WDW Social 'Media' and Conspiracy

Originally Posted By Spirit of 74

<<Indeed - and the sad thing is that they try to substitute creating new content with hyping the emotions about existing - as well as past - content in order to try to stay relevant.

That's what Disney Social Media is about to a large extent. All those many blog posts kind of try to let you forget that there is nothing really new and of interest to report. >>

Now, Bolna, you are sounding like a Spirited hater! ;-)

Besides, did you know San Angel Inn has a new menu?!?!? REALLY?!??!

Is that enough to get you to plan a MAGICal WDW vacation from Germany? ;-)

And I don't just know it because friends have dined there and told me, but because Pam 'I never pay for anything I eat across 43 square miles!' Brandon blogged about it!

I don't know about you, but food is very important to me (had Japanese cuisine for lunch today, thanks for asking!)

~GFC~

 

Originally Posted By Spirit of 74

<<SSE is the only one left, LwtL and UoE have scenes and screens, but no AAs.

LwtL has plants, though! ;-) >>

While this is off-topic (since when does that stop us!), did I miss something and Disney took the Dinos and Ellen out of Energy ... and are those gators, birds and monkeys on LwtL real and not animatronics?

~GFC~

 

Originally Posted By Spirit of 74

<<As an admission paying guest, it is now our responsibility to understand the economic pressures of running a financially successful theme park. I don't think so.>>

The DoM would say so ... the bumpkins that don't know any better would too ... and the fanbois with unnatural Disney attachments too ... and how about the podcasters/bloggers/IP thieves/etc who live off Disney?

But I don't feel compassion for large, heartless corporations that make billions of dollars ... just like they didn't pay my bills today!

~GFC~

 

Originally Posted By ChiMike

>>UNI is trying to deliver the best possible product in themed family entertainment to its guests, while WDW is trying as well ... trying to deliver the absolute least it possibly can ... and it has been doing so right through the last Decade of Decline.<<

And it's not just about out doing Disney. I don't want my point to get lost. It's about out doing yourself. Universal has proven to me that ever since Jaws, Kongfrontation, and ET, they have at least made the effort to try to reach the next step in their own evolution. Something that I feel is really commendable. To go from USH Day 1, to cutting edge 3D like T2, to IOA, to Men In Black, to Mummy, to Potter, shows me a great internal effort irrespective of what Disney is doing down the road.

Now let's look at WDW specific creations. MK -> Space Mountain/(BTMR) -> EPCOT -> Horizons/TLS -> MGM/TL -> Sunset/ToT ->

So far so good...

-> Animal Kingdom

Okay, that still works, kind of

TT -> RNRC -> JIYI -> Carpets -> DinoRama -> Philharmagic -> M:S -> Stitch -> Everest -> MILF

YUCK.

>>When did Disney last raise the bar in O-Town? ToT in 1994? KS in 1998? Anything this century?

I would say ToT

 

Originally Posted By Lee hisownself

>>I CANT wait. i am soo excited to see how amazing it will all turn out. i know good things come to those who wait and we have all been waiting a while, and we will keep waiting and waiting, but i know it'll be AWESOME!!<<

>>I can't wait for the expansion of fantasyland to be complete. Even though I'm a little sad that most of mickey's toontown fair will no longer be there I think Disney will make up for in it in the expansion. Knowing Disney, this addition will have something for everyone and will be awesome. Can't wait to go when it finally opens<<

>>I think that this expansion will truely put the "fantasy" in fantasyland. Beyond the castle, there really isnt anything that is "fantasy" in the current fantasyland. The buildings simply look like carnival buildings, and dated ones at that. This expansion will give us whole new stories and places to explore. That will be true fantasy. Losing Mickey's Toontown Fair will also be a plus as well. It was an interesting area, but I think that Storybook Circus will be a significant upgrade. And duplicating the ever-popular Dumbo ride was a smart idea as well. I can't wait for this expansion to be complete!! <<

Just for laughs, I offer up these three quotes.
No, they aren't from the Disney Parks Blog. They are from an FLE thread on WDWMagic.
I couldn't help but notice their...um...unusually (even for Magic) exuberant and wildly positive tone.

All three quotes come from posters that have joined within the last month. Two of the three list their location as places in NY.

Not sayin' they're plants, but....

