The [Dis] Influencer- One Year Anniversary

tirian

tirian

Well-Known Member
MisterPenguin said:
[The joke is that *now* there are people reading such insider conversations and taking them to their monetized vlogs for personal gain. I was the voice of the clueless zoomer looking to get paid for my social media.]
Click to expand...
I don’t think that happens at all. I don’t think anybody cares anymore.
 
Phroobar

Phroobar

Well-Known Member
giphy.gif
 
_caleb

_caleb

Well-Known Member
tirian said:
That was long ago. I don’t know how many people care anymore.
Click to expand...
You disagree that a good portion of Disney bloggers, vloggers, Twitterers, and YouTubers get their "content" from these boards? Or are you saying you don't think Disney Corporate cares about these boards? (Or both?)
 
tirian

tirian

Well-Known Member
_caleb said:
You disagree that a good portion of Disney bloggers, vloggers, Twitterers, and YouTubers get their "content" from these boards? Or are you saying you don't think Disney Corporate cares about these boards? (Or both?)
Click to expand...
Sorry for not being clearer. I don’t think Corporate checks or cares like they used to, because they now have enough influencers (“Access Media”) to counteract negative fan reactions.
 
_caleb

_caleb

Well-Known Member
tirian said:
Sorry for not being clearer. I don’t think Corporate checks or cares like they used to, because they now have enough influencers (“Access Media”) to counteract negative fan reactions.
Click to expand...
I don't know. Seems like it'd be pretty efficient to poison the well at both sources, as it were. Raise expectations through sunshine and pixie dust via official channels, keep expectations in check through doom, gloom, and insider leaks via fan forums.
 
_caleb

_caleb

Well-Known Member
TiggerDad said:
What if the doom, gloom, etc happened anyway because it's human nature for fans to have high expectations and be disappointed with reality? That would save them the trouble.
Click to expand...
I’m sure that’s true. But the drive-bys with “the inside story” always seem to provide the fans with exactly who to blame for the disappointment, and a narrative about what went wrong. There’s certainly some strategy to that.
 
Sharon&Susan

Sharon&Susan

Well-Known Member
_caleb said:
I’m sure that’s true. But the drive-bys with “the inside story” always seem to provide the fans with exactly who to blame for the disappointment, and a narrative about what went wrong. There’s certainly some strategy to that.
Click to expand...
So you don't think people would naturally blame the CEO of the company or the head of the parks and resorts for disappointing projects done under their watch if it wasn't for these insiders?
 
_caleb

_caleb

Well-Known Member
Sharon&Susan said:
So you don't think people would naturally blame the CEO of the company or the head of the parks and resorts for disappointing projects done under their watch if it wasn't for these insiders?
Click to expand...
Probably. I’ve seen a lot of blame being spread around, though.

Haven’t seen anything but love for Josh D‘Amaro.
 
_caleb

_caleb

Well-Known Member
Captn EO said:
Disney doesn't care about messageboards at all, period. They don't care about testing ideas with their fans, they have marketing teams and surveys to test out things like that.

All Disney has to do for publicity is give random youtubers and fansites admission to be the first to try "Pluto's Spicy Hamburger and Goofy's Krazy Kupcake" and give them first looks at merchandise.


His first thing as head of Disney Parks was removing Splash Mountain, I certainly have harsh words for that.
Click to expand...
How do you think the "marketing teams" test things out? Do you really think they just randomly choose the YouTubers and fansites that get special access?

It seems like you're thinking about traditional PR- Disney has a new cupcake to sell and invites gushing fans to be the first to try it as long as they vlog about it. Disney certainly does this (as we've all seen)!

But there is a TON of stuff Disney (and factions within Disney) might want to shape/spin that they simply can't do through those official channels. How does Disney, for example:
  • Shape the messaging internally (among disgruntled CMs and former CMs)?
  • Pin the failures of SW:GE on Chapek while giving credit to Iger for its successes?
  • Cast WDI as both geniuses and morons?
  • Replace NextGen with something else without admitting it was a $1B mistake?
  • Explain that Splash Mountain is too racist to keep around, but not too racist to profit from in the meantime?
  • Pretend that partnering with local governments is working out great for HK and Shanghai?
So instead, narratives around those sorts of questions are spun by "insiders" who come here to tell the "real" story (presented as being based on inside information and conversations with people who know things):
  • Chapek is cheap, cautious, and uncreative, while Iger is the new Walt who wants to spend big and risk failure to do things right
  • Disney felt pressured by Universal's success with Wizarding World and just had to respond with Pandora Galaxy's Edge
  • Disney is in dire straits financially and might unload the Asian parks (right before an earnings call that showed that Disney has lots of cash and credit, resulting in a boost in share prices)
  • Kathleen Kennedy's "woke agenda" is responsible for running the Star Wars franchise into the ground
  • Disney's pandemic response makes guests feel safer in the parks than anywhere outside the parks, but Disney doesn't really want too many people at the parks (for guest safety)
  • "The new attraction/land/transportation everyone is disappointed in was going to be awesome, if only they had followed through with (insert leaked concept idea here)."
These "narratives" aren't necessarily trying to change fan's minds 180º. It's more to steer fan disappointment and frustration in certain directions by filling in a narrative. Sometimes, I'm sure the "leaks" are just bologna posted by vloggers who can then cite this site as a source of inside information. Other times it's clear that the insider has a tiny hint of inside info, and then mixes in loads of personal opinion. But the 3rd category, in my opinion, seems to be more of an organized effort.

I won't claim to know all the details of any influence strategies, nor do I know who might be behind them. But I've seen what certainly seem to me to be orchestrated efforts to spin narratives here that have then been broadcast out through the countless blogs, YouTube channels, Instagrammers, etc.

I've had my own experiences on these boards where posters have shown that they have agendas beyond just chatting with other fans about all things Disney. To say that Disney doesn't care about what's posted here seems either naive or, well, like "nothing to see here" spin.
 

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

Back
Top Bottom