People are staying in the parks for more hours, making them feel more crowded at any one time. IMHO, this is something to consider. As WDW continues to raise ticket prices, perhaps guests feel more of a need to stay in the parks for as long as possible to maximize what they get for their money.
• Perception is being influenced by Standby queue length. Perhaps WDW has allocated a larger percentage of ride capacity to FP, causing longer Standby lines.
• More rambunctious than normal guests make the parks feel more crowded. If I'm standing in a line, then it feels crowded. But if I'm standing in a line and someone nearby is making a raucous, the line feels more crowded because they are interfering with my personal space.
• Something else?

I think another factor is MK has been really crowded but maybe not the other parks. MK closed a bunch of times for capacity limits since FLE opened. Maybe total attendance is up a hair but MK is up more with the others down. Obviously I have no hard numbers to quantify this but it makes sense based on observations. When the newness of FLE wears off will the numbers hold? That's the big question.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

This isn't a wire story, it's a blog post. Posting stories from blogs is not how USAToday does business.

But that is not correct. USAToday runs blog stories by the gazillion. There are a million TheDailyMeal blog stories on USAToday.
I assume there is a corporate interest - does USAToday's parent company hold a stake in TDM? - or is the TDM one of the (many) blogs who provide content in return for cash, links, or shared advertising revenue?

Nothing sinister at work here. Fluff blog pieces and advertorials ARE USAToday's business. Several of its sections resemble news aggregators such as the Huff Post more than they do a quality paper with its own editorial content.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/trave...restaurants-daily-meals-2013-winners/1940489/

 

[GoofGoof]

I think everyone is greatly oversimplifying issues here. I will say two things, based only on personal observation. First, a friend of mine owns a VIP tour company--he discourages guests from staying at Disney hotels simply because the service will not be what they expect. I think the wealthy are the first to notice things like dirty carpet or having to stand in a 10-person line to check in. Second, based on my fairly extensive time in the Grand, I'd say the top two categories of guests are (1) convention-goers and (2) retirement-age hard core Disney fans.

The other factor is the once in a lifetime visitor. They save up for the trip. It's already expensive to them, but what's a few more bucks to stay at a deluxe. I know this happens from personal experience. For people going every year or multiple times a year it becomes more of an issue. There are plenty of not rich people staying at deluxe resorts who do care about how much things cost.

 

[The Empress Lilly]

It's hard to say much without any real new information. If anything I'm less impressed by the executives who are unaware of how their websites are being filled with content. Did this appear in the print edition of USA Today? It still just seems like an attempt to fluff up the respective websites so as to "better compete with blogs and aggregators."

I would go so far as to say that USAToday is not competing with blogs, it is a blog. With paid content and advertorials, especially in its sections that are most prone to that: food and travel.

You can trace many stories all over the internet. Here's a cool one. It is written by Disney four months ago, appears on Babble, a Disney-ran 'young mothers' site. The story spreads to the mommy blogosphere next month. It then makes it to The Daily Meal two months later, from where it will no doubt find its way to USAToday or Faux News in turn.

When you think of dining at Walt Disney World, fast food, pizza and turkey legs come to mind. However, if you’re a foodie or simply love eating, think again. The truth is that there are many great restaurants that will blow your mind with their delectable creations.
Here are 11 must-try dishes from my personal list, carefully selected after eating my way around Disney World on several occasions

http://www.babble.com/babble-voices...foodies-11-must-try-dishes-to-make-you-drool/
http://www.twylah.com/debsdistwit/tweets/306417901630521345
http://www.thedailymeal.com/disney-world-food-lovers

 

[Lee]

I would go so far as to say that USAToday is not competing with blogs, it is a blog. With paid content.

You can trace many stories all over the internet. Here's a cool one. It is written by Disney four months ago. Then appears on Babble, a Disney-sposored site. It then makes it to The Daily Meal two months later, from where it will no doubt find its way to USAToday or Faux News in turn.

http://www.babble.com/babble-voices...foodies-11-must-try-dishes-to-make-you-drool/
http://www.thedailymeal.com/disney-world-food-lovers

I believe we may be seeing a disconnect between the paper and the website, as I have it on good authority that the paper side of things isn't pleased with the situation.

As in the example above, a Disney-written piece may well eventually end up on the USAToday site with no indication that it is, in essence, a PR piece/advertisement.

That sort of thing may be fine for some sites, but I can assure you, based on my information, the powers that be at USAToday aren't keen on it.

I anticipate a possible change in policy.

 

[flynnibus]

Yes. That.
Also, I would add, don't allow PR material, cleverly disguised as real news or as an objective viewpoint, be foisted upon an unknowing public.

That describes like 95% of 'news coverage' of new product/service releases. That's why 'review' sites and small industry bloggers became popular. They gave the detailed reviews that larger news orgs had no time nor interest to persue.

 

[lazyboy97o]

I believe we may be seeing a disconnect between the paper and the website, as I have it on good authority that the paper side of things isn't pleased with the situation.

As in the example above, a Disney-written piece may well eventually end up on the USAToday site with no indication that it is, in essence, a PR piece/advertisement.

That sort of thing may be fine for some sites, but I can assure you, based on my information, the powers that be at USAToday aren't keen on it.

I anticipate a possible change in policy.

But how does any of this make it more than internal politics and drama at USA Today? The left hand not talking to the right hand is not exactly big news for a sizeable organization.