~G-f'n-FC~

 

Originally Posted By ChiMike

I think I have a cavity after reading your post Lee

 

Originally Posted By EPCOT Explorer

>>>It screams NYWF'64 to me, the dinosaurs, the large show spaces, the unique building. The 'moving theater' ride vehicle. The diorama, all the now disabled effects... It was an epic creation, it was something out of the ordinary. I dig it.<<<

And '39...

GE liked the idea of traveling theaters.

 

Originally Posted By ChiMike

>>But I don't feel compassion for large, heartless corporations that make billions of dollars ... just like they didn't pay my bills today!

<<

But again Spirit, it doesn't have to be a heartless corporation or a billion dollars. It could be Walt Disney Productions circa 1962 or it could be HolidayWorld 2004. I paid the admission price THEY set. I'm clear. After that it's not my concern why they can't afford to fix things, build things, staff things. They can be making tons of money or losing money.. I paid what they wanted, they should deliver what they market.

Over the last decade it seems they have spent more on Edelmen and Leo Burnett then on quality additions to the MK. They promise/market one thing, people pay the admission to get it, and then they deliver something far inferior.. Anyone who raises concern about it, is typically patted on the head and lectured on corporate finance 101. Notwithstanding the obscene amount of money spent on the out-of-touch marketing in the first place!

 

Originally Posted By EPCOT Explorer

Speaking of NY and the NYWFs...


...Let's just say it's nice to have a non-Disney trip/destination on the horizon.

Try saying that in the Disney community!


"You aren't going to Disneyland?"

"You aren't doing Disney?"

No, there's a whole wide world out there. The mouse can wait.

 

Originally Posted By ChiMike

>>And '39...

GE liked the idea of traveling theaters. <<

Great point EE, forgot to mention it.

 

Originally Posted By EPCOT Explorer

>>>Great point EE, forgot to mention it.<<<

Thanks!


Seeing I'm actually heading up there, now (been planning for months!) I've been researching the NYWFs, too. Was always interested, but this has kicked me into high gear. Fascinating stuff. Love it.

 

Originally Posted By Lee hisownself

>>No, there's a whole wide world out there. The mouse can wait. <<

*sigh*
Going all the way to NY to look at where a World's Fair WAS?
As opposed to finally going to where Disney's flagship park IS?

Oh, my....

 

Originally Posted By EPCOT Explorer

>>>*sigh*
Going all the way to NY to look at where a World's Fair WAS?
As opposed to finally going to where Disney's flagship park IS?

Oh, my...<<<<

History, Lee, history. The NYWF site and museum is only going to be a day out of the trip.

The rest will be filled with seeing the rest of the city's landmarks and museums and shows.

That doesn't compare to a theme park in some respects.

I'll get to DL, soon, don't worry... but the real world is calling.

 

Originally Posted By Spirit of 74

>>No, there's a whole wide world out there. The mouse can wait. <<

<<*sigh*
Going all the way to NY to look at where a World's Fair WAS?
As opposed to finally going to where Disney's flagship park IS?>>

While I want the kid to see DL, so he can realize just how ghetto the MK is in comparison, I will give him props for taking a trip to one of the great cities in the USA and offer tips for said trip (just NOT HERE in the midst of an important discussion!)


<<Oh, my....>>

As George Takei would say, right? ;-)

~GFC~

 

Originally Posted By Spirit of 74


First, been a bit surprised there hasn't been more chatter on Manny the Super MAGICal Papi Blogger. But, hey, I'll talk (or write) ... like I said, book material (hey if ex-Imagineer Eddie Sotto can do it, why not the Spirit?)

So, let's get back to 'da man ... and Manny's da' man, make no mistake.

For all of those webmasters who have dedicated years, for many it has been well over a decade if not closer to two decades, to covering TWDC and P&R, perhaps a closer look at exactly 'what' papiblogger (AKA Manny Ruiz) is might be in order.

Perhaps, it might serve us better to see what he is not.

He is not a Disney fan.

He is not someone from within the fan community.

He is not someone with a treasure trove of knowledge or perspective on Mickey's parks.

He is not even a Disney blogger.

Papi Manny was created by corporate interests and for the express purpose of pimping products like 'Disney Parks'. The website his company runs as a blog was manufactured to facilitate his personal financial interests and to coincide with the needs of his large stable of corporate clients. Ditto for his Twitter account. And, yeah, the same for his Facebook pages.

