It was revealed that Latoya Raveneau (an executive producer at Disney) had boasted that her team had created a “not all-secret gay agenda” that was constantly “adding queerness to children’s programming”.
It was not well received by the public. After the leak, a Rasmussen Reports poll revealed that Disney’s claims of promoting LGBTQ messaging to children weren’t well received by Americans. Only 28% of adults surveyed believed that children’s entertainment is enhanced by focusing on diversity and inclusion. However, only 18% of the respondents believed it would have no impact and 45% thought it would have a negative effect. 47% of Americans also saw the company negatively, while 42% viewed it positively.
A poll by Issues & Insights/TIPP found that a majority reported they no longer trust Disney’s programming last year after news stories about Disney’s opposition to the Florida parental rights law.
Disney ignores these concerns and insists that woke content be produced to groom children, despite the fact that there are a lot of films with poor box office results and streaming series that don’t have a lot of viewers. This week, Willow, the highly-anticipated sequel series to the 1988 movie, was canceled after only one season. It featured a same-sex romance with a male character portraying a female character and the stark juxtaposition of strong and brave female characters with weak, cowardly, and weak male characters.
Disney’s problems aren’t just related to the content they produce. In reality, fewer people choose Disney parks as their vacation destination.
According to The Street, Disney was disappointed by a Family Destinations Guide study. The study examined searches for tourist attractions across each state. It included various destinations like national parks, beaches, and Elvis’ Graceland. As a major operator of theme parks, Disney was often absent from top-tier searches. Disney World, the company’s main Florida theme park, was missing entirely from the search results, while Disney Land, California, only made it to the top ten.
The Street believes that Disney’s recent foray into “woke” politics, especially in Florida, has contributed to the company’s fall from the top. While this doesn’t mean that Disney Parks aren’t hurting visitors, they still meet quotas — but it is a worrying trend that should be of concern to Disney. They have insulted their audiences and alienated people who would typically love to visit their parks.
