Digby: Systemic Icon Failure

[BurtWorm]

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2006_09_01_digbysblog_archive.html#115774935087856546

In 2004, Roy Disney, Walt's nephew and third largest shareholder of the company gave a stirring speech to the shareholders in which he made this point:


The Walt Disney Company is more than just a business. It is an authentic American icon -- which is to say that over the years it has come to stand for something real and meaningful and worthwhile to millions of people of all ages and backgrounds around the world.

This is not something you can describe easily on a balance sheet, but it is tangible enough. Indeed, it is the foundation on which everything we have accomplished as a company -- both artistically and financially -- is based.



Disney isn't just any corporation. It is one of the most valuable brands on the planet. They make a product that they can sell over and over again as each generation is born and they sell it with with a stamp of approval from parents who enjoyed the same product when they were children. Roy is right. It is an authentic American icon.

If they allow themselves to become a purveyor of biased political product, which they lately seem intent upon doing, they will have devalued the single most important asset they have. It would be unfortunate for all of us if millions of Americans were to reluctantly be forced to accept that this authentic American icon is nothing more than a cheap imitation of Fox News.

Even Rupert Murdoch keeps his political and entertainment divisions separate.




<One problem with Digby's analysis: The Disneys were well-known arch-conservatives who were adept at propaganda themselves. In the 1940s, their art was anti-Nazi and anti-Japanese. After the war, they showered South America with pro-capitalist, anti-labor propaganda. Here's an interesting article on the subject: http://lass.calumet.purdue.edu/cca/gmj/OldSiteBackup/SubmittedDocuments/archivedpapers/fall2002/Artz.htm>

[Crunchy Frog]

1. Can you fix your link?

The one you have now takes you to the page that shows the ten most recent General Discussion threads. Do you have a link to the Digby blog post?

[BurtWorm]

2. Sorry.

I was off viewing Greg Palast's Katrina documentary. Anyway, thanks for pointing out the bad link.