When did LP.com start? Sometime back in the 1990s when Al Lutz was fighting with fanbois on the ADD newsgroup. When did most of the major sites start? Yep, all go back many years (often over a decade).

Now, when did the PapiBlogger start? When did he put the backbone of this Social Media 'experiment' online? How about way, way, way back in ... May of 2010. You gotta admire that kind of dedication, right?

You read that correctly. 'Papi Manny' had virtually no Social Media footprint, and certainly nothing in the Disney fan community, until a little more than a year ago. That is when he went 'live' in preparation for last year's two and a half month family vaca...I mean, corporate product-placement orgy that took the Ruiz brood all around the good ole USA.

Considering how many folks have up and moved to Orlando or are in the process of moving to O-town or have otherwise redirected their lives to be in line with the Disney Lifestyle (again, why does this make me a bit ill?), this has got to be one seismic shift they weren't prepared for. Because, well, they have all gone and dedicated themselves to something that is giving them a huge smack in the face.

We all know how much they whine and complain in full view of fans, strangers and any Disney official that happen to read their Tweets or friend them on FB about their treatment from Disney Social Media.

Many bloggers/podcasters have been quite vocal about how 'hard' they work (sorry, spending 5-6 days a week in a theme park may not officially be an illness, but it isn't work either unless you get a check with Mickey on it!) and how 'difficult' it is to get invites from the Mouse and here comes Papi Manny who gets more than a Red Carpet welcome. He's bought and paid for by TWDC to pretend to be one of them. On steroids. Copious amounts of 'roids.

And the game of pretend is far, far more layered than you'd ever like to believe.

Take this, for example ... Others have commented on how this dude -- the papiblogger -- doesn't even have much knowledge of the product. How his Tweets and posts are littered with false information and sloppy comments. All part of the Social Media playbook, folks.

Do not be fooled.

You see, if Papi Manny appears to not quite be up on his Disney knowledge, this serves another decidedly underhanded purpose. It gives his coverage of TWDC a patina of legitimacy among the blogosphere because if he really was spouting talking points/marketing for Disney he'd get his information right ... no? No. By positioning info that's questionable, that's street cred (cyber cred?) that Manny's our man. He's the real deal.

Ah, um ... no, he's anything but out here among the genuine fan-base.

And then, this sorta off blogging and tweeting of info also works to stimulate conversation. After all, who among his followers wouldn't want to help poor mistaken Manny by tweeting or posting a correction? Bonus: increases hits for him and moves TWDC's conversation with the fans forward.

As for those hits, well, let's just say that's most definitely not a strong point for Papi. See, the numbers for his blog (unfortunately now boosted by his mention here) are abysmal. Really not even enough to justify inclusion on any list for Disney's Social Media Dept. Remember though, this 'blogger' was cast by TWDC and feeds their newly-launched Latino site.

Papi Manny's numbers, unlike those of all (or most) of the other bloggers/podcasters, aren't all that important to TWDC. Just another example of how the company still has no real idea as to how to properly engage the fan community with Social Media. Where others, some well-known for years in the community, beg for invites/cooperation or simple info, this blogger simply shows up 'on set' as directed by the 'mother company'.

Now, now, if you're feeling a bit dirty, Disney sells a line of H2O products with Mickey's visage to clean that off with. Just ask Papi Manny, he'll tell you. I mean, he's been at this for ... oh yeah, that's right, he's only be at this for about a year. Sometimes, the Spirit can't count without his fingers, good thing he only needs one here ;-)

Unlike the rest of the blogosphere though, Papi Manny and his family were cast by TWDC to surf the web from coast to coast and across the globe as 'independent voices' of Social Media from the community. And they're getting paid for it. Paid to perpetuate a fraud on the masses who have, in recent years, flocked to Social Media to get the message about all sorts of things (as traditional media has been savaged in the USA).

Papi Manny gets paid BIG TIME. And, he gets the kind of things even A-listers aren't provided with these days.

For example, since others have also commented on this ...

The pictures, those were provided by press and publicity or taken by a WDW photographer who followed the family around. That's right, Papi Manny had a personal photographer on his MAGICal Disney vacation.

The accommodations, they were not dictated by WDW Social Media's bloated contingent but by papiblogger. The meals, handpicked again by papiblogger. And, yeah, the gift cards and the ... well, the list goes on and on. (Did he tweet that not everything MAGICal bought at WDW could fit in that rad Buick Enclave? Nope, didn't think so. Must not have fit ... the corporate agenda.)

