Disney has ditched its trigger warnings for classic cartoons such as Peter Pan and the Jungle Book which said the movies contained “harmful stereotypes”.
The entertainment giant has said it will abandon a series of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) policies, following in the footsteps of other Fortune 500 companies.
It comes as Donald Trump cracks down on the initiatives, issuing a series of executive orders aimed at dismantling DEI programs across the federal government and the private sector.
In 2020, in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests, the company announced that it would warn users of “negative depictions” in content on its Disney+ streaming platform.
Disney has ditched its trigger warnings for classic cartoons
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Films such as Dumbo have been slapped with the warnings, with its content cited as “ridiculing enslaved Africans on Southern plantations”.
”While in The Aristocats (1970) the Siamese cat Shun Gon was “depicted as a racist caricature of East Asian peoples”, another warning read.
The autoplay, introduced in 2020, read: “This programme includes negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures. These stereotypes were wrong then and are wrong now. Rather than remove this content, we want to acknowledge its harmful impact, learn from it and spark conversation to create a more inclusive future together.
“Disney is committed to creating stories with inspirational and aspirational themes that reflect the rich diversity of the human experience around the globe.”
In 2020, in the wake of the Black Lives Matter protests, the company announced that it would warn users of “negative depictions” in content on its Disney+ streaming platform
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According to Axios, sources have said the company has now reverted back to a 2019 message which reads: “This programme is presented as originally created and may contain stereotypes or negative depictions.”
In a memo to leadership, Disney’s chief human resources officer Sonia Coleman outlined the DEI changes.
She said: “Creating a welcoming and respectful environment for our employees and guests is core to our company culture and our business.
“Our values — integrity, creativity, collaboration, community, inclusion — guide our actions and how we treat each other.
Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, began toning down its political image after he returned to the company in 2022
Reuters“Today I want to provide an update on how our values are embedded in our leader compensation programs, specifically our Other Performance Factors (OPFs), as well as share some of the work that has been underway to evolve our talent strategy consistent with these values.”
Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, began toning down its political image after he returned to the company in 2022.
In 2023, he told shareholders that instead of Disney being “agenda-driven”, it should be “entertainment-driven”.
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