Disney has a secret army...

[TLSnell1981]

Still critical of FP+...still here. Nobody pays for my opinion, but I gladly voice it for free.

 

[wisblue]

Thanks for this! I couldn't find them to save my life.

I particularly like the last part of the rules:
We do not believe in censorship, and open discussions about various issues is encouraged. When participating in a thread, we ask that everyone be treated with respect and that our guidelines be followed. If we find that an individual is disruptive and is unable to follow our rules, he/she will be barred from participating on our site.

Of course, "disruptive" can vary depending on the situation but I like this particularly the part about not believing in censorship.

Do you also see the provision about infractions and the point system?

If you look at those, especially the items about personal attacks and posting under another screen name while banned, it might give you an idea why some posters are no longer here.

 

[Jaya]

Disney manipulates public opinion? Oh no! Tell me it isn't so before I swoon with horror. <snort>

 

[TLSnell1981]

Disney manipulates public opinion? Oh no! Tell me it isn't so before I swoon with horror. <snort>

Be very careful with the <snort>...lots of Pixiedust on the DIS.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

If it's such a super secret army than how come everyone knows about it I wonder?

On the other hand, very few know about the secret bathroom. And it's our little secret.

 

[NMAmy]

It's something I've often wondered about--particularly when a certain poster is so overwhelmingly pro-Disney that they are baiting others for daring others to breathe an anti-Disney word. It is interesting to look at all posts by these users because a pattern often emerges such as posting almost exclusively on the Theme Parks board and only participating in discussions that start out anti-Disney.

I used to love Disney but the many changes have turned me off so I'm not spending money there anymore. I've posted about it but it often seems that the strategy is to denigrate the poster of anything anti-Disney--you're not doing it right, you hate change, etc. None of which is true but the barrage of purely positive posts about things like FP+ or Disney's actions in any given situation while tearing down the poster in response is interesting. If I see someone post that they don't like something at Disney that I enjoy, I don't feel it's necessary to put them down because of it.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I have seen very similar posts from both "camps" of people, one camp seems to be missing quite a few people, the other does not ... that is interesting.

Did you ever consider that maybe some people are better at following instructions than others? There is a thread about how we think others perceive us. I have been told by posters....and mods. So I know. While I cannot erase that perception, I have tried to reel it in so to speak so that I am able to continue posting and contribute to the conversation. In other words, I was told to follow the posted rules to be able to keep posting and so I did. Not a single rule states anything about one's FP+ position. Plenty if other rules, though. And harrassment is explicitly stated as not being permitted, for example.

What I find interesting is that there is a perception out there that some people were innocent and pure and did no wrong. And a perception that nothing happens to others. My inbox shows the latter to definitely not be true and I did this funny thing where I took the powers that be seriously and worked to follow the posting rules better.

The reality is that others did not. And if you happened to be around, that was obvious. FP+ had nothing to do with it. A secret army didn't have anything to do with it.

I will say I about had a heart attack when an incident occurred. In all my years on the DIS, nothing ever happened to me like that. And when other posters "liked" it, it was quite unsettling. I don't know what perception of me that other posters had where they felt I deserved the public lynching and harrassment. It was quite twisted.

And that is what happened in the course of discourse. Nobody in the boards with the power to do so was picking a side. They were stopping clear violations of the rules. There is no back door insight. There is just the very obvious distinction that personal attacks and certainly harassment are never okay here. One camp figured that out, I guess. The other--not so much.

Happy to discuss it further via PM.

Well, looky there! I can't find them directly either, but if you go to the TPAS forum, there's a sticky by Cyrano on page one about posting guidelines. In his first post he has a link to the complete rules. Sorry I don't have a more direct route.

I had to google them myself. Good to know they are somewhere on these boards.

It's something I've often wondered about--particularly when a certain poster is so overwhelmingly pro-Disney that they are baiting others for daring others to breathe an anti-Disney word. It is interesting to look at all posts by these users because a pattern often emerges such as posting almost exclusively on the Theme Parks board and only participating in discussions that start out anti-Disney.

I used to love Disney but the many changes have turned me off so I'm not spending money there anymore. I've posted about it but it often seems that the strategy is to denigrate the poster of anything anti-Disney--you're not doing it right, you hate change, etc. None of which is true but the barrage of purely positive posts about things like FP+ or Disney's actions in any given situation while tearing down the poster in response is interesting. If I see someone post that they don't like something at Disney that I enjoy, I don't feel it's necessary to put them down because of it.

There are thousands of members on these boards. Many who migrate to one board or another. My TPAS posting increased once I had meaningful experience to where I could contribute to the conversation.

