LA Times Blocked For Advanced Screenings By Disney

According to a recent story by the LA Times about why they hadn’t reviewed Thor: Ragnarok, Disney has blocked the LA Times from advanced screens of its movies like Thor: Ragnarok due to a story the Times ran that examined the business relationship between the company’s flagship Californian theme park, Disneyland, and the city of Anaheim, which Disney found to be unfair. The story had said that Disney has secured “subsidies, incentives, rebates and protections from future taxes in Anaheim”.

The LA times recently published its annual holiday movie preview which featured films from major studios across Hollywood without Disney. The LA Times said

“The annual Holiday Movie Sneaks section published by the Los Angeles Times typically features on movies from all major studios, reflecting the diversity of films Hollywood offers during the holidays, one of the busiest box-office periods of the year. This year, Walt Disney Co. studios declined to offer The Times advance screenings, citing what it called unfair coverage of its business ties with Anaheim.”

They continued to add that they “will continue to review and cover Disney movies and programs when they are available to the public.”

The Walt Disney Company had the following comment:

“[We] regularly work with news organizations around the world that we don’t always agree with. [The L.A. Times] showed a complete disregard for basic journalistic standards. Despite our sharing numerous indisputable facts with the reporter, several editors, and the publisher over many months, the Times moved forward with a biased and inaccurate series, wholly driven by a political agenda. We’ve had a long relationship with the L.A. Times and we hope they will adhere to balanced reporting in the future.”

What do you think of Disney blocking the LA Times?