(RoyalPatriot.com )- Disney welcomed back Bob Iger as CEO recently, and he’s already making waves about his dislike of one of the company’s decisions.
During a town hall meeting on Monday that was held with employees of the company, Iger said he isn’t happy about the fact that Disney got embroiled in political controversies. He said he would attempt to “quiet things down” on that front politically during his time serving in the CEO role once again.
Bob Chapek, who preceded Iger in the role, got Disney involved in a political tiff with Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis. Earlier in 2022, Chapek criticized the a bill that was passed in Florida called the Florida Parental Rights in Education Act. It was dubbed as the “don’t say gay” law.
Chapek vowed that Disney would do everything in its power to repeal that law. In response, DeSantis fired back, saying he would work to repeal Disney’s self-governing status.
The board of directors for Disney fired Chapek last week. Chapek actually replaced Iger back in 2020. Iger had served as CEO from 2005 to 2020, then as executive chairman until he retired in 2021. Now, he’s back in the saddle again, heading up Disney.
Chris Rufo, who’s a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, obtained an exclusive video of Iger speaking to Disney employees at the town hall. He then shared clips of that video on Twitter.
One Disney staff member asked Iger about “staying out of making political statements.” At first, the CEO insisted that many people had misconceptions about Disney and that some of the issues “have been branded political,” while he doesn’t agree with that sentiment.
He then said:
“Do I like the company being embroiled in controversy? Of course not. It can be distracting, and it can have a negative impact on the company. And to the extent that I can work to kind of quiet things down, I’m going to do that.”
Later, he was specifically asked about the “don’t say gay” law. He was very cautious in his response to that question, saying:
“When you tell stories, there’s a delicate balance. You’re talking to an audience, but it’s also important to listen to an audience. It’s important to have respect for the people you are serving, that you are trying to reach and not have disdain from.
“We’re not going to make everyone happy all the time, and we’re not going to try to. We’re certainly not going to lessen our core values in order to make everyone happy all the time.”
In commenting on what Iger said at the town hall, Rufo said that his stance indicates “an important shift. Iger is signaling that Disney is moderating its position in the culture war.”
While Disney certainly has a very large role in what happens in culture — around the world, not just in the United States — Iger’s position seems to be that the company should stick to the stories it tells through its productions, and not try to make political statements from its leaders.