The vacation I went on was planned for over a year and booked about 8 or 9 months ahead of that. It was paid for by me (well, by my husband and me) and I received NO compensation for it.

I can't help but think that the majority of folks who post do so for planning reasons or experience reasons and not because they want to overwhelm anyone with pixie dust or are part of a secret army which seems to be an exclusive "club" anyway.

All those purely positive posts are well balanced by the purely negative posts. But what I am reading here is that if by some strange happening, one has had a purely positive experience, it is just can't be believed because "your" experience was so bad. And there is a collective that will chime in begin breaking down that experience since it is impossible to be believed.

(Not your experience specifically.)

Have we really reached a point where any and all positive experiences are suspect?

 

[Marionnette]

Have we really reached a point where any and all positive experiences are suspect?

For me, any totally saccharin report is going to raise an eyebrow from now on because Disney planted the seeds of suspicion with their little army. No one's vacation is perfect from start to finish and even the best vacation is going to have its moments of disappointment. I'm sure that corporate plants have existed on these boards for quite some time. It's just the open acknowledgement of their existence that will always make me wonder if a member is posting a glowing report because the had a genuinely good time or if Disney is using these boards as a propaganda tool for their next wildly unpopular change.

I've also learned that the ignore feature on the new boards works much better than the old format. It used to be that you still saw the ignored member's posts if they were quoted. Now I don't see them. It can make some threads confusing to read, but at least I'm not tempted to be taken in by the bait.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

For me, any totally saccharin report is going to raise an eyebrow from now on because Disney planted the seeds of suspicion with their little army. No one's vacation is perfect from start to finish and even the best vacation is going to have its moments of disappointment. I'm sure that corporate plants have existed on these boards for quite some time. It's just the open acknowledgement of their existence that will always make me wonder if a member is posting a glowing report because the had a genuinely good time or if Disney is using these boards as a propaganda tool for their next wildly unpopular change.

I've also learned that the ignore feature on the new boards works much better than the old format. It used to be that you still saw the ignored member's posts if they were quoted. Now I don't see them. It can make some threads confusing to read, but at least I'm not tempted to be taken in by the bait.

Ignore does work well. But only for current members. Not accounts created specifically for the purpose of stalking and harrassment. If it did--we could ignore all those spammers trying to sell us passports and special enhancement medications. With the point being that such posts are not tolerated by others as well.

True on the trip reports. But if they are selecting so few people to do this "blogging", it seems it would be very few if any people here would be doing that. As if would have to be legally disclosed that perks have been received, I would think that people doing anything remotely like this here are not secret army bloggers but something different. *If* it was happening. Seems a bit Area 31 to me.

 

[AnAmericanInDisney]

Don't you think posting repeatedly here or posting trip reports could be considered "blogging?" Wonder if anyone will come forward to say they were approached by Disney and refused or did it for awhile but quit. I'm sure you have to sign a confidentiality agreement.

 

[NMAmy]

There are thousands of members on these boards. Many who migrate to one board or another. My TPAS posting increased once I had meaningful experience to where I could contribute to the conversation.

The vacation I went on was planned for over a year and booked about 8 or 9 months ahead of that. It was paid for by me (well, by my husband and me) and I received NO compensation for it.

I can't help but think that the majority of folks who post do so for planning reasons or experience reasons and not because they want to overwhelm anyone with pixie dust or are part of a secret army which seems to be an exclusive "club" anyway.

All those purely positive posts are well balanced by the purely negative posts. But what I am reading here is that if by some strange happening, one has had a purely positive experience, it is just can't be believed because "your" experience was so bad. And there is a collective that will chime in begin breaking down that experience since it is impossible to be believed.

(Not your experience specifically.)

Have we really reached a point where any and all positive experiences are suspect?

Not at all and I never said that. I love to hear about positive experiences--I've written my own trip reports over the years and read many others. However, I take it with a grain of salt when a poster routinely has to try to knock down every other poster that says something anti-Disney while continuing to spout pixie dust about WDW. I think we all know that while I may enjoy one thing, it may not be someone else's cup of tea. So if I spend my time saying all tea drinkers hate change and are doing it wrong, people aren't going to take that very seriously. Honestly, I would hope that if it were "Disney's Army," the company might share ways to spread the sunshine without acting like those who don't agree are idiots who can't tie their own shoes in the morning. That's not going to change anyone's bad opinion of the company.

I don't spend that much time on the Theme Parks board, mainly because I'm not happy with Disney and I'm not planning a trip, but partially because I've really come to dislike the attitudes I've seen displayed over there repeatedly. I pop in occasionally to see if there are any new rumors about the parks but that's about it so I have no knowledge of your posting or your recent issues.

 

[tiggergal15]

I'll say upfront I'm not part of this group but wish I was. That being said ..they don't work for Disney at all and whatever they get is no different then other companies using secret shoppers or testers, etc with perks to encourage promotions of the companies. ..purely a choice with the chance of a trip. Not guaranteed. Maybe they are a little overzealous and ocd Disney...lol...but all of us on here are. Personally I take each reply and decide what's best for me and research more. Faith...dust..and pixie dust..

 

[Ambear]

Thanks for this! I couldn't find them to save my life.

I particularly like the last part of the rules:
We do not believe in censorship, and open discussions about various issues is encouraged. When participating in a thread, we ask that everyone be treated with respect and that our guidelines be followed. If we find that an individual is disruptive and is unable to follow our rules, he/she will be barred from participating on our site.

Of course, "disruptive" can vary depending on the situation but I like this particularly the part about not believing in censorship.

Yep lol! like that other thread about threads getting deleted... That got locked. It was civil and I didn't see anything bad on it but poof... It was locked. With no explanation that I could find. Now it appears this thread is suffering the same fate. Unless I'm crazy and never read posts that are now gone...

 

[ArwenMarie]

I've also learned that the ignore feature on the new boards works much better than the old format. It used to be that you still saw the ignored member's posts if they were quoted. Now I don't see them. It can make some threads confusing to read, but at least I'm not tempted to be taken in by the bait.

I agree, the new Ignore function is wonderful, way better than the old one. And then you can always click to see the content if you feel like you are too lost but at least you are actively doing it.

 

[NMAmy]

Now it appears this thread is suffering the same fate. Unless I'm crazy and never read posts that are now gone...

No, you're not crazy. What the heck is up with that?

 

[Marionnette]

Yep lol! like that other thread about threads getting deleted... That got locked. It was civil and I didn't see anything bad on it but poof... It was locked. With no explanation that I could find. Now it appears this thread is suffering the same fate. Unless I'm crazy and never read posts that are now gone...

No, you're not crazy. What the heck is up with that?

Yep, some serious pruning took place on this thread. Kind of makes you want to just give up posting anything at all when the conversations get moved elsewhere or disappear completely.

 

[WebmasterDoc]

Unfortunately, some posts violating the DIS Guidelines have been removed. Posts quoting those offending posts are usually removed too. Another option would be just to close or delete the thread, but we rather try to leave threads open for productive discussion.

Those wishing to discuss the "Secret Army" topic in the title of this thread, please contribute.

If anyone wants to comment about moderation on the DIS or the DIS Guidelines, please send those to admin@wdwinfo.com , as suggested in the Guidelines. Posting concerns/complaints about the Guidelines or moderators here on the boards or in this thread is not a productive effort.

For those asking earlier, the Guidelines have always been in the same place regardless which board software has been used - http://www.wdwinfo.com/guidelines.htm . They really are a good read and used as the basis for the moderating decisions made here on the DIS.

 

[fly girl]

Like many others, I don't want to read reviews in where the author has been compensated. IMHO the review will have "rose colored glasses" because the person received something in exchange for it. The authenticity of it is gone! Author is posting this for some gain.

I think of the Dis like Trip Advisor. Sure you have the over the top people, and those you have suspicions about. I try my best to weed those out and find the in between.

However, when someone who really enjoys Disney (myself) shares experiences both good and bad I should not get hammered when I say something slightly negative. (Yep, you guessed it. I'm not a fan of FP+. And someone accused me of bullying when I created a post about over rated food -- I just don't get the schoolbread obsession. )

That's when I wonder ... are you just a zealot who can't see any wrong, or are you a part of this secret army to sway opinions?

That's the part that I'm not a fan of. If you are compensated to be on here to undermine others honest opinions.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

OK, I take back anything not totally glowing I ever wrote. Disney is perfect. Now Disney. About those discounts.

 

[Mikie]

Don't you think posting repeatedly here or posting trip reports could be considered "blogging?" Wonder if anyone will come forward to say they were approached by Disney and refused or did it for awhile but quit. I'm sure you have to sign a confidentiality agreement.

As I mentioned in my first post of this thread, I have one loose acquaintance who blogs and was selected for the Disney blogger conference (I think only once. I don't know if once you're in, you're in and continue going). She ends all of her blog posts about everything (products, Disney, stores) with the description of what was and what was not paid for by the company. Even though JimmyV highlighted Disney's reminder that federal rules require such disclosure, he does indicate that he believes they probably only put that on the specific blog post about that exact paid trip and not all Disney-related comments. Regardless, I still don't see how someone could be reminded to post that disclaimer and at the same time be working under a confidentiality agreement.