As for the casting aspect, that is indeed Manny's family. How willing the kids are to go along as props for the family business ... I suspect not so willing by some of the photos. I'm sure his ill son will greatly appreciate being used when in pain (perhaps, his ex-wife may not be pleased with him as well!) Sadly, on this vacation paid for by TWDC and then some (something no fan will ever experience), these kids appear to be less than MAGICal ... but, hey, they'll all be happy in the end!

M-I-C ... See the casting agent at the cyber door. ... K-E-Y ... Why? Because we want to control your thoughts!

M-O-U-S-E!

~GFC~

 

Originally Posted By Christi22222

Dang this thread moves too fast! I just caught up last night, and I'm already behind again. So my comment is from a post 3 pages back. Forgive me.

>>As an admission paying guest, it is now our responsibility to understand the economic pressures of running a financially successful theme park. I don't think so.<<

This comment from ChiMike really grabbed me. It's one of my biggest complaints when folks defend Disney by saying, they are a company so they HAVE to do these crappy things. Actually, all they HAVE to do is run a company that is good enough to keep me coming back and spending money. And the crap they are doing isn't doing it. I don't care one little bit if cost cutting looks good to their accountants, or DVC gets an instant return on investment. The company is offering crap and will force it's own demise. Self fulfilling prophecy and all.

I'm tired. Does that all make sense? Bolna and ChiMike are really on a roll. And Spirit is his usual spirited self.
So I'm going with, "what they said," as my best coherent contribution! lol

 

Originally Posted By ChiMike

Thanks for the kind words Christi

 

Originally Posted By ReelJustice

<<Where others, some well-known for years in the community, beg for invites/cooperation or simple info, this blogger simply shows up 'on set' as directed by the 'mother company'>>

Our good friend Merfy has been pretty down lately. tWDC has been ignoring him and doesn't credential him. Surprisingly, he puts out the best info most of the time.


Back to Papi, you've almost got me feeling sympathetic towards Lou, Tom, and Steve right now...almost. While I may not like them or agree with their "selling out", at least Lou and Steve have been "good soldiers" for the company and as you said, put in the time. And further, while they may lie about the product, at least Lou and Steve know it..and the past. Not really familiar with Tom other than "WDW has never been better!"

It really is sinister that Zenia and Thomas have gone "above and beyond" (oh hai there The Basics) in trying to control the message by actually casting their own personal stooge who happens to be of an ethnicity that they may be trying to tap. I'd prefer Lou and Magical Steve...better the devil you know than the devil you don't.

Of course, I'd rather everyone just be honest...ah, to wish upon a star.

~la GFC~

 

Originally Posted By sjhym333

I love Flushing Meadows park...the site of the NYWF. The Queens Museum has a great Worlds Fair exhibit and the Unisphere is always impressive. The NY State Pavillion (seen in Men in Black) is in terrible shape but still a wonder to see. There are some great DVD's about the NY Worlds Fair that I would recommend. I grew up in NYC and my family went to the Fair alot growing up.

 

Originally Posted By Bolna

<<Yes. I loved that. Need to find that quote ... >>

Post # 190 in "New Entry Plaza question??" on the "DCA, Future Expansion" board:

<<Part of what I believe has gone wrong in Disney is that everything has become so self referential. I understand the need for promotion and synergy. But I cannot help but reflect on the fact that the original artists and designers and writers and visionaries that created the real Disney magic had a breadth of interests and experience that was based largely in the real world.>>

I knew where to find it because the comment was made in reply to a post from me.

<<Nailed it again, Bolna. I so like converting people over to the Dark Side (otherwise known as reality!)>>

Thanks! But no "converting" necessary - it's just plain logic.

<<I enjoyed the parks in the past, but I don't want to go back. I enjoyed UNI's parks in the past. The thing is they are adding and improving and Disney isn't (mostly in Florida, to be fair, but I live here ... these are MY parks!) What I want is Disney to keep improving them and making them better ...and they aren't, Social Media whores aside, they are heading in the opposite direction.>>

Living in the past is always easier than taking up the new challenges of today.

I think that Disney thinks they are still improving the parks and making them better - that's what those interactive queues are about and the new game at the MK. Or even the princess-themed rooms at Riverside...

But to me this just seems that they are losing themselves into unneccesary details and are forgetting about the core of what those parks are about.