Disney comms director resigns

The Walt Disney Company’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer resigned yesterday after three months in that job.

Architect of Disney political response

Mr. Geoff Morrell tendered his resignation in a letter to Disney CEO Bob Chapek. Said he:

After three months in the new role, it has become obvious to me that it is not the right match for a number reasons.

Morrell helped Chapek craft the company’s condemnation of the Florida Parental Rights in Education Act. At first CEO Bob Chapek preferred to say nothing. But pressure from left-wing creatives, executive, and leads at Disney forced Chapek to reconsider. Mr. Morrell worked directly in writing Mr. Chapek’s response.

The bill passed anyway. Worse, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) included in his special session call a proposal to terminate the Reedy Creek Improvement District. The Disney company has run that district since 1967, after then-Gov. Charles Kirk signed it into law. The impetus for the District was the plan to build a planned city, the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT). That plan never came to fruition, but Disney built another world’s-fair-like theme park in place of it. Since then, Disney has effectively governed itself, with an autonomy even a county does not enjoy.

That will now come to an end. Some dispute remains as to whether the law can go into force and effect until all Reedy Creek improvement bonds are paid off.

The worst strike against Mr. Morrel is the fall in Disney stock. That fall has in fact brought down the Dow Jones Industrial Average more than 900 points in two separate sessions.

Did Morrell contribute to the delay in response?

Rumors have it that Mr. Morrell did not want to take on Florida, because doing so would force Disney to take on China. He also predicted – correctly – that both DeSantis and President Donald J. Trump would pummel Disney politically for the stance.

Chapek himself gave this warning to staff on March 7:

Corporate statements do very little to change outcomes or minds. Instead, they are often weaponized by one side or the other to further divide and inflame.

Which is why, historically, most large companies have avoided taking public political stands, or publicly endorsing candidates.

Sources:

Axios, CNBC, and Politico Daily all covered the resignation. See also CNAV’s retrospectives, here and here, on the history of The Walt Disney